Part 1 of Essay
Branch Davidians, American religious movement that became widely known in 1993, when most of its members were killed in a fire that destroyed their headquarters near Waco, Texas. The fire marked the end of a 51-day siege by United States federal agents. (Microsoft® Encarta® 98 Encyclopedia. © 1993-1997 Microsoft Corporat ....

Part 2 of Essay
.... Houteff died in 1955, and the Branch Davidian movement itself eventually splintered. Vernon Howell, the future David Koresh, attended various schools before dropping out after the tenth grade. Vernon spent hours in agonized prayer and Bible study. He became leader of one faction of the Davidian movement and in 1990 legally adopted the symbolic name David Koresh. “David” signifies the kingdom of David to be restored in Palestine. Koresh emphasized the apocalyptic element in Davidian theology, teaching that th ....