We tend in English to use the words “witch” or “witchcraft” in ways that fail to reflect analytic distinctions widely present in other cultures and languages. One class of persons practice divination or contact the dead on behalf of the living in a culturally acceptable and open way. For example, in South Africa the Sangoma and Inyanga are…

In our attempt to discover what witchcraft is, an important question is whether witchcraft is spiritual or physical. This is a question that people often ask me. In a previous post, “What Is Witchcraft,” I presented witchcraft as similar to spirit-possession, but the two are said to be distinct phenomena. Again, witchcraft is often directly connected with…

What is witchcraft? Various terms and interpretations have been offered in attempts to understand the phenomenon of witchcraft in Africa. E. Evans-Pritchard’s classic distinction between witchcraft and sorcery, which has been altered by other anthropologists, is relevant in many places in Africa. The assumption is that witchcraft is an inherent quality and a psychic act….

Human beings are made in the image of a good God who also provides indicators of what constitutes the “good” in his creation. Human beings are more human to the degree that they “image” God. In recent days I have been made aware of the fact that my reflections to this point have been oriented…

Previously, I argued that achievement is relative. Various factors shape how we evaluate it. What is a great achievement for some is no big deal for others. One person’s “normal” might be an outstanding achievement for someone else. Today, I want to suggest that a key factor that underlies the relativity of achievement is potential….

As we saw in my last post, one of the difficulties in defining achievement is that it seems to be a relative term. When we think about achievement, we generally take various factors into consideration, whether or not we are conscious of this. Achievement looks different for someone who comes from a wealthy, highly educated…

“Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5, ESV) In my last offering, I expressed the thought that it is wise to consider loving a person based upon what it was about them that belonged to God. Appreciation of people could be…

In my first post, I indicated that a key question to address would be what “achievement” is. This post is my first attempt to define achievement. The goal is to understand what we mean by the concept in twenty-first century Western society, with a view to approach the Scriptures for a biblical understanding of the…

Robert Priest’s presentation on the meaning of the terms “witch”, “witchcraft” and “sorcery” is very important. One of the main reasons is that currently the terms are used differently at various places with diverse meanings. Tim Stabell thought we did not need to be precise but could refer to such terms as “the alleged innate…

I was 16 years old, and had just arrived in the USA. John asked me my favorite sport. I replied, “football.” When I learned that he also loved “football,” we launched into an animated conversation that became quite confusing. Only when I remembered that the word “football” in the USA was used for a sport…