Occult Sciences The Philosophy of Magic, Prodigies and Apparent Miracles [Paperback]

A two-volume 1846 translation of an examination of miracles in ancient times by a French polymath, first published in 1829.A Scottish physician, Anthony Todd Thomson (17781849), translated and edited this two-volume 1846 study of miracles in ancient times by French intellectual Anne-Joseph-Eus?be Baconni?re de Salverte (17711839), originally published in 1829. Volume 1 looks at human credulity, and offers explanations for supernatural phenomena.A Scottish physician, Anthony Todd Thomson (17781849), translated and edited this two-volume 1846 study of miracles in ancient times by French intellectual Anne-Joseph-Eus?be Baconni?re de Salverte (17711839), originally published in 1829. Volume 1 looks at human credulity, and offers explanations for supernatural phenomena.This examination of the connection between the belief in miracles and religious practices in ancient times was originally written by French politician and polymath Anne-Joseph-Eus?be Baconni?re de Salverte (17711839) and published in 1829. In 1846, it was translated into English by a Scottish physician and writer, Anthony Todd Thomson (17781849), and published in two volumes. Thomson explains that Salverte's work was an important study of miracles and the power of priests, and he had 'performed a beneficial service in throwing open the gates of ancient sanctuaries'. However, Thomson also states that he differed from Salverte over the idea of the miraculous, and that he had expunged or heavily edited any passages relating to Christianity, even changing 'miracles' in the original subtitle to 'apparent miracles'. Volume 1 begins with a consideration of human credulity before discussing magic in the ancient world, and offering explanations for supernatural phenomena.Preface; A biographical sketch of M. Salverte Francois Arago; Preface by the editor; Introduction; 1. Man is credulous because he is naturally sincere; 2. Difference between miracles and prodigies; 3. Enumeration and discussion of causes; 4. l;