Ancient Jewish Magic was ‘Perfectly Rational’
Posted by NT Wrong on January 3, 2009
“As the assumption that various forces of nature have an angel “ministering” over them was common enough in late-antique Jewish culture, and given an additional axiom that angels can be adjured by humans (esp. by an appeal to the power of God, who created them and whom they greatly fear), the adjuration of angels to quell a storm, bring back a recalcitrant lover, or perform other great deeds would be a perfectly rational action.”
– Gideon Bohak, Ancient Jewish Magic (2008 )
2 Responses to “Ancient Jewish Magic was ‘Perfectly Rational’”
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N.T.WRONG 
tzvee said
gideon was joshing
NT Wrong said
No – he’s literally right. There is a good logic to the practise of magic which makes it perfectly ‘rational’. (It’s just that the assumptions are bad.)