Article — Noldin, Summa of Moral Theology
Article Third. On Divination
153. Notions. 1. Divination (Wahrsagerei) is defined as superstition by which the demon is invoked in order to know hidden things by his help.
a. Divination tends to this, that knowledge of some thing be obtained which cannot be known by natural means. Hidden things: these can be present, past, or future; and although those things whose knowledge is sought are for the most part hidden, nevertheless if things known to all were sought from the demon for the sake of jest or experiment, there would be true divination, since its essence consists in commerce with the demon.
b. It is certain that the same spirit of Python which St. Paul cast out at Philippi from the girl who, by divining, brought great gain to her masters,1 even now, although more rarely, manifests hidden and future things to men.
- Divination can be done in a twofold way: through express invocation of the demon (with an express pact), or through implicit or tacit invocation (with an implicit pact). It is committed by express invocation when the demon is invoked by express words, or if an agreement is expressly made with him that, when such signs have been placed, he produce such effects; but for committing this divination it is not necessary that the demon in fact respond, but it is enough that the effect be sought by his help. It is committed by implicit invocation when someone, in order to obtain knowledge, uses inept means which he knows have the power of producing the intended effect neither from their nature nor from the institution of God or the Church. For he who knowingly uses an inept means for obtaining some effect expects this effect from a higher power; but the effect cannot be expected either from God or from the angels, who disapprove the use of such means; therefore it is expected from the demon, who is implicitly invoked by the very use of those means.
a. For this reason those are not excused who knowingly employ vain means and protest against any commerce with the demon: for the protestation is contrary to the deed and therefore null.
b. The demon gladly intermingles himself with vain and inept means of this kind; for he approves all things which are vain and reprobated by God, and freely seizes the occasion of effecting what he himself intends, namely that man, having left God, recur to him and render divine honors to him.
1 Acts 16:16.
154. a. Nine different species of divination with an express pact are numbered according to the different mode by which the demon invoked responds and reveals hidden things. Seven different species especially of divination with an implicit pact are numbered according to the different mode by which knowledge of hidden things is sought.1
b. Judicial astrology also is numbered among divination with an implicit pact, by which knowledge of hidden things is sought from the position and motion of the stars. For natural and judicial astrology are distinguished; the former, by which certain effects are known from the influence of the stars, especially of the moon, is founded in natural science; the latter, by which rules are established for knowing future things from the stars, especially the varied fortune of men, is founded in superstitious art.
c. Since today the divination of crystallomancy is again not rarely exercised, it helps to note that those who gaze into crystal, or into water contained in a vessel, etc., see various images there, which are nothing but hallucinations (visions) provoked by the "scryers" themselves by the aid of imagination. But the demon easily intermingles himself with these experiments and manifests hidden or future things to the scryers, so that in this way he may revive divination used both in the ancient age of the gentiles and in the middle age.2
1 Cf. Sporer-Bierbaum, I, tr. 2, n. 313 ff.; Gopfert, I, n. 387.
2 Cf. Bessmer, "Die Visionen im Kristalle," Stimmen aus Maria Laach 1908, p. 165 ff.
155. Its moral and specific malice. 1. Divination which is done through explicit invocation is a sin grave from its whole genus. For in every divination there is commerce with the demon; but any commerce with the demon, the most hostile enemy of God and men, is gravely illicit, as injurious to God and pernicious to man. Moreover, some worship is exhibited to the demon by the very fact that man recurs to him and thus subjects himself to him.
- Divination with implicit invocation is indeed also by its own nature a grave sin, because it involves commerce with the demon; yet it can become venial: a. from ignorance and simplicity, because its malice is not equally manifest as that of express invocation; b. from defect of firm faith, when certain faith is not given to vain signs, but only some fear or suspicion of a future event is conceived; c. from defect of serious will, when knowledge of a hidden thing is sought more for the sake of jest or curiosity than from serious intention. And since almost commonly something intervenes which excuses from mortal sin, divinations with implicit invocation are rarely grave sins; nevertheless the thing is always dangerous if someone directs his actions from them.
Those who consult soothsayers or diviners (gypsies) concerning fortune sin gravely if this is done with firm faith or scandal of others; but venially if it is done only for the sake of curiosity, or if firm faith is not given to their sayings, as is most often the case. Likewise it is a light sin to do or omit an indifferent thing because of responses heard from them, if it is done from some fear or for the sake of curiosity in testing. Yet those who consult them in addition commit a sin of induction or cooperation.
- Divination which is done through explicit and implicit invocation, and likewise the different divinations which are done through invocation, whether explicit or implicit, do not differ in species, but contain the same specific malice. Therefore of itself it is not necessary that it be declared in confession whether the invocation of the demon was express or tacit; and likewise the penitent is not bound to declare by what signs or means he exercised divination.
Yet ordinarily in confession it must be declared, for another twofold reason, whether the invocation was explicit or implicit: a. so that the confessor can judge whether a grave or light sin was committed; b. because it is established that divination with express invocation generally has several other sins joined to it which do not occur where only tacit invocation is had. But the sins which are often joined to express invocation are these: abjuration of Christ, adoration of the demon, promise of perpetual service with a promise of help in return on the part of the demon, blasphemies against God, sacrileges (abuse of sacred things and of the Eucharist itself), etc.
