| From: | Stainless Steel Rat <ratinox@***.NEU.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Religion and Mysticism |
| Date: | Thu, 24 Nov 1994 11:12:13 -0500 |
Thomas> Look at Christianity, it is DEEPLY rooted in Magick(another word
Thomas> for it: Mysticism).
Well, Quabalistic Judaism, anyway, most of which is missing from
Christianity.
Thomas> What is an exorcism? The use of Magick to kick a "evil" spirit out
Thomas> of a person.
Not quite. Being an ex-Catholic and an ex-member of the Assembly of God
myself (I got better :), and exorcism is calling upon the power of God to
exorcize the Devil. It's a matter of semantics and perspective, but then,
that's what magic in Shadowrun is all about, too :).
Thomas> Not all spirits that possess people are evil, just like people.
Depends on the sect you look at. According to the Assembly of God,
"posession" by the Holy Spirit (and speaking in tongues) is true and good;
according to the Baptists it's the Devil's work; and in yet other sects
it's considered a delusion because it doesn't happen today. In my own
opinion it's subtle (self-)hypnosis combined with a self-induced hormonal
(adrenalin, mostly) imbalance, very similar to the "runner's high" you hear
about, only with some rather disconcerting (in retrospect) loss of muscle
control.
Thomas> Some are evil, some are good; but you can never tell until you
Thomas> actually "LOOK" at it. Churches as a whole are corrupt: just look
Thomas> at the Inquisition. Many good people died, just because they
Thomas> helped others by using Magick.
It's not the "church" that's corrupt, it's the people that are corrupt.
Thomas> Still churches look at others who use Magick as "heretics".
Again, depends on the sect you observe.
--
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