Quantcast
Channel: Saints and Demons Student Blog Site » Raphael Patai
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

Lived Religion

0
0

Judaism and Islam are two major monotheistic religions that do not agree with each other’s doctrines, but the practitioners of both religions believe in the presence of magic. I find this fascinating because they both share this common characteristic in their folk culture while their religious doctrines disagree with the practice of magic. The Jewish perspective on magic has been an “unconditional opposition to, and total condemnation of, all magic” (Patai, 155). The Koran says “the knowledge of magic which the devils taught men” meaning that evil spirits taught men magic (Patai, 156). This shows that a belief of magic could not have developed from Islam and Judaism, but it is still a shared custom among the people of this area that practiced these religions.

These two groups practiced a variety of magical remedies; for example, the belief in the magical properties of foreskin. Both the Muslims and Jews practiced this, but for different reasons. The Muslims believed it as a way of protecting their children from acting in criminal behavior, intensifying their love for the child, and to protect the circumciser (Patai, 161). While for the Jewish people it was a remedy for fertility and proof of “religious merit” (Patai, 161). This was something I found interesting because this practice of either keeping or ingesting foreskin would be a very taboo custom to have in western culture. Additionally, among the Jewish people there are dietary restrictions that are ignored in practicing magical remedies. The Muslims have fewer restrictions, but they again engage in ignoring them by eating pig liver for its beneficial magical properties.

These two religious groups have the similar custom of practicing magic even though their official religions forbid it. This leads me ask why they still believe themselves to be practicing Muslims and Jews if they are doing something that is in opposition to the institutionalized religion? Religion is an example of social creationism and the concept of magic is another type of social creationism that is in conflict with their overall identity as Jews and Muslims. Belief in magic creates a contradiction where practicing the official religion disagrees with the lived religion, which is a shared element among the Jewish people and Muslims.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

Latest Images

Trending Articles



Latest Images