Simon Magus

[WritersPanic]

This is the only sorcerer I am aware of in the New Testament. The artwork tells the tale of he and Peter essentially in a contest of faith in Rome. Magus was in league with various demons who gave him all kinds of powers. In Rome they gave him the power to levitate. Peter saw this and begged God to intervene and stop this mocking of the ascension of Christ. God obliged and caused the demons to become visible while the air beneath their wings was removed (vacuum?) and the fell back to earth with Magus suffering three breaks to his right leg.

The bas relief here is meant to portray the sorcerer realizing that the demons lied and were not giving him divinity at all. Just answering his whims so he'd think he had crossed over to divine status. The text at the bottom reads as "Misled by his magical art, Simon succumbs to his own weapons". He pleaded with Peter to bestow the same divine powers onto him, and that he'd pay him all the gold he could carry.

A curious part of this is the way his right hand is pointing down his leg. In the crease of his night shirt, above the ankle is a Tau cross, believed to be the actual shape of the cross Christ was killed on, along with many others.

[Matthew Mussolini]

This is the only sorcerer I am aware of in the New Testament. The artwork tells the tale of he and Peter essentially in a contest of faith in Rome. Magus was in league with various demons who gave him all kinds of powers. In Rome they gave him the power to levitate. Peter saw this and begged God to intervene and stop this mocking of the ascension of Christ. God obliged and caused the demons to become visible while the air beneath their wings was removed (vacuum?) and the fell back to earth with Magus suffering three breaks to his right leg.

The bas relief here is meant to portray the sorcerer realizing that the demons lied and were not giving him divinity at all. Just answering his whims so he'd think he had crossed over to divine status. The text at the bottom reads as "Misled by his magical art, Simon succumbs to his own weapons". He pleaded with Peter to bestow the same divine powers onto him, and that he'd pay him all the gold he could carry.

A curious part of this is the way his right hand is pointing down his leg. In the crease of his night shirt, above the ankle is a Tau cross, believed to be the actual shape of the cross Christ was killed on, along with many others.

It's actually fascinating you say that because right on my leg at that very spot, I have a tatoo of a serpent going in and out of my flesh.

[Matthew Mussolini]

I think it means I'm possessed . The Devil lied to me about my transformation into becoming God's robot. Thanks. that was weird

[Matthew Mussolini]

What inspired you to create this thread.

It was a spirit , of that I'm certain.

[WritersPanic]

It's actually fascinating you say that because right on my leg at that very spot, I have a tatoo of a serpent going in and out of my flesh.

I considered the way he was portrayed as pointing. The sculpture is supposed to describe a whole event in a single scene. The angle of the finger makes it seem like it's pointing to a bit of damage on the leg, but that was surely not part of the original work. I'm thinking that pointing down on a leg means everything down to the toes is to be considered.

But the Tau cross is unmistakable. Why it's on the same latitude as the knee of each demon is beyond me.

As to inspiration, it was something I happened across as I was looking for accounts of sorcery and witchcraft in biblical texts. And I used the Catholic bible expecting to find it in the book of Judith or the earlier Ecclesiasticus. No luck there. Then I ran across the book of Acts where one is named.

What I find confusing is why there are not more of them. There are plenty of demons, but not so many sorcerers who very much from them. I think this is because the demons burn out their entertainment quickly for the most part. But there are some that will fuck with a person their entire life.

[WritersPanic]

One might consider a Tau cross tattoo just above the right ankle!

[WritersPanic]

[Matthew Mussolini]

I considered the way he was portrayed as pointing. The sculpture is supposed to describe a whole event in a single scene. The angle of the finger makes it seem like it's pointing to a bit of damage on the leg, but that was surely not part of the original work. I'm thinking that pointing down on a leg means everything down to the toes is to be considered.

But the Tau cross is unmistakable. Why it's on the same latitude as the knee of each demon is beyond me.

As to inspiration, it was something I happened across as I was looking for accounts of sorcery and witchcraft in biblical texts. And I used the Catholic bible expecting to find it in the book of Judith or the earlier Ecclesiasticus. No luck there. Then I ran across the book of Acts where one is named.

What I find confusing is why there are not more of them. There are plenty of demons, but not so many sorcerers who very much from them. I think this is because the demons burn out their entertainment quickly for the most part. But there are some that will fuck with a person their entire life.

At any rate. Your thread spoke volumes. Demons aren't funny to me anymore.

They are a real entity, but I'm angry at God for allowing them to influence people.

Today, anyone of us could have to give account of their life.

Do you have any idea as to why God wants malevolent Spirits to exist and harm people?

I'll confess it. I sold my soul to the Devil. I thought it was for the greater good. I also wanted power but believed it was meant to be.

It brings destruction to your life when you actually do shit like that just for the rush.

