The Highest Good

Concerning the Highest Good, etc.

By these things it seems clearly argued to the Wise, that Magic as a whole is not to be repudiated by Christians simply because some portion or species of it deals with the worst things, abominable to a Christian soul. If, I say, worldly Wisdom—which is the fruit of human invention—is foolish according to the words of the Apostle A reference to St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:19: "For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God." and leads to the worst outcomes; then that true Wisdom, sent into the world by divine inspiration from God for the benefit of His creatures, is not to be rejected or consigned to perpetual oblivion by Christian men on account of the diabolical follies of that other kind. Indeed, if it were taken away, nothing of Wisdom, whether divine or natural, would be found on the face of the earth. As for that knowledge of evil which caused the fall of Adam (who, having had dealings with the serpent, was deceived and thus tasted of the tree of both evil and good), I desire from my heart, along with all Christians engaged in the true and sincere Wisdom of God, that it should be thrust down into the abyss to its master the Devil. For it was originally inspired by the cunning of said master into the world for human ruin and destruction—rising upward like a foul vapor—so that no trace of such a mystery of iniquity would be left to human posterity.

For a better distinction between the two species, authors have called the good science Magic, and the evil science directly Cacomagic original: "Cacomagia," from the Greek 'kakos' (evil) and 'magia' (magic)..

That which is called "Natural Magic" is destined for revealing and investigating the mysteries of nature, both celestial and terrestrial. Therefore, by means of this science, the Magi—the most accurate explorers of nature—by applying active agents to passive subjects A technical concept in Renaissance magic where the practitioner "marries" active celestial forces to passive terrestrial materials to produce effects. with a learned and expert hand, finally produced things for the world that the common people regarded as miracles. They were accustomed to perform works that sometimes surpassed all admiration, as authors worthy of trust have committed to writing. Sometimes this art even leads to a supernatural mystery, bringing the incorruptible Spirit of the creature—or the very quintessenceThe "fifth element" or "aether," thought to be the pure, celestial substance that permeates all things., most full of the divine ray—out of the darkness into the sight of mortals through true and non-spurious alchemy. By means of this science, the ancient Magi (not Cacomagi, as the ignorant suppose, who are practiced in the worst "Cacomagic" wisdom) brought so many and such great things to light. These were truly Wise men; namely, those who received the gift of Wisdom from God, such as those three Magi or Wise Men who followed his star from the East at the birth of Christ. Those three kings, I say, who foretold that Christ, the Savior of the world, would be born.

It should be known, however, that there were anciently four schools of this natural Magic famous throughout the whole world: the Indian, the Persian, the Chaldean, and the Ethiopian. In the Indian school among the Brahminsoriginal: "Brachmanas", the fame of Iarchas was greatest; of Thespesion among the GymnosophistsMeaning "naked philosophers," a group of ancient Indian philosophers known for their asceticism.; of Buddha among the Babylonians; of Numa Pompilius among the Romans; of Zamolxis among the Thracians; of Abaris among the Hyperboreans; of Hermes among the Egyptians; and of Zoroaster (son of Oromasus) among the Persians—from which part of the world came those three kings seeking the newborn Christ to adore Him with gifts. Interpreters of the Gospels explain these men to be Chaldean Philosophers, of the same kind as Iarchas the Indian, Buddha the Babylonian, and Zoroaster the Persian. And these are called kings because Plato testifies in the Alcibiades that the sons of Persian kings were instructed in the mysteries of this kind of natural magic, so that they might learn to administer and distribute the republic according to the image of the worldly Republic A reference to the "macrocosm/microcosm" theory where a state should be governed in harmony with the laws of the universe.. Cicero seems to agree with this opinion of Plato, saying in his books on divination: no one among the Persians was decorated with the royal crown who had not first learned Magic. And this seems to be the reason why these Eastern kings were most learned in Wisdom, or "Good Magic," seeking the name of MAGI and WISE MEN, which is why they are described by the HOLY SPIRIT in the Gospel as "Magi."