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Why did Jesus use a magic wand?
Jesus was depicted with a magic wand for several centuries before it disappeared.
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"Depictions of Jesus with a magic wand were very common in the 3rd and 4th centuries," says Hugo Lundhaug.
He studies early Christianity at the University of Oslo.
"That was how they showed that Jesus performed miracles," he says.
The images show Jesus holding the magic wand over the water that he turns into wine at the wedding in Cana. He also points the wand at Lazarus when he is raised from the dead.
Was there a difference between magic and religion?
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In the Roman Empire during Jesus' lifetime and in the centuries that followed, different religions and gods existed side by side – Roman, Egyptian, Persian, Jewish, and Christian. With the exception of the last two, most people believed that multiple gods existed.
People prayed, made sacrifices, and called upon their gods to intervene in their lives. They sought everything from abundant harvests and recovery from illness to making another person fall in love with them.
There was no clear boundary between magic and religion in antiquity, according to Lundhaug.
But to understand what magic meant in antiquity, we need to set aside modern associations with Harry Potter, fire-breathing dragons, and women being sawn in half.
"Our use of the word magic today is somewhat misleading. In antiquity, magic involved calling upon the gods to achieve a particular result," says Lundhaug.
Does that mean that Jesus was, in fact, a magician?
Jesus the magician
In the 1970s, the book Jesus the Magician was published. It was written by Morton Smith, a professor of ancient history at Columbia University in New York. The book was controversial.
“Morton Smith believed that Jesus was essentially a magician. After all, he performed many wonders, such as casting out demons, feeding 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish, and raising people from the dead,” says Lundhaug.
The idea of Jesus as a magician may be somewhat surprising, but theologians and historians of religion have debated this for many years.
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The difference between religion and magic
The word magic dates back to antiquity, according to a 2011 article by Ingvild Sælid Gilhus. It was published in Arr, a journal of intellectual history.
She summarises various definitions of magic and religion as follows:
Magic involves commanding or invoking gods or spirits to do something.
Religion involves asking the gods to do something.
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Magic has customers and is practiced in small groups and by individuals.
Religion has congregations and is practised in temples and in public.
“Magic tends to be more individualistic, and the aim is to force a particular outcome. Religion is more collective, and people politely request favours from the gods,” says Lundhaug.
Magic was common practice in the Roman Empire, and according to Lundhaug, there were magicians who made a living by selling their services to people.
Many museums today have magical amulets, figurines, and texts from antiquity, according to Gilhus. These were used by wise women or travelling magicians. Magic was used to protect or harm, to improve health, or gain more money.
Religion and magic hand in hand
The Roman Empire was generally tolerant of the gods worshipped by different peoples. Jews and early Christians, however, took a different approach.
“They rejected other gods and called them demons,” says Lundhaug.
For Jesus' followers, his extraordinary acts were miracles made possible by the power of God.
“If people who worshipped other gods performed miracles, they were accused of sorcery and magic,” says Lundhaug.
Jesus was accused of practicing magic
Jesus, too, was accused of practising magic.
A well-known example appears in the Gospel of Matthew. The Pharisees were a group of Jewish critics of Jesus. They said:
'It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.'
Jesus denied this. He said that his power came from God and asked what power was behind the Pharisees' own exorcisms.
Priests and monks sold magic spells
When Egypt came under Roman rule in 30 BCE, the Egyptians were allowed to continue worshipping their own gods. But over time, the Roman emperors stopped providing financial support to the temples, and their staff had to find new sources of income.
They went from being temple priests to becoming freelance magicians, Gilhus writes.
In early Christianity, from the late 3rd century onwards, monks also practised magic.
“Monks created magical formulas and sold them to people seeking help with their love lives, among other tings,” says Lundhaug.
They also created spells for women who wanted to become pregnant and for people who wanted better health or to kill someone.
“A way of showing that Jesus was performing a miracle”
Magicians and others with supernatural powers often used magic wands, if we are to believe the art and literature of antiquity.
“It's a classic motif. The Greek goddess and sorceress Circe, for example, used a magic wand,” says Lundhaug.
“Very little has been written or researched about these early depictions of Jesus with a magic wand,” says Lundhaug.
The images are often found on sarcophagi and in catacombs. Jesus is portrayed as a young man without a beard.
"This reflects the Roman context and Roman artistic conventions of the time. A bearded Jesus first appeared in the late 4th century, but did not become common until the 6th century," says Lundhaug.
The magic wand was a common way of depicting magicians. But that does not mean the artists regarded Jesus as a magician.
"The wand was a way of showing that Jesus was performing a miracle. If you simply portray him standing beside a few baskets of bread, it's difficult to communicate that he is doing something extraordinary. With a magic wand, it becomes quite obvious," says Lundhaug.
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Translated by Alette Bjordal Gjellesvik
Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning.no
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