Gospel Magic

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Gospel magic is a special form of magic in which Christians illustrate and convey the Christian faith and biblical teaching through magical performances . Here, the term is from Gospel (of English : Good News ) and Magic , along since the thrust of: (magic of English) gospel magic , the good news of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is.

In the Bible, Jesus Christ uses stories and parables for his message. Gospelmagic also intends to convey the message of Jesus Christ visually and in an entertaining way. The artists attach great importance to the fact that it is clear to the audience that they themselves have no supernatural abilities. So the effects are not a proof of power, but an illustration . The magic trick or the illusion underlines the theological aspect and contributes to a better understanding.

Gospel magic is not tied to a branch of magic, but can be used, for example, in the form of stage performances, street magic, at the table, for children or by pastors or priests to illustrate a sermon in a church service . So it is an application of magic in the context of Christianity .

Associations

Gospel magic artists around the world are organized in the International Fellowship of Christian Magicians (FCM), which was founded in the USA in 1953 and publishes the monthly specialist journal The Christian Conjuror Magazin and in the Catholic Magicians' Guild .

In the German-speaking area, gospel magic artists have been organized as the Association of Christian Magicians (GCZK) since 2000 , which publishes the magazine Der Zauberstab and offers training.

history

The idea of ​​using an illusion to clarify spiritual messages is not new. This is already reported in the Bible, which is generally full of subject lessons (illustration of complex thoughts through objects or actions) (Book of Ezekiel , chapter 37, verses 16-20). An early mention of the use of modern magic for religious educational purposes in literature can be found in the autobiographical work Memoirs of the Italian Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco ( Don Bosco , 1815–1888), canonized by the Catholic Church in 1929 . His approach is described even more impressively in the biography Memorie biografiche . Because of his magic, Don Bosco is revered as the patron saint of stage magicians. Worldwide, on Don Bosco's name day, Catholic magicians perform in his honor at charity events for the benefit of underprivileged children and young people.

In the comprehensive book Greater Gospel Magic , Duane Laflin names Baptist pastor Rev. CH Woolston from Philadelphia (USA) as the first Gospel Magcian . In 1910, Rev. Woolston published the first textbook on gospel magic. In 1917 he organized the first official conference for Gospel Magic and in 1919 co-founded the Gospel Illustrators Of America association . On November 27, 1953, the Fellowship of Christian Magicians ( FCM international ) was founded in San Francisco . This rapidly growing international association (in 1980 it already had over 2,000 registered members) also organized the first European conference in 1986 in Wales (Great Britain). From the European branch ( FCM Europe ) that emerged at that time, the Association of Christian Magicians Germany e. V. (FCMG). In 2017 the association was renamed the Association of Christian Magicians (GCZK).

Web links

Organizations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Magic in the service of preaching. Archived from the original on October 22, 2008 ; Retrieved May 4, 2009 . "The members of his union audience never left in doubt ..." -
  2. ^ Judith Kühl: Christian sorcery with »Mr. Joy «? Retrieved May 4, 2009 . "He doesn't see himself as a magician or someone who pretends to have psychic abilities."
  3. ↑ Ethical commitment of the FCMG. Retrieved May 9, 2009 . "As a member of this community, I am committed to ... not leaving my audience in the dark about the fact that I have no supernatural powers ..."
  4. ^ Community of Christian magicians. Retrieved February 8, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Johannes Bosco: Memories. Autobiographical record of the first 40 years of a life of service to the youth. From the Italian by P. Anton Nosko SDB and P. Martin Haunolder SDB, Don Bosco Verlag, Munich 1988, ISBN 3-7698-0604-2 . P. 38ff
  6. ^ Giovanni Battista Lemoyne, Memorie biografiche di Don Giovanni Bosco , Scuola tipografica e libraria salesiana, San Benigno Canavese 1939, Volume 3, pp. 139f.
  7. ↑ Magicians Want Don Bosco Declared Their Patron ( Memento of the original dated August 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Zenit News Agency, January 29, 2002  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / zenit.org
  8. ↑ Duane Laflin: Greater Gospel Magic. Winters Publishing, Greensburg / Indiana 2000, ISBN 1-883651-13-1 , p. 17
  9. ↑ Rev. Dr. CH Woolston: Seeing Truth: a Book of Object Lessons With Magical and Mechanical Effects. Griffith and Rowland, 1910.
  10. ↑ Duane Laflin: Greater Gospel Magic. Winters Publishing, Greensburg / Indiana 2000, ISBN 1-883651-13-1 , p. 19
  11. ↑ Duane Laflin: Greater Gospel Magic. Winters Publishing, Greensburg / Indiana 2000, ISBN 1-883651-13-1 , p. 24
  12. ↑ Duane Laflin: Greater Gospel Magic. Winters Publishing, Greensburg / Indiana 2000, ISBN 1-883651-13-1 , p. 27