244 THE MAGIC OP JEWELS AND CHARMS
counteract
them, and although both Christianity and Judaism sternly rebuked any
direct worship of angels, they were regarded as ministering spirits,
and it was only natural that the masses should be led to use their
names on amulets and talismans, and little by little to arrive at the
belief that a particular angel was entrusted with the welfare of each
individual. The same tendencies were at work in both religions, but a
new development was initiated for the Christian church by the growing
veneration of the early martyrs and of their relics. When this became
more pronounced, the saints to a great extent took the place of the
angels; a passage from the writings of St. Ambrose composed in 377 a.D. shows
us that this transformation of belief had already begun to make itself
felt at that time. St. Ambrose writes: "We should address our
supplications to the angels who are appointed to guard us ; we should
also address them to the martyrs, whose patronage seems assured to us by a physical pledge" (their relics).
The
danger that the worshipping of angels might lead Christians away from
the Church into magic practices and beliefs was clearly recognized in
the early centuries, and at the Council of Laodicea, in 363 a.D., it
was proclaimed that Christians should not render worship to angels
outside the church, or in private assemblies or associations. Whoever
was found guilty of such practices (of such idolatry, as it was called)
was pronounced anathema, as he was considered to have turned away from
the Lord Jesus Christ and worshipped idols. The first Council of Kome,
held in 492 a.D., expressly
forbids the wearing of talismans inscribed with the names "not of
angels as they pretend, but rather with those of demons." Indeed, there
is abundant evidence that in this age, and even earlier, those addicted
to angelolatry were not satisfied with the few angels named in the Holy
Scriptures, but addressed their petitions to a multitude of
Flickr
Stumbleupon
Scribd
