Using in-depth examples of ''magical'' practice such as exorcisms, love rites, alchemy and the transformation of humans into divine beings, this lively volume demonstrates that the word ''magic'' was used widely in late antique texts as part of polemics against enemies and sometimes merely as a term for other people''s rituals. Naomi Janowitz shows that ''magical'' activities were integral to late antique religious practice, and that they must be understood from the perspective of those who employed them.

Using in-depth examples of ''magical'' practice such as exorcisms, love rites, alchemy and the transformation of humans into divine beings, this lively volume demonstrates that the word ''magic'' was used widely in late antique texts as part of polemics against enemies and sometimes merely as a term for other people''s rituals. Naomi Janowitz shows that ''magical'' activities were integral to late antique religious practice, and that they must be understood from the perspective of those who employed them.

Using in-depth examples of ''magical'' practice such as exorcisms, love rites, alchemy and the transformation of humans into divine beings, this lively volume demonstrates that the word ''magic'' was used widely in late antique texts as part of polemics against enemies and sometimes merely as a term for other people''s rituals. Naomi Janowitz shows that ''magical'' activities were integral to late antique religious practice, and that they must be understood from the perspective of those who employed them.