Enchantment never truly disappeared from the modern world. In this episode of Universal History Deacon Seraphim Rohlin and I explore the world of magic and folk superstition in American Christianity. What is magic? Where’s the line between prayer and magic? Why did Protestant reformers ban holy water but keep belief in the devil? How did treasure-hunting rituals lead to the rise of Mormonism? Episode 2 of the Universal History series on the American religion. Timestamps: 00:00 - Coming up 00:37 - Intro music 01:01 - Introduction 04:54 - What is magic? 08:46 - The modern & Enlightenment ideas of superstition 11:00 - Prayers and psalms 13:30 - The Reformation's perspective 24:27 - Medieval understanding of superstition 26:53 - Example: the French "Dog-saint" 28:11 - Reformation conclusions 33:37 - Scenario: you have an embarrassing illness 37:21 - Christian magic hacks 46:29 - Manifestation 52:03 - Scapegoating 54:31 - Categories of magic 56:47 - Divination 01:04:30 - Water witching 01:07:30 - Saint Porphyrios 01:08:51 - Finding water 01:09:57 - Finding other things 01:11:44 - Money digging 01:13:33 - How money digging works 01:17:34 - The symbolism of the New World 01:20:54 - Joseph Smith and Mormonism 01:24:18 - The human need for enchantment 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/