[Matthew Mussolini]

Yes, I might, it's kinda a big tattoo though , but I think it's inviting something in. If I ever get a tatoo again that'l be it

[Matthew Mussolini]

Anyway, are there sorcerers in the Old Testament?

The only one I remember off hand was Pharaoh's magicians when Moses was bringing plagues on Egypt.

[WritersPanic]

Anyway, are there sorcerers in the Old Testament?

The only one I remember off hand was Pharaoh's magicians when Moses was bringing plagues on Egypt.

What I have been looking for goes beyond the bible, but the bible has a raft of information from both sides of the common era. I haven't found much in the old testament because the Hebrews went through a lot of effort to reinforce the "only 1 god" scenario to avoid the kind of drift in faith that was experienced while Moses was up in a mountain quarry learning how to chisel stone tablets.

But for some reason the advent of Christ got the rabbis in a huff and the books allowed references to paganism, alternative Gods (in a derisive manner) while they looked the other way. As I see it, they bastardized the message of Christ in an effort to retain their lofty monopoly on access to God.

The Catholics, beginning with Peter as the first Pope, played the same game to keep the women in a perpetual second class. Christ never wanted that to continue. He also didn't care for people using the temples as cash cows (supposedly his "only" display of violence). And yet, the Catholics canonized Judith, who beheaded a military prince from Canaan (I've also read that she killed him by driving a tent stake through his head while he slept). Tough gal.

And yet, the Hebrews basically ignored her story and did not canonize it into the Torah. The Catholics resurrected her story and added it to the Old Testament while the Hebrews insisted it was a work of fiction, fighting to the end to protect their patriarchy. The reason they say it's fiction is because of another woman who also averted a massive war by executing a warlord around 1200 BCe. Judith's story is from about 200-100 BCe.

While similar, I find it hard to believe that in 1200 years only 1 woman managed to execute an elevated leader, likely surrounded by security, by using seduction.

I also think this vein of history suffers profound problems that we live with to this day. Apparently all of it is because the Hebrews wanted to keep their wives in their places. I'll be called names for saying this, but I don't blame today's people for shit their forebears in faith drilled into them. Programming is programming. And that's what religion is all about; getting everyone on the same program. Unfortunately they used fear and intimidation to maintain control over both peasants and ignorant, superstitious kings as well. It's amazing the kind of control churches had for so long.

Which again is something Christ wanted to walk back. I think about this whenever I drive by one of these Protestant mega-churches in the south that sit on 100 acres of tax-free land. I personally think that if a church was worth a damn, it would not need to rob the faithful to stay in business. The Catholic churches are not exactly small either, but the Protestants seem to have a Vatican or two in every city. It's both amazing and disgusting.

[Amerijuanican]

And yet, the Catholics canonized Judith, who beheaded a military prince from Canaan (I've also read that she killed him by driving a tent stake through his head while he slept). Tough gal.

And yet, the Hebrews basically ignored her story and did not canonize it into the Torah. The Catholics resurrected her story and added it to the Old Testament while the Hebrews insisted it was a work of fiction, fighting to the end to protect their patriarchy. The reason they say it's fiction is because of another woman who also averted a massive war by executing a warlord around 1200 BCe. Judith's story is from about 200-100 BCe.

While similar, I find it hard to believe that in 1200 years only 1 woman managed to execute an elevated leader, likely surrounded by security, by using seduction.

?? Dayummm!

[neonspectraltoast]

So Simon was half-responsible for proving the reality of Demons? Do you realize how mind-warping proof of Demons would be?

There are much larger affairs than human beings. Our demons are pathetic on those grounds alone. Real demons are nothing but dragons. Who are no threat to you if you aren't a threat to them.

But it's hard to not be a threat to something you don't want in your natural world. Especially when it doesn't want you in its natural world.

[WritersPanic]

So Simon was half-responsible for proving the reality of Demons? Do you realize how mind-warping proof of Demons would be?

There are much larger affairs than human beings. Our demons are pathetic on those grounds alone. Real demons are nothing but dragons. Who are no threat to you if you aren't a threat to them.

But it's hard to not be a threat to something you don't want in your natural world. Especially when it doesn't want you in its natural world.

No, Simon was just one example that was worth adding to the scriptures because it illustrated two failures. One being the failure to identify that the miracles you can work might be the work of demons instead. The other being that there is no way to bribe your way to divinity, God has no need of gold.

And what do you mean by "our demons"? There is no symbiosis. Demons serve only themselves. But they don't have free reign over humanity. They can only look for weak spots or they work by referral. Otherwise they don't even know you exist. They can't just pick a random human to torment because they can't see most of them. They only see the ones who are skirting the edge of ruin or mendacity.

[neonspectraltoast]

Never mind. There are little invisible goblins out to get you.

[WritersPanic]

Never mind. There are little invisible goblins out to get you.

That was my point. There aren't. Unless you have invited them or were subjected to unplanned contact, they can't even see you.