Traditions of Belief in Late Byzantine Demonology

by Richard P.H. Greenfield

In this very rare book Professor Greenfield presents Byzantine occult lore, exorcism, demonology, and sorcery. One of the themes of this work is to compare "The Beliefs of the Standard Orthodox Tradition" to "Alternative [Occult] Tradition", or Byzantine magic and popular religion. Thus the book discusses popular Byzantine grimoires (magic books like Testament of Solomon), evocations of angels, exorcism of demons, plus medieval magic and popular religion. orthodox eastern church doctrines demonology byzantine empire religion devil exorcism alternative traditions amulets angels baptism basil of caesarea belief bogomil gnostic christ christian conjuration death decan demonic possession powers evil exorcist folklore greek gregory sinai palamas jesus demon tradition luke magic treatise manuscript possession rituals satan serpent sorcery soul spirits testament of solomon study of religion cultural studies history ideas

455 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1988

Reviews

[Belisarius · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely magisterial survey of Late Byzantine beliefs; not only deeply researched but well presented and clear. Highly recommend!