# #126 Was Jesus an Ancient Magician? - Religion for Breakfast

An episode of [Within Reason](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1458675168), 19 Oct 2025, 1 h 12 min.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/10a220e88/podcast/play/109875587/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2025-9-19%2Fc076e2f9-e033-e135-1b16-59ec7f5cdc80.mp3

Exclusive NordVPN Deal ➼ https://nordvpn.com/withinreason. Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Andrew Mark Henry is a scholar of religious studies. His research focus is early Christianity and late Roman religion. He earned his PhD at Boston University.His YouTube channel is "Religion for Breakfast", find it here. Timestamps: 0:00 - Was Jesus a Magician? 3:35 - The Origins of ‘Magic’ 10:02 - Celsus, Christianity’s Earliest Critic 16:35 - The Wise Magi 19:59 - Did Jesus Use a Wand? 30:22 - Curses, Rituals, and Magical Formulas 40:43 - What Kind of “Magus” Was Jesus? 43:52 - Was Jesus a Freelance Ritual Expert? 48:34 - Charisma and the Origin of Exorcism 53:03 - Grimoires: The Magic of the Written Word 01:08:40 - The Religion Department

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