Magick Matters

“Omens and Oracles: Divination in Ancient Greece” by Matthew Dillon

"Addressing the role which divination played in ancient Greek society, this volume deals with various forms of prophecy and how each was utilised and for what purpose. Chapters bring together key types of divining, such as from birds, celestial phenomena, the entrails of sacrificed animals and dreams. Oracular centres delivered prophetic pronouncements to enquirers, but in addition, there were written collections of oracles in circulation. Many books were available on how to interpret dreams, the birds and entrails, and divination as a religious phenomenon attracted the attention of many writers. Expert diviners were at the heart of Greek prophecy, whether these were Apollo’s priestesses delivering prose or verse answers to questions put to them...>>

“The Oracles of Apollo: Practical Ancient Greek Divination for Today” by John Opsopaus

"Throughout history, divination has been an important tool for seeking guidance from the gods. Fortunately, several classical divination systems are available to us again today. The Oracles of Apollo shows how to use two rediscovered divination systems: the Alphabet Oracle, a system that uses the ancient Greek alphabet, and the Counsels of the Seven Sages, a series of 147 short, oracular statements that were inscribed on tablets at Delphi. This book shares divination techniques and rituals—including the use of alphabet stones, dice, staves, beads, and coins—and interpretations of the outcomes to help you integrate the wisdom of the gods and goddesses. These oracles were originally designed thousands of years ago to provide insights into practical...>>

“Ancient Divination and Experience” by Lindsay G. Driediger-Murphy and Esther Eidinow

"This volume sets out to re-examine what ancient people - primarily those in ancient Greek and Roman communities, but also Mesopotamian and Chinese cultures - thought they were doing through divination, and what this can tell us about the religions and cultures in which divination was practised. The chapters, authored by a range of established experts and upcoming early-career scholars, engage with four shared questions: What kinds of gods do ancient forms of divination presuppose? What beliefs, anxieties, and hopes did divination seek to address? What were the limits of human 'control' of divination? What kinds of human-divine relationships did divination create/sustain? The volume as a whole seeks to move beyond functionalist approaches to...>>

“Queen Victoria’s Other World: Illustrated Edition” by Peter Underwood

"There have been many books about Queen Victoria but there has never been one that has explored her 'other world' - the world of the strange and unusual, the world of death and her fascination for it, and the world of the unseen and the paranormal that she could never resist. During his research Peter Underwood gained the distinct impression that there was something of a conspiracy of silence around her interest in the paranormal. however, there is overwhelming evidence that as a fatherless and bewildered princess, as a quickly matured queen, and then as a widowed and often lonely woman, Victoria showed a considerable interest in death and its draperies. This book covers Victoria's youthful...>>

“Church History in Plain Language” by Bruce L. Shelley (4th edition)

"Dr. Bruce Shelley makes church history come alive in this classic book that has become not only the first choice of many laypeople and church leaders but the standard text in many college classrooms. Church History in Plain Language treats history as the story of people—their motivations, the issues they grapple with, the decisions they make—and the result is that history reads like a story, almost as dramatic and moving as a novel. This fourth edition, revised by R.L. Hatchett, brings the story of Christianity into the twenty-first century, with detailed information on: Theology of the early church and Reformation Gnosticism and its ongoing relevance ...>>