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Saul sinned further in consulting this woman; the practice of necromancy was forbidden by the Torah. The Church Fathers and some modern Christian writers have debated the theological issues raised by this text, however. If you take the Bible literally, it would appear to affirm that it is or was possible for humans to summon the spirits of the blessed dead by magic. Some suggested that what the witch actually summoned was not the ghost of Samuel, but a demon taking his shape. Nothing in the Biblical text of the story suggests this interpretation, however.