The Bible's Own Witches

The Bible, especially the Old Testament, is full of references to magic and divination, but we  rarely find attestations of witches and witchcraft, i.e. women performing acts of black magic. However, there is a mysterious passage in the Book of Ezekie which seems to relate exactly that.  In this talk Dr Alinda Damsma throws light on the identity and practices of these women, seeing them in the context of other known activities in the Ancient Near East.  Join us for a strangely compelling evening of death-dealing and cursing in the ancient world. 

Dr Damsma teaches Biblical Hebrew at the University College London. Her research interests include magic and witchcraft ; she is currently working on a study on the perception of magic, divination, and witchcraft in the English Bible translations, particularly the King James Version. More on Dr Alinda Damsma.