Both idiocies: The “Christian” charm was found way up the Nile in Egypt, home of Gnosticism. And yet the author also writes, “Dr Mazza said that some Christians still use passages from the Bible as protective charms, so the amulet marks the beginning of a trend in Christianity.”
What they actually found was not a charm at all, but a bible passage that the author asserts would have been folded up and placed inside a locket. Sounds like this “charm” was closer to a Christian “phylactery,” similar to the Hebrew “Tephillim.”
The idea of a Christian phylactery was to keep the Word of God close to one’s mind, heart and hand at all times, to protect oneself from sin. The protection isn’t magical, but mental and spiritual: it’s a reminder of the presence of God as one faces temptation.
The actual significance is that it demonstrates the very literal interpretation of the “body of Christ” in an area very remote from Roman influence.
‘Fear you all who rule over the earth.
‘Know you nations and peoples that Christ is our God.
‘For he spoke and they came to being, he commanded and they were created; he put everything under our feet and delivered us from the wish of our enemies.
‘Our God prepared a sacred table in the desert for the people and gave manna of the new covenant to eat, the Lord’s immortal body and the blood of Christ poured for us in remission of sins.’
Does anything in that even remotely suggest “magic?”
Of course it does. As any renowned scholar can tell you, Christianity is just a continuation of previous mythologies. The fact that magic is forbidden in Christian doctrine is just an inconvenient truth.
There is no difference in wearing a portion of Scripture and sacrificing to Baal.
Faith—Not Magic. Egyptian Gnostic Christian book—blending Ancient Egyptian Beliefs with Christian Thought—an early protestant movement that was snuffed out by Byzantines. So they didn’t survive but their is beauty in their ideas—Like that Christ wasn’t on the Cross at all—that was someone else. He was hurt though—by the mental angush -—The believed in an all spirit Jesus and debated if he even left footprints in the dust.
Thank you for that explanation.
Also Egypt was also were the Copts got their start.
hey dangus,
you’ve got it right.
when a poorly catechized or studied Christian attempts to ‘wing it’ he usually goes for the simple easy answer.
it is much more a commentary on his own faith than on the prayer scroll.
For the Greater Glory of God
and His gift of the Eucharist