> >If I might add it -- I hope you don't mind my explanation -- the Christian view is that the only 'good' power comes from God, not of our own efforts. Even if one performs spells which are 'good' and supposedly have "good effects," but the magic is not from God, then... well... the source of the power is still considered "not good." The question of whether one is being somewhat beguiled by a faulty concept comes into play.
> >
> WolfSpirit:
>
> I'm not sure what you are explaining. One religion's view of another?

Sure, why not. How else can we discuss differing approaches to the import of spiritual matters? I may not agree with the viewpoint; but I am not going to be rude about it.


> I'm not very clear on the "faulty concept" statement, either. Logically, following any faith is a "faulty concept." Not that there's anything wrong with that. :)
>

In a nutshell, I was asking whether one knows if one's beliefs in magic are the result of deception. You can rightfully ask that question of any religious doctrine. Indeed, my answer to that is that one must apply reason and logic to the situation.


> Personally, I've believed that anything that is well-intentioned and/or has good results *is* good, whether with the involvment of a deity or not. The Wiccan law of "harm none, do what you want" is pretty much my Law, too.
>

Everything might be 'permissible', but not everything is beneficial.

The Christian version of the "harm none" conviction is reflected in the Golden Rule. However, I would disagree with the "do what you want" part because it's logically impossible. NO ONE is free in life to do as they please; and if they think so, it is perhaps a necessary illusion, but it's an illusion nonetheless. Social constraints and commonly-accepted standards of behaviour prevent total freedom of action. Both civilized society and God look out for the welfare of all individuals. We recognize that a person may do things which s/he feels are perfectly harmless, but which may have unforeseen, catastrophic consequences both for the individual and society.


> How does anyone know that any *prayers* actually work? (The prayers that are asking for something, that is. Of course not all prayers are requests.)
>

I've mentioned before that there have been several double-blind clinical studies showing the positive effect of intercessory prayer on healing. Good ole science holding up a candle to 'faith.'


> What do they think when they don't? The explanation that "Your request was not in God's plan" is what we are taught, and it's as satisfying an explanation as one can hope for.
>

I suppose that here, I have to take a stand by faith. I believe all prayers are answered. As you say, they may not be answered in the way we expect, or in an immediately linear timeframe.


> That is an interesting question, however---do Wiccans have a different explanation for when their spells are duds?
>
> ---Luba "magic 8 ball" Luft

Wolf "shake up the 8 ball" spirit