The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

magic 161
edge is permitted. Those who choose to practice it become
sorcerers in the thrall of FALLEN ANGELS.
By the Middle Ages, Jews were renowned among Christians
as magical adepts. These adepts were not professional
magicians but were rabbis, doctors, philosophers,
teachers, and students of oral transmission of mystical
and esoteric knowledge.
Christian magic As did Judaism, Christianity held paradoxical
attitudes toward magic. In general, magic was
looked upon with disfavor, as the practices of non-Christians
that interfered with the new religion. Manipulative
“low” magic was forbidden, but helpful magic, such as for
healing, was practiced within certain limits. Jesus performed
magical acts, but they were cast as miracles made
possible by his divine nature. The early church fathers
especially opposed divination, which took one’s destiny
out of the hands of God.
Christian magic emphasized nature, such as herbal
lore, and placed importance on mystical names. But the
body of Christ, as represented by the Eucharist, held the
greatest magic, as did the name of Jesus and relics (body
parts and possessions) of saints.
Medieval Europe was rife with magic of all sorts: folk
practitioners, wizards, cunning men and women, alchemists,
and others. The practical Kabbalah, Hermetic principles,
Gnostic and Neoplatonic lore, Christian elements,
and pagan elements joined in syncretic mixtures. A Western
Kabbalah emerged that became the basis for Western
ritual magic. Magical handbooks called grimoires
circulated.
The medieval church frowned upon magic of all sorts:
• divination of all kinds
• conjuration of spirits
• necromancy
• weaving and binding magic, in which spells were
imbued into knots and fabric
• love magic and any other magic involving potions,
poppets, and so forth
• magical medical remedies
The populace relied on the folk magic of local practitioners,
called by many names, such as cunning men,
witches, and wizards. Many possessed natural healing and
psychic abilities and practiced homegrown magic passed
down orally through generations. The church tolerated
magic that was adequately Christianized, such as through
the substitution of the names of Jesus, Mary, and angels
for those of pagan deities and spirits; the use of the cross,
holy water, and the Eucharist; and incantations that were
more like prayers.
Folk magicians were often feared, and if their spell
casting or divination failed, they were persecuted. Any
bad luck was liable to be blamed on the black magic or
witchcraft of a rival or enemy.
The Inquisition capitalized on fear. In 1484, Pope Innocent
VIII declared witchcraft heretical, making the persecution
of any enemy of the church easy. Witchcraft was
not merely black magic, but was DEVIL worship, service to
SATAN’s grand plan to subvert souls. A “witch craze” swept
Europe and reached across the Atlantic to the American
colonies. Thousands of persons were executed.
The witch hysteria died in the advance of the scientific
revolution of the 17th century. Though many great scientists
of the day were versed in alchemy and the principles
of magic, the importance of the latter two declined.
The occult revival and modern magic In the 19th century,
a revival of interest in occultism and magic occurred,
centered in and spreading out from France through Eliphas
Levi, Papus (Gerard Encausse), and others. Levi’s
works were particularly influential and were translated
into English by Arthur Edward Waite. Levi drew together
the Kabbalah, Hermeticism, and magic as the three occult
sciences that lead to truth. He described the Kabbalah as
the “mathematics of human thought,” which answers all
questions through numbers. Magic is the knowledge of
the secret laws and powers of nature and the universe.
In the late 19th century, magical fraternities and
lodges rose in prominence, the best known of which was
the esoteric Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in England.
The Golden Dawn was founded by Rosicrucians and
Freemasons who were also familiar with the Eastern philosophy
taught by the Theosophical Society. It was not
originally intended to be a magical order. It taught only
theoretical magic in its outer order, but eventually its inner
order taught and practiced the magical arts as well
as rituals of high magic. The rituals systematized by the
Golden Dawn influenced much of the magical work that
was yet to unfold.
A considerable contribution to ritual magic was made
by ALEISTER CROWLEY, who was already well versed in
the subject by the time he was initiated into the Golden
Dawn in 1898. The Golden Dawn could not contain
Crowley’s oversized personality, and he was expelled
two years later.
His most significant magical innovation is his Law of
Thelema: “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the
Law.” The Thelemic law was dictated to an entranced
Crowley in 1909 in Egypt by a spirit named Aiwass,
an emissary of the god Horus. The Book of the Law lays
out the emergence of the New Aeon of Horus, for which
Crowley was to be the chief prophet. Everything springs
from the Thelemic law, and magic is the “art and science
of causing change to occur in conformity with Will.” The
individual is sovereign and responsible only to himself or
herself. The proper use of will raises the individual to the
highest purpose, not a selfish purpose.
Crowley had numerous dealings with spirits, including
demons (see CHORONZON).
From the 20th century on, there have been cycles of
revival of popular interest in magic. Influences are fiction,
television (especially reality TV) and film, the growth of
Wiccan and Pagan spiritual traditions (which emphasize