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9780271080192 Academic Inspection Copy

Medicine, Religion, and Magic in Early Stuart England

Richard Napier's Medical Practice
  • ISBN-13: 9780271080192
  • Publisher: PENN STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS
    Imprint: PENN STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS
  • By Ofer Hadass
  • Price: AUD $75.99
  • Stock: 3 in stock
  • Availability: Order will be despatched as soon as possible.
  • Local release date: 01/06/2019
  • Format: Paperback (230.00mm X 155.00mm) 232 pages Weight: 380g
  • Categories: Religion & beliefs [HR]
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The astrologer-physician Richard Napier (1559-1634) was not only a man of practical science and medicine but also a master of occult arts and a devout parish rector who purportedly held conversations with angels. This new interpretation of Napier reveals him to be a coherent and methodical man whose burning desire for certain, true knowledge contributed to the contemporary venture of putting existing knowledge to useful ends.

Originally trained in theology and ordained as an Anglican priest, Napier later studied astrological medicine and combined astrology, religious thought, and image and ritual magic in his medical work. Ofer Hadass draws on a remarkable archive of Napier’s medical cases and religious writings—including the interviews he claimed to have held with angels—to show how Napier’s seemingly inconsistent approaches were rooted in an inclusive and coherent worldview, combining equal respect for ancient authority and for experientially derived knowledge. Napier’s endeavors exemplify the fruitful relationship between religion and science that offered a well-founded alternative to the rising mechanistic explanation of nature at the time.

Carefully researched and compellingly told, Medicine, Religion, and Magic in Early Stuart England is an insightful exploration of one of the most fascinating figures at the intersection of medicine, magic, and theology in early modern England and of the healing methods employed by physicians of the era.

Contents

List of Illustrations

List of Symbols

Acknowledgments

Conventions

Introduction

1. Astrological Medicine

2. Astral Magic

3. Converse with Angels

4. Religion and Knowledge

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

Index


“Hadass successfully explores the interaction of astrological, magical, and angelic divination with theological understandings in the work of Richard Napier, providing for the first time a rounded view of this Anglican priest-physician and an invaluable guide to those wishing to use Napier’s uniquely rich collection of manuscripts.”

—Jonathan Barry, author of Witchcraft and Demonology in South-West England, 1640–1789

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