The Benedictine abbot Trithemius, 1462-1516, with a career in the studies of monastic reform, mystical theology and Christian humanism, attempted to recapture the religious origins of magic and to harmonize its precepts with Christian dogma. In this obscure, but fascinating history, his controversial attempt to integrate magic into orthodox Christian study is carefully and thoroughly chronicled. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.