156. On dreams. 1. Dreams: a. ordinarily depend on natural causes, namely either on daily occupations, or on the temperament and constitution of the body, or on the concurrence of phantasms, etc.; nevertheless it cannot be denied that b. dreams are sometimes stirred up by God: for although God does not direct men through dreams, He nevertheless promised that sometimes He would be the author of dreams;1 moreover, from Sacred Letters and from the lives of the saints we learn that dreams were sometimes sent by God;2 c. but that the demon can be, and in fact sometimes is, the author of dreams cannot be denied, since he can stir up phantasms in men.3
If God sends dreams, at the same time there are certain indications from which it can be gathered that they have been sent by God. Signs of this kind are these: a. if the matter is worthy of God, and not vain and indecent; b. if it impels to good, but not to evil and presumptuous things; c. if it makes the soul tranquil and more ready for works of piety, not disturbed, inclined to earthly things, and slower for the service of God.
Since dreams are sometimes also sent by God, where prudent reason suggests this, they must be diligently examined whether they are from God. But if it appears morally certain that a dream has been sent by God, we are bound to believe it; if it is probable, we can believe it and direct our actions according to it.
To believe natural dreams with blind faith in such a way that someone ordinarily directs his actions according to them is the mortal sin of divination; but sometimes to place or omit an indifferent action because of a dream, or then lightly to fear lest what dreams portend may happen, does not exceed light sin.
He sins gravely who desires to be taught by the demon through a dream, and more so he who for this reason takes sleep in a certain position of the body. He sins gravely who directs his life almost from dreams, lots, cards, and vain means of this kind. But he ordinarily does not sin gravely who plays in a game the numbers which he dreamed, or who does not mount a horse because he dreamed of a fall, or who digs up the earth because he dreamed that a treasure was hidden there, because he does this not so much from certain faith in a future event as from a certain excessive timidity or hope.
2 Judg. 7:13; Dan. 2:19; Matt. 1:20; 2:12, 13, 19.
3 Deut. 18:10.
157. On sortilege, or on the use of lots (Loswerfen). Since threefold lots are distinguished, these things must be established concerning them:
- Divisory lots, which are used for discerning what is to be attributed to each one in things to be divided or in suits to be settled, are licit unless they are prohibited by human law: for this sortilege is nothing other than a contract by which it is decreed by common consent that the thing is to be attributed to him to whom the lot has fallen.1 But lots are prohibited by canon law in ecclesiastical elections.2
This means of lots for settling controversies is to be preferred to conducting lawsuits before a judge and to the appointing of arbiters themselves; it is also brought into use by the Austrian Code §§ 885, 841, and by the German Code §§ 659, 752. Concerning these lots Sacred Scripture says: Lots are cast into the lap, but they are tempered by the Lord.3
Consultory lots, which are used for investigating what is to be done or omitted, constitute a sin of superstition if the response is expected from the demon. If the response is explicitly expected from God, there is the sin of tempting God, unless they are used from divine inspiration (as in the election of Matthias), or from a sufficiently grave cause of necessity or utility (where other ordinary means are lacking) and with prayer to God sent beforehand, as if someone, remaining at a crossroad in a matter of great moment, cannot otherwise determine himself as to the way.
Divinatory lots, which are used for obtaining knowledge of a hidden thing, are ordinarily a grave sin of superstitious divination: for lots have the power of manifesting a hidden thing neither from themselves nor from divine institution; therefore its manifestation is expected from the demon, although the demon is not explicitly invoked.
Ordinarily. Without doubt he commits superstition who, for example, by lots tries to divine what numbers are to be drawn in a lottery; but divinatory lots are not superstitious if they are used: a. from divine inspiration;4 b. from the intention of obtaining from God the manifestation of a hidden thing (in which case temptation of God can be committed); c. from mere jest or curiosity of seeing what in that case is designated by the lot, without faith being given to the thing.
1 Cf. John 19:24.
2 c. Ecclesiae fin., De sortilegiis (V. 21).
3 Prov. 16:33.
4 Cf. Josh. 7:14.
158. On the use of the divining rod. The divining rod (Zauberrute) is a rod cut from hazel (Haselnuss) or willow (Weide) which is used for finding hidden or lost things, indeed even for detecting men (murderers, thieves).
a. The use of the divining rod is certainly illicit if the rod is used so that it may move according to the intention of him who holds it in his hand: for if it were moved by natural force, it would be moved toward all things of the same nature.
Thus, if the rod of one seeking a boundary stone is moved only toward that stone, not likewise toward other stones, and the rod of one seeking water only toward water, not likewise toward metals, and conversely, it is moved according to the intention of the one seeking, not by natural force.
b. The use of the rod for seeking waters or metals is licit, especially if a protestation against diabolical influence is made.
He will scarcely err who attributes the motion of the rod placed in the hand of a certain determinate person to natural magnetic or electric forces, which are more abundantly contained both in the body of certain persons, and in the branches of certain trees (for example, peach), and in certain bodies (water, metals), provided that independently of the intention of him who uses the rod, it is moved only toward certain bodies (water, metals), and toward these bodies always in an equal manner.
Note. Of itself it is licit to use the power of a natural means which has been known through superstition, provided its efficacy does not depend on the influence of the demon: for a thing does not become evil from this, that it has been known in an illicit way.