A kind of spell, supposed by the ignorant to have an irresistible influence, by means of the concurrence of some infernal power, both on the minds, lives, and properties of those whom it has for its object. "Certain vain ceremonies, " says Dr. Doddridge, "which are commonly called charms, and seem to have no efficacy at all for producing the effects proposed by them, are to be avoided; seeing if there be indeed any real efficacy in them, it is generally probable they owe it to some bad cause; for one can hardly imagine that God should permit good angels in any extraordinary manner to interpose, or should immediately exert his own miraculous power on trifling occasions, and upon the performance of such idle tricks as are generally made the condition of receiving such benefits."
Despite a stated reliance on the plain meaning of the Bible and the dictates of common sense, Buck's Theological Dictionary, first published in London in 1802, seeks to provide a textual basis for the evangelical community. By combining brief essays on orthodox belief and practice with historical entries on various denominations, Buck provided an interpretive lens that allowed antebellum Protestants to see Christianity's almost two millennia as their own history.Wikipedia
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