Christian views on magic
Christian views on magic vary widely among
Biblical references
There are several references to
Others point to a primitive idealist belief in a relation between bewitching and coveting, reflected in the occasional translation of the
Some adherents of near-east religions acted as
At the very least, older biblical prohibitions included those against '
Early Paulian Christianity
The Apostle Paul's Epistle to the Galatians includes sorcery in a list of "works of the flesh".[3] This disapproval is echoed in the Didache,[4] a very early book of church discipline which dates from the mid-late first century.[5]
Medieval views
During the Early Middle Ages, the Christian Churches did not conduct witch trials.[6] The Germanic Council of Paderborn in 785 explicitly outlawed the very belief in witches, and the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne later confirmed the law. Among Eastern Orthodox Christians concentrated in the Byzantine Empire, belief in witchcraft was widely regarded as deisidaimonia—superstition—and by the 9th and 10th centuries in the Latin Christian West, belief in witchcraft had begun to be seen as heresy.
Christian perspectives began to change with the influential writings of the mystic poet
Towards the end of the
The
Not all Inquisitorial courts acknowledged witchcraft. For example, in 1610 as the result of a witch-hunting craze the Suprema (the ruling council of the Spanish Inquisition) gave everybody an Edict of Grace (during which confessing witches were not to be punished) and put the only dissenting inquisitor, Alonso de Salazar Frías, in charge of the subsequent investigation. The results of Salazar's investigation was that the Spanish Inquisition did not bother witches ever again though they still went after heretics and Crypto-Jews.[11]
Martin Luther
Martin Luther shared some of the views about witchcraft that were common in his time.[12] When interpreting Exodus 22:18,[13] he stated that, with the help of the devil, witches could steal milk merely by thinking of a cow.[14] In his Small Catechism, he taught that witchcraft was a sin against the second commandment[15] and prescribed the Biblical penalty for it in a "table talk":
On 25 August 1538 there was much discussion about witches and sorceresses who poisoned chicken eggs in the nests, or poisoned milk and butter. Doctor Luther said: "One should show no mercy to these [women]; I would burn them myself, for we read in the Law that the priests were the ones to begin the stoning of criminals."[16]
Luther's view of practitioners of magic as quasi-demons was at odds with the Catholic view that emphasized choice and repentance. He also argued that one of the most serious perversions wrought by magic was the threatened degeneration of traditional female roles in the family.[17]
Renaissance views
In the era of the Inquisition and anti-witchcraft sentiment, there was a more acceptable form of "purely natural" occult and pagan study, the study of "natural" phenomena in general with no evil or irreligious intent whatsoever.[18]
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa (1486–1535), a German magician, occult writer, theologian, astrologer, and alchemist, wrote the influential Three Books of Occult Philosophy, incorporating Kabbalah in its theory and practice of Western magic. It contributed strongly to the Renaissance view of ritual magic's relationship with Christianity.[23] Giambattista della Porta expanded on many of these ideas in his Magia Naturalis.[24] Giovanni Pico della Mirandola promoted a syncretic worldview combining Platonism, Neoplatonism, Aristotelianism, Hermeticism, and Kabbalah.[23]
Pico's Hermetic syncretism was further developed by Athanasius Kircher, a Jesuit priest, hermeticist, and polymath, who wrote extensively on the subject in 1652, bringing further elements such as Orphism and Egyptian mythology to the mix.[25] Lutheran Bishop James Heiser recently evaluated the writings of Marsilio Ficino and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola as an attempted "Hermetic Reformation".[26]
John Dee
Modern views
During the Age of Enlightenment, belief in the powers of witches and sorcerers to harm began to die out in the West. [citation needed] But the reasons for disbelief differed from those of early Christians. For the early Christians the reason was theological—that Christ had already defeated the powers of evil. For the post-Enlightenment Christians in West and North Europe, the disbelief was based on a belief in rationalism and empiricism.
It was at this time, however, that Western Christianity began expanding to parts of Africa and Asia where premodern worldviews still held sway, and where belief in the power of witches and sorcerers to harm was, if anything, stronger than it had been in
The situation was further complicated by the rise of
Christian opposition to witchcraft
This section needs additional citations for verification. (September 2021) |
Several Christian groups continue to believe in witchcraft and view it as a
Among Christian tendencies, the NAR is especially aggressive in efforts to counter alleged acts of witchcraft; the NAR's globally distributed "Transformations" pseudo-documentaries by filmmaker George Otis Jr. show charismatic Christians creating mini-utopias by driving off "territorial spirits" and by banishing or even killing accused witches. During the 2008 United States presidential election, footage surfaced from a 2005 church ceremony in which a NAR apostle, Kenyan bishop Thomas Muthee laid hands on Sarah Palin and called upon God to protect her from "every form of witchcraft".
