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No one shall be found among you who makes a son or daughter pass through fire, or who practices divination, is a soothsayer, an augur, or a sorcerer, or one who casts spells, consults ghosts or spirits, or seeks oracles from the dead. For whoever does these things is abhorrent to the Lord; it is because of such abhorrent practices that the Lord your God is driving them out before you.
—Book of Deuteronomy, c. 620 BC
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- Déjà Vu Is history repeating itself? The Déjà Vu blog investigates... In Defense — In 2013, the House of Lords challenges same-sex marriage, while Oscar Wilde’s 1895 trial puts his love life on the stand. Intercepted! — A Russian cat smuggling cell-phones to prisoners is caught; in 1885, the heroes of a Jules Verne adventure ponder the fate of a carrier pigeon. Potent Potables — New Jersey bars are caught selling doctored liquor; an 18th century barman says liquor is the best medicine.
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