Magic in the Biblical World: From the Rod of Aaron to the Ring of Solomon

by Todd Klutz (Editor)

The category 'magic' , long used to signify an allegedly substantive type of activity distinguishable from 'religion', has nearly been dismantled by recent historical and social-scientific approaches to religious studies. While recognising and at times reinforcing this stance, the essays in this collection show that there is still much to be learned about the cultural context of early Judaism and Christianity by analysing ancient texts which either use 'magic' as a category for purposes of deviance labelling or promote behaviour of a broadly magico-religious variety.

Through sustained engagement with texts ranging from Exod. 7-9 and Acts 8 to the Testament of Solomon and the Late Antique alchemical treatise known as the Cyranides, this volume focuses chiefly on materials that challenge the familiar boundaries between miracle and magic and medicine; yet it also heightens awareness of the way unsuspecting use of a sick sign (e.g. 'magic') can impede critical understanding of texts and their respective contexts of production and reception.

Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series, Volume 245.

Paperback

First published February 1, 2003

Reviews

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating take on magic in the early Judaeo-Christian context. I'm mostly interested in the Jewish context, of course, but the essays were all worth reading. Here's my takeaway: Is magic what we call other people's religions as a way of devaluing them? Or is magic about trying to control divine forces rather than sucking up to them as religion does? Much to reflect on here.

[[Name Redacted] · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is, by-and-large, a mixed bag. It is a collection of articles, all written by different scholars: some of the articles are fascinating, some are deadly dull; some of the articles are insightful and revelatory, some are tedious rehashes of things better said by other scholars elsewhere.

The unquestionable highlight of the book is F. Gerald Downing's article "Magic and Skepticism In and Around the First Christian Century" -- Gerald approaches the scholarly assumption that magic-use was ubiquitous and popular in the ancient Mediterranean and weighs it against the evidence which we actually possess. Unsurprisingly, he concludes that magic was nowhere near as ubiquitous nor as popular in the ancient Mediterranean as we generally assume. He compares the criticisms and condemnations of magical practice which occur in the works of ancient historians, philosophers, religionists, etc. and notes that the overall picture which HE finds is one of a world in which people generally relied on folk-remedies, medicine and religion, but would turn to magic (and possibly "miracles") as a last resort and then, oftentimes, only reluctantly and with skepticism.

Some of his reasoning is flawed, unfortunately. For instance, his argument that, because we have only one record of a famous, wealthy magician, magic must have been neither popular nor profitable, is quite specious; and his effective conclusion that, because some of the intelligentsia were skeptics or out-right deniers of magical efficacy, all ancient Mediterraneans must have been skeptics, etc. is disproven by even a cursory study of the time period. Most baffling of all is his conclusion that anti-magic legislation in the Roman Empire is a clear sign that no-one believed magic efficacious! All that said, he does an excellent job highlighting the strains of skepticism and what we might consider "scientific" rigor which existed within the ancient Mediterranean world, and this helps broaden the historical perspective on magic-use in the Roman Empire.

Other articles worthy of note are "Magic/Thaumaturgy and the Pastorals" by Lloyd K. Pietersen and "Sefer ha-Razim and the Problem of Black Magic" by Philip S. Alexander.