In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI denounced belief in witchcraft during a visit to Angola.[33]
Magic in literature
Magic in literature, while condemned by some Christians, is often viewed by Christians as non-evil. The key distinction would be between real-life magic and pretend magic. This view holds that in real life, the practice of supernatural abilities (i.e. magic) must have a supernatural power source or origin, which would be either holy or evil. Thus born of Holy Spirit or of demons. (See Spiritual gift and Christian demonology for details on these teachings.) Thus, magic in the Biblical context would be viewed as only an act of evil, whereas in literature, pretend magic is a morally neutral tool available to conduct both good and bad behaviors.
In literature, magical abilities have many different power sources. Technological ability (science) can appear as magic.[34] Often, wielding magic is accomplished by imposing one's will by concentration and/or use of devices to control an external magical force. This explanation is offered for the Force in Star Wars, magic in Dungeons & Dragons, and magic in The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings.
The latter two works are by notable Christians, C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, respectively. In the first book in The Chronicles of Narnia, The Magician's Nephew, Lewis specifically explains that magic is a power readily available in some other worlds, less so on Earth. The Empress Jadis (later, the White Witch) was tempted to use magic for selfish reasons to retain control of her world Charn, which ultimately led to the destruction of life there. Lewis related questions of the morality of magic to the same category as the morality of technology, including whether it is real, represents an 'unhealthy interest', or contravenes the basic divine plan for our universe.[35]
Tolkien, a devout Catholic, had strict rules imposed by the ruling powers, angels who had assumed the 'raiment of the earth', for the use of magic by their servants. These included a general discouragement of magic in all but exceptional circumstances, and also prohibitions against use of magic to control others, to set the self up as a political power, or to create a world that violates the natural order.[36] He did however allow his wizard character to entertain children with magical fireworks.[37][38]
See also
Part of a series on |
Magic |
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- Thomas Ady – English writer
- Christian Kabbalah – Christian interpretation of Kabbalah
- Christian views on astrology
- Christian views on Freemasonry
- Christianity and paganism – Christianity and Paganism
- Christo-Paganism – Syncretic new religious movement
- The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark – 1995 book by Carl Sagan
- The Discoverie of Witchcraft – 1584 book by Reginald Scot
- Enochian magic – System of Renaissance magic
- Esoteric Christianity – Mystical approach to Christianity
- Robert Felkin– British missionary – Anglican missionary, ceremonical magician and occult writer, chief of the
- Stella Matutina – Occult organisation
- Folk Catholicism – Variety of regional or ethnic expressions of Catholicism
- Folk Christianity – Expressions of religion distinct from the official doctrines of organized religion
- Islam and magic – Divination, magic, and occultism in Islam
- Arthur Machen – Welsh author and mystic (1863–1947) – Anglican writer, member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
- Magic and religion
- Malleus Maleficarum – Treatise on the prosecution of witches
- Anton Praetorius – German pastor
- Rosicrucianism – 17th-century European spiritual movement
- Saducismus Triumphatus – book by Joseph Glanvill
- Evelyn Underhill – English writer, theologian, retreat leader and pacifist – Anglican mystic, member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
- Charles Williams (British writer) – British writer, theologian, and literary critic (1886-1945) – Anglican theologian, mystic, member of the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross
- Fellowship of the Rosy Cross– Western Esoteric symbol
- Wonders of the Invisible World – 1693 book written by Cotton Mather
- Pentecostalism – Renewal movement within Protestant Christianity
- Christian mysticism – Christian mystical practices
References
- ^ "Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live: A Murderous Mistranslation?" by Elizabeth Sloane, at Haaretz.com, 17 August 2017.
- ^ "Reflections on Ethics 65: The Tenth Commandment: The Hidden Meaning of Coveting" by Joseph Lewis (1946), at apathetic agnostic.com, 2020.
- ^ Galatians 5:19–21
- ^ Apostles didachē (1884). Teaching of the twelve Apostles, tr. from the 'editio princeps' of Bryennios, by A. Gordon (Original from Oxford University). p. 7. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
- ISBN 978-0-19-280290-3): Didache
- ^ a b Cohn, Norman: "Europe's Inner Demons: The Demonization of Christians in Medieval Christendom." London: Sussex University Press, 1975
- ^ Tarrant, Neil "Between Aquinas and Eymerich: The Roman Inquisition's Use of Dominican Thought in the Censorship of Alchemy" Pages 210-231 | Published online: 22 Aug 2018
- ^ Thomas Aquinas "Summa Theologiae" [-ca.1274], 'Second Part of the Second Part: Question 77: 2' [Gold produced by alchemy may be sold as real gold 'if it really possesses the properties of gold'], in Catholic Encyclopedia, New Advent [On-line], 2020.
- ^ Aquinas "Summa Theologiae" [-ca.1274], II-II.95 [Superstition in divinations], in op.cit. 2020.
