I live in Alabama and know of such groups but don't know anyone who has participated in one. I am interested in finding out why and how these groups got started and how they worship.
Snake handlers take it really literally.
For 19 centuries most Christians understood these signs as mere possibilities. Then in 1909 Tennessee preacher George Hensley pointed out that it didn't say may , brothers and sisters, it said shall. He challenged his congregation to handle poisonous snakes or be condemned to hell. Needless to say, nobody ever fell asleep during one of Hensley's services. His snake-handling spectacles drew crowds from far and wide and inspired other true believers to take up the bizarre practice on their own.