Necromancy

Necromancy is defined as the ability of a sage, shaman, or priest to raise the dead from the grave and communicate with them as one would talk normally with the living. The word itself is derived from the Greek words of necros (meaning the dead, the departed, or a specific reference to the corpse) and manteia (which has overlapping meanings of foretelling, to summon forth, and divination).

Of all religious practices this “summoning forth” or “calling up of the dead” has perhaps the longest history and the broadest cultural practice. Seemingly common to many cultures across human history, the clearest, but still scant, anthropological evidence of this ritual places its origin, or at least consolidation as common practice, in the Neolithic Era in many areas of Europe. It is speculated that in this area it was an integral component in the worship of Saturn, who in turn became Poseidon in later centuries. While there is little direct evidence of its development, it is speculated that necromancy then became an integral ritualized component of the evolutionary growth of this form of worship as it extended into the religious polytheistic religions of the ancient civilizations surrounding the Mediterranean and the Far East. Thus it became one of the cornerstone practices in the religions of the Canaanites, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Each of these cultures carried this practice forward as they continued to develop and expand, whereby it also became a common ritual in Persia, the greater Babylonian Empire, and the later occidental religions.

The relatively small amount of ethnographic and anthropological research reveals that in other parts of the globe, such as Polynesia and the Caribbean, necromancy has been considered to be a normal religious exercise by societies that practice voodoo. Although there is little research focus in this area, in other religions, such as Judaism and Christian communities, it is considered to be taboo. This belief is centered on the banning of this practice by texts such as the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy (18:11) and as exemplified in the narrative in 1 Samuel 28, where the witch of Endor calls up the prophet Samuel for King Saul. Interestingly, the text does not state it was a counterfeit vision or a disguised demonic form, although many Old Testament and Christian scholars assume this is the case. Herein lie the core elements for those groups that assert the validity of this practice and those that uphold its categorization as being taboo. First, a key facet of necromancy lies in the theological notion of the “resurrection.” For Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, only God or Allah can genuinely breathe life into and raise the dead, and for [Page 777]these religions this is commonly believed to occur at the Last Judgment. Thus, practitioners of necromancy are seen to be taking on the role of the creator and sustainer of human life, which is a theological anathema for these religions.

Related to this concept of only God being able to create or recreate life is the current debate surrounding what theologians call “the state of the dead.” In regard to necromancy in particular and the concept of death in general, the contemporary focus has been on several key Old Testament verses that seem to indicate that the term soul means a “life force” and not an entity capable of existence of its own accord, that the body and soul are a single entity, and that death becomes an unqualified sleep until the Last Judgment. Therefore necromancy would not fit within the parameters of this theological position of the soul or life existing after death.

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