Angel Magic and the Cult of Angels in the Later Middle Ages

Abstract

In the late medieval West, magic that involved conjuring angels was widely held suspect and often seen as a veiled form of demonic magic. But why, precisely, was it so viewed? Because angel magic undermined clerical privilege? Because it appealed to named rather than anonymous angels? Because it often assumed there were neutral spirits between the unambiguously good and evil ones? Because angels were not valid sources of revelation? None of these explanations takes into account the broad areas of similarity between angel magic and approved or tolerated devotion to angels. Even orthodox devotion to angels was fluid and potentially idiosyncratic. Angel magic was not the irregular side of approved devotion, but a more extreme version of ideas and practices that were always in danger of becoming questionable.