Editing Cleromancy (section)

==In Judaic and Christian tradition==
[[File:Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 073.png|thumb|Casting lots for tribal inheritance, woodcut for [[:c:Die Bibel in Bildern|Die Bibel in Bildern]], 1860, [[:s:Bible (King James)/Joshua#Chapter 14|Joshua, Chapter 14]]]]
[[File:Detail of East Window, Lincoln Cathedral (14224253959).jpg|thumb|[[Aaron]] draws lots to select which of two [[goats]] will be the [[scapegoat]]. ([[Leviticus]] 16:7–10; [[stained glass]] from [[Lincoln Cathedral]])]]
Casting of lots ({{Langx|he|גּוֹרָל|gōral}}, {{Langx|el|{{math|κλῆρος}}|klē̂ros}}) is mentioned 47&nbsp;times in the [[Bible]].{{cn|date=February 2023}} Some examples in the [[Hebrew Bible]] of the casting of lots as a means of determining [[God]]'s will:
* In the [[Book of Leviticus]] {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|16:8|KJV}}, God commanded [[Moses]], "And [[Aaron]] shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the {{LORD}}, and the other lot for the [[scapegoat]]." One goat will be sacrificed as a [[sin offering]], while the scapegoat is loaded up with the sins of the people and sent into the wilderness.
* According to [[Book of Numbers|Numbers]] {{bibleverse-nb||Numbers|26:55|KJV}}, Moses allocated territory to the [[tribes of Israel]] according to each tribe's male population and by [[Land lottery|lot]].
* In [http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=195027559 Joshua 7:14], a guilty party ([[Achan (biblical figure)|Achan]]) is found by lot.
* In the [[Book of Joshua]] {{bibleverse-nb||Joshua|18:6|KJV}}, Joshua says, "Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the {{LORD}} our God." The Hebrews took this action to know God's will as to the dividing of the land between the seven tribes of Israel who had not yet "received their inheritance" (Joshua 18:2).
* In the [[First Book of Samuel]] {{bibleverse-nb|1|Samuel|14:42|KJV}}, lots are used to determine that it was [[Jonathan (1 Samuel)|Jonathan]], [[Saul]]'s son, who broke the [[oath]] that Saul made, "Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies" (1 Samuel 14:24).
* In the [[Book of Jonah]] {{bibleverse-nb||Jonah|1:7|KJV}}, the desperate sailors cast lots to see whose god was responsible for creating the storm: "Then the sailors said to each other, 'Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.' They cast lots and the lot fell on [[Jonah]]."

Other places in the Hebrew Bible relevant to divination include:
* [[Book of Proverbs]] {{bibleverse-nb||Proverbs|16:33|KJV}}: "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from [[Yahweh]]" and {{bibleverse-nb||Proverbs|18:18|KJV}}: "The lot settles disputes, and keeps strong ones apart."
* Book of Leviticus {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|19:26|KJV}} KJV "... neither shall you practice [[Incantation|enchantment]], nor observe times."<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|19:26|}}</ref> The original Hebrew word for enchantment, as found in ''[[Strong's Concordance]]'', is pronounced ''naw-khash'''. The translation given by Strong's is "to practice divination, divine, observe signs, learn by experience, diligently observe, practice fortunetelling, take as an omen"; and "1. to practice divination 2. to observe the signs or omens". ''Times'' in the original Hebrew is pronounced aw-nan'. Its translation in Strong's is "to make appear, produce, bring (clouds), to practise soothsaying, conjure;" and "1. to observe times, practice soothsaying or spiritism or magic or augury or witchcraft 2. soothsayer, enchanter, sorceress, diviner, fortune-teller, barbarian...". In the [[Hebrew-Interlinear Bible]], the verse reads, "not you shall [[augur]] and not you shall consult cloud".{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}
* [[Deuteronomy]] {{bibleverse-nb||Deuteronomy|18:10|KJV}} "let no one be found among you who ''[qasam qesem]'', performs ''[onan]'', ''[nahash]'', or ''[kashaph]''{{-"}}.<ref>{{bibleverse||Deuteronomy|18:10|}}</ref> ''qasam qesem'' literally means ''distributes distributions'', and may possibly refer to cleromancy. ''Kashaph'' seems to mean ''mutter'', although the [[Septuagint]] renders the same phrase as ''pharmakia'' (''poison''), so it may refer to [[magic potion]]s.
* In the [[Book of Esther]], [[Haman (Bible)|Haman]] casts lots to decide the date on which to exterminate the Jews of [[Shushan]]; the Jewish festival of [[Purim]] commemorates the subsequent chain of events.
* In [[I Chronicles]] {{bibleverse-nb|1|Chronicles|26:13|KJV}} guard duties are assigned by lot.
* To Christian doctrine, perhaps the most significant ancient Hebrew mention of lots occurs in [[the Book of Psalms]], {{bibleverse-nb|Psalms|22:18|NIV}} "They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots." This came to be regarded as a prophecy connecting that psalm and the one that follows to the crucifixion and resurrection of [[Jesus]], since all four gospels (for example, John {{bibleverse-nb||John|19:24|NIV}}) tell of the Roman soldiers at Jesus's crucifixion casting lots to see who would take possession of his clothing. That final act of profanation became the central theme of ''[[The Robe (film)|The Robe]]'', a 1953 film starring Richard Burton.

A notable example in the [[New Testament]] occurs in the [[Acts of the Apostles]] {{bibleverse-nb||Acts|1:23–26|KJV}} where the eleven remaining [[Twelve apostles|apostles]] cast lots to determine whether to select [[Saint Matthias|Matthias]], or [[Joseph Barsabbas|Barsabbas]] (surnamed Justus) to replace [[Judas Iscariot|Judas]].{{Citation needed| date = October 2024 }}

The [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] still occasionally uses this method of selection. In 1917, [[Metropolitan bishop|Metropolitan]] [[Patriarch Tikhon|Tikhon]] became [[Patriarch of Moscow]] by the drawing of lots. The [[Coptic Orthodox Church]] uses drawing lots to choose the [[Coptic pope]], most recently done in November 2012 to choose [[Pope Tawadros II]]. German [[Pietist]] Christians in the 18th century often followed the New Testament precedent of drawing lots to determine the will of God. They often{{quantify|date=May 2017}} did so by selecting a random Bible passage. The most extensive use of drawing of lots in the Pietist tradition may have come with Count von [[Zinzendorf]] and the [[Moravian Church|Moravian]] Brethren of [[Herrnhut]], who drew lots for many purposes, including selection of church sites, approval of missionaries, the election of bishops, and many others. This practice was greatly curtailed after the General Synod of the worldwide Moravian Unity in 1818{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} and finally discontinued in the 1880s. Many [[Amish religious practices|Amish]] customarily select ordinary preachers by lot. (Note that the Greek word for "lot" (''kleros'') serves as the etymological root for English words like "cleric" and "clergy" as well as for "cleromancy".)<ref>
{{etymonline | cleric | accessdate = 2017-05-03}}
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