Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Divination by interpretation of a passage chosen at random from a book, especially the Bible.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A kind of divination performed by means of a book; specifically, divination by means of the Bible, consisting in selecting passages of Scripture at hazard and drawing from them indications concerning the future.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A kind of divination, performed by selecting passages of Scripture at hazard, and drawing from them indications concerning future events.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Divination by interpreting a passage chosen at random from a book, especially from the Bible.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From biblio- + -mancy.

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Examples

  • I'd just like to point out that there's a technical name for this approach to scriptural interpretation: "bibliomancy".

    Demystifying the Bible James F. McGrath 2009

  • It was traditional bibliomancy called estekhareh, disdained by some clerics as irrational and akin to spiritual gambling, but a method sometimes used by Supreme Leader Khamenei.

    Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

  • It's intended as an idea generator, meant to spark thought through permutation, combination, and juxtaposition; a sort of constrained bibliomancy.

    Seedy Stories 2007

  • Labels: bibliomancy, richard mavis, seedy stories posted by John McGrath @ 2: 48 AM

    Seedy Stories 2007

  • Labels: bibliomancy, richard mavis, seedy stories posted by John McGrath @ 2: 48 AM

    Seedy Stories 2007

  • It's intended as an idea generator, meant to spark thought through permutation, combination, and juxtaposition; a sort of constrained bibliomancy.

    Seedy Stories 2007

  • It's intended as an idea generator, meant to spark thought through permutation, combination, and juxtaposition; a sort of constrained bibliomancy.

    Archive 2007-11-01 2007

  • Labels: bibliomancy, richard mavis, seedy stories posted by John McGrath @ 2: 48 AM 1 Comments

    Archive 2007-11-01 2007

  • Outside his work his tastes lay in the direction of botany and bibliomancy, which latter, according to the dictionary, is "Divination performed by selecting passages of Scripture at hazard."

    Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 152, April 18, 1917 Various

  • Just like one can gain inspiration for the solution to a problem in science or mathematics in a dream or a vision, one can gain it from using arbitrary forms of numerology or even games of chance (tarot, throwing dice, bibliomancy, i-ching) -- but to assume that the form and the content are necessarily interrelated is a mistake.

    New Scientist - Space 2009

Comments

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  • "Sometimes this term is used in the same way as Stichomancy and Libromancy, which is a form of divination that seeks to know the future by randomly selecting a passage from a book, frequently a sacred text."

    - Wikipedia

    November 16, 2007

  • I've had great success using Wordie's random word feature for prophetic purposes.

    November 17, 2007

  • Perhaps it should be renamed the logomancer ;-)

    November 17, 2007

  • How oracular.

    November 17, 2007

  • See also iroquois.

    March 26, 2008

  • Ooh this amuses me! I know people who do this with the bible,

    "God wanted me to read this today!"

    "Or...mayhaps it's just windy?"

    Oy! Makes me wanna love-thump 'em!

    September 26, 2009

  • Reminds me of a favorite bar game from my misbegotten youth: psychic DJ. Stick a buck in the jukebox, close eyes, press buttons.

    September 26, 2009

  • JM undertook bibliomancy and discovered he would write this exact sentence!

    December 14, 2009