The Occult | Period 1 | Tuesday

[thepaledreamer.livejournal.com]

It was time to get back to a regular class. Even with the end of the semester approaching, Paige still had a few things she wanted to cover before things tied up in a neat little bow.

"Morning everyone," she greeted easily. "Today we're going to take a look at thaumaturgy. Basically, thaumaturgy is capability of a magician or a saint to work magic or miracles. A practitioner of thaumaturgy is a thaumaturge, thaumaturgist or miracle-worker. Pretty simple, right? So, who believes single people actually have the power and ability to work miracles? Who thinks that when all the science and technology in the world fail, we could bring in one single person and save a dying person or a dying race? Plausible?"

They were open ended questions so Paige didn't answer them. She had a little more lecture to finish up. "In Islam, a thaumaturgists is a saint miraculously teleporting, or "moving by the earth being displaced under one's feet." In translations, these miracles have been described as thaumaturgical. Christianity calls them wonderworker which is a saint through whom God works miracles, not just occasionally, but as a matter of course. In the Hermetic Qabalah mystical tradition, a person titled a magician has the power to make subtle changes in higher realms, which in turn produce physical results. So, with that background, you see that most thaumaturgists seem to be chosen by some deity but there is no word on if said person has to be a specific type of person. Do they have to be exceptionally pious? Seniority? High ranking? It's all very, very general. Simple discussion question today: do you believe in miracles? If yes, how do you think they happen? If no, why not?"

And that was the end of Paige's lecture for today.

Library, Tuesday

[faithandscience.livejournal.com]

Well, one thing was apparent as soon as William walked in to the library: last week's April showers were continuing. Except indoors, this time.

Thankfully, the books seemed to somehow be impervious to the water. William didn't quite get how that worked, but given that it saved him from having to explain why everything in the room was water damaged, he certainly wasn't going to question it.

He was also going to keep his hat on indoors today, bad etiquette or no. He wasn't impervious to the rain, after all.

How to Make Friends and Influence People [Tuesday, April 8, 2014]

[sith_happened]

"Graduation is approaching, and there's an excellent chance that something insane will happen during the graduation ceremony," Anakin said. "As graduates and attendees at the ceremony, you will be faced with bewildered guests who either have never been to a graduation where all of the students inexplicable turn into small children halfway through--this has happened--or one where aliens or Vikings attack the ceremony. Part of what we are learning is how to finesse that kind of situation. Those of you who are ones--" Anakin pointed them out, "--are playing the part of parents and friends of graduates. Those of you who are twos--the other half--are yourselves. Lie outright, obfuscate, tell the truth, erase their memories, whatever you feel is the proper procedure, then explain your choice to me. Our scenario is..."

Anakin paused to think. "...a rain of toads. Toads wearing top hats and carrying canes, who then put on a dance to 'Hello My Baby' on the stage before trying to beat the senior class to death with those canes." He smiled. "This scenario probably won't happen."

Probably.

Handling Your Powers, Tuesday

[not_a_whiner]

Students entering the Danger Shop today were going to find a very large kitchen instead of the usual gym set-up. And there was Kaidan, holding on to a pan and grinning at them. "Look, not everything I learned at brain camp was terrible," he said. "Some things turned out to be pretty useful."

He held up the pan. "Like cooking."

He put it down on one of the stoves.

"So today, we're going to make some actual food. With a challenge. I want each of you to try and come up with a way in which your powers could make the process easier - without destroying anything in the process." Beat. "Though it won't hurt if you do wreck something here. It's the Danger Shop and all the safeties are on. Though that's not a license to start throwing fireballs."

He pointed at the various stations. "We've got frying steak, boiling vegetables, baking a pie and making soup," he said. "There's also materials to make meatballs if that's more your speed. I want you to pick one that calls to you and go for it. Poke around. Experiment a little. See what you can manage with your powers."

He leaned back, smiling. "And as a reward, at the end of it, you get to eat the food. So, uh... don't blow it. Ask me if you've got any questions."

Literature- Wednesday- 2nd period

[puppyinacup.livejournal.com]

"Hey, it's two weeks in a row where we're here and everyone's themselves! Let's keep that streak up," Jess said when class began.

Way to see the bright side of things, Jess.

"Last week you got a copy of the meta for To Kill a Mockingbird, and if you haven't read it, you get another week. But you also have to have your book report done for then. For today, though, we're going to watch the movie version, and you can include any differences between the book and movie in your report!"

It was hard to get back in the swing of things when you were someone else for a month and then you had like no time till finals, okay.