Religion, Science, and Magic: In Concert and In Conflict

Neusner, Jacob; Frerichs, Ernest S.; Flesher, Paul Virgil McCracken

ISBN 10: 0195079116 / ISBN 13: 9780195079111

Published by Oxford University Press (edition First Edition), 1992

About this Item

The item might be beaten up but readable. May contain markings or highlighting, as well as stains, bent corners, or any other major defect, but the text is not obscured in any way.

Seller Inventory # 0195079116-7-1

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Religion, Science, and Magic: In Concert and In Conflict
• Publisher: Oxford University Press (edition First Edition)
• Publication Date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0195079116
• ISBN 13: 9780195079111
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Fair

About this title

Synopsis

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 rigorous 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 literatures.

About the Author

Jacob Neusner is at University of South Florida. Ernest S. Frerichs is at Brown University Program in Judaic Studies.