What is superstition? ‘To believe in spite of evidence or without evidence. To account for one mystery by another. To believe that the world is governed by chance or caprice. To disregard the true relation between cause and effect. To put thought, intention and design back into nature. To believe that mind created and controls matter.’ It is all to do with living in a spooky, chancy who-knows-what- might- happen-next kind of universe.
Before Christianity came onto the scene, the ancient world was very much a world of magic, astrology, amulets, charms, curses, and love potions. Often they were associated with religion — especially seeking the aid of certain gods and goddesses. Every village had ‘wise ones’, who dispensed to people’s needs. Archaeologists have found magical curses scratched on lead tablets and papyri offering recipes and instructions for black sorcery.
The word used by the Romans to describe this kind of activity was superstition which at its root means ‘to look over something’, that is, to be entranced or in awe. They extended this definition to include foreign religions, including Christianity.