- ^ Levack, Brian (2015). The Witch Hunt in Early Modern Europe (4th ed.). Routledge. p. 21.
...European courts executed about 45,000 witches during the early modern period.
- ^ 1978 "A witch with three toes too many"; Out of this World Encyclopedia 23:9-12
- ^ Karant-Nunn, Susan C.; Wiesner-Hanks, Merry E. (2003). Luther on Women: A Sourcebook. Cambridge: Cambridge U. Press. pp. 228.
- ^ Exodus 22:18
- ^ Sermon on Exodus, 1526, WA 16, 551 f.
- ^ Martin Luther, Luther's Little Instruction Book, Trans. Robert E. Smith, (Fort Wayne: Project Wittenberg, 2004), Small Catechism 1.2.
- ^ WA Tr 4:51–52, no. 3979 quoted and translated in Karant-Nunn, 236. The original Latin and German text is: "25, Augusti multa dicebant de veneficis et incantatricibus, quae ova ex gallinis et lac et butyrum furarentur. Respondit Lutherus: Cum illis nulla habenda est misericordia. Ich wolte sie selber verprennen, more legis, ubi sacerdotes reos lapidare incipiebant.
- ^ Sigrid Brauner "Martin Luther on Witchcraft: A True Reformer?", in: Brian T. Levack [ed.] "Demonology, Religion and Witchcraft: New Perspectives on Witchcraft, Magic and Demonology" (vol.1) pp. 217-230
- ^ a b c White Magic, Black Magic in the European Renaissance by Paola Zambelli (BRILL, 2007)
- ^ Dawes, Gregory. "The Rationality of Renaissance Magic". Paregon. 30.
- .
- ^ Ernst, Thomas (1996). "Schwarzweiße Magie: Der Schlüssel zum dritten Buch der Stenographia des Trithemius". Daphnis: Zeitschrift für Mittlere Deutsche Literatur. 25 (1): 1–205.
- ^ Brann, Noel L., "Trithemius, Johannes", in Dictionary of Gnosis & Western Esotericism, ed. Wouter J. Hanegraff (Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2006), pp. 1135-1139.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-86698-209-2
- ^ The Occult Sciences in the Renaissance: A Study in Intellectual Patterns by Wayne Shumaker (University of California Press, 1972)
- ^ Schmidt, Edward W. "The Last Renaissance Man: Athanasius Kircher", SJ. Company: The World of Jesuits and Their Friends. 19(2), Winter 2001–2002.
- ISBN 978-1-4610-9382-4
- JSTOR 2708083.
- ^ Stephen Johnston (1995). "The identity of the mathematical practitioner in 16th-century England". Museum of the History of Science, Oxford. Retrieved 27 October 2006.
- OCLC 936144129.
- ^ Dr. Robert Poole (6 September 2005). "John Dee and the English Calendar: Science, Religion and Empire". Institute of Historical Research. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 26 October 2006.
- ^ a b Hayes, Stephen. 1995. Christian responses to witchcraft and sorcery, in Missionalia, Vol. 23(3) November. Pages 339-354. "Untitled". Archived from the original on 2007-04-15. Retrieved 2007-04-15.
- ^ U.S. Department of the Army, "Religious Requirements and Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains": "It is very important to be aware that Wiccans do not in any way worship or believe in "Satan", "the Devil", or any similar entities."
- ^ "Pope warns Angola of witchcraft". BBC. March 21, 2009. Retrieved 2010-04-04.
- ^ , Arthur C. Clarke. "Profiles of The Future", 1961 (Clarke's third law)
- ^ Matthew T. Dickerson, David O'Hara. "Narnia and the Fields of Arbol: The Environmental Vision of C.S.Lewis", 2009
- ^ Tolkien, J. R. R. 'The Istari', in "Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-earth", edited with commentary by Christopher Tolkien; published posthumously, George Allen & Unwin: 1980, pp.390-391.
- ^ Tolkien, J. R. R. "The Hobbit", 1937; 4th edition, George Allen & Unwin, 1978: p.14
- ^ Tolkien, J. R. R. 'A long-expected party', in "The Fellowship of the Ring", 1954; 15th impression, George Allen & Unwin, 1966, pp. 35-36.
Bibliography
- Cohn, Norman (1975). Europe's inner demons. London: Sussex University Press. ISBN 0-435-82183-0.
- Fox, Robin Lane (1987). Pagans and Christians. New York: Knopf. ISBN 0-394-55495-7.
- Hutton, Ronald (1991). Pagan religions of the ancient British Isles. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-17288-2.
- Williams, Charles (1959). Witchcraft. New York: Meridian.
Further reading
- Ancient Christian Magic: Coptic Texts of Ritual Power by Marvin W. Meyer and Richard Smith, Princeton University Press. 1999