Religion, science and magic : in concert and in conflict / edited by Jacob Neusner, Ernest S. Frerichs, and Paul V. McC. Flesher.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Neusner, Jacob, 1932-2016

Frerichs, Ernest S.

Flesher, Paul Virgil McCracken.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Magic--Religious aspects--Congresses.

Magic.

Magic--Religious aspects.

Magic--Religious aspects--Judaism--Congresses.

Magic--Religious aspects--Judaism.

Magic--Religious aspects--Christianity--Congresses.

Magic--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Religion and science--History--20th century--Congresses.

Religion and science.

History.

Genre:

Conference papers and proceedings.

Physical Description:

xii, 294 pages ; 22 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, 1989.

Summary:

Every culture makes the distinction between "true religion" and magic, regarding one action and its result as "miraculous," while rejecting another as the work of the devil. Surveying such topics as Babylonian witchcraft, Jesus the magician, magic in Hasidism and Kabbalah, and magic in Anglo-Saxon England, these ten essays provide a rigrous examination of the history of this distinction in Christianity and Judaism. Written by such distinguished scholars as Jacob Neusner, Hans Penner, Howard Kee, Tzvi Abusch, Susan R. Garrett, and Moshe Idel, the essays explore a broad range of topics, including how certain social groups sort out approved practices and beliefs from those that are disapproved--providing fresh insight into how groups define themselves; "magic" as an insider's term for the outsider's religion; and the tendency of religious traditions to exclude the magical. In addition the collection provides illuminating social, cultural, and anthropological explanations for the prominence of the magical in certain periods and literature.

Notes:

Papers presented at a conference held at Brown University, Aug. 13, 1987.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acc.# 204846

ISBN:

0195056035

OCLC:

18134616