Witchcraft of the Past
What images does the word "witch" create in a person’s mind? Most people would tend to think of an old woman wearing a black, cone-shaped hat, with a large mole on her face, and perhaps flying on her broom. This is the stereotype of witches, and although some witches of the past may have fit into this category, one must remember witchcraft is a religion with a variety of followers. On the Covenant of the Goddess website, the basic philosophy of witchcraft is stated in one simple sentence: "Our religion is not a series of precepts or beliefs, rather we believe that we each have within ourselves the capacity to reach out and experience the mystery – that feeling of ineffable oneness with all Life." 1 This website is devoted to finding the origins of witchcraft, specifically faith and reason, and how it has affected society over the past 700 years.
In the thirteenth century, witches, then called cunning folk, "played a positive role in helping people cope with calamity."2 They provided hope to townspeople that through magical means, natural disasters might some how be avoided. The cunning folk provided this important service that kept village life moving ahead. Possession of these so-called magical powers made one an important member of village society. People in need of "security and influence, namely, the old and the impoverished, especially single or widowed women" most often made these claims.3 In the late thirteenth century, the Christian church "declared that only its priests possessed legitimate magical powers," and "those who practices magic outside the church evidently derived their power from the Devil."4 The church wanted to rid society of the witches’ influence, and thus witch-hunts began.
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...tion."
8. "The Burning Times."
9. Kagan, 491.
10. Witches in the Bible and in the Talmud,
http://popeye.cc.biu.ac.il/~barilm/witches.html (8 March 1999).
11. Witches in the Bible and in the Talmud.
Bibliography
"About the Covenant of the Goddess." Covenant of the Goddess.
http://www.cog.org/general/iabout.html (8 March 1999).
"Beliefs & Superstitions." The Library of Witchcraft.
http://witchcraft.simplenet.com/belief.html (9 March 1999)
"The Burning Times." The Library of Witchcraft.
http://witchcraft.simplenet.com/burningtimes1.html (9 March 1999).
Kagan, Donald, Steve Ozment and Frank M. Turner. The Western Heritage Volume
II: Since 1648. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1998.
Witches in the Bible and in the Talmud. http://popeye.cc.biu.ac.il/~barilm/witches.html
(8 March 1999).
Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft explores and breaks down the events that took place in the small village of Salem in 1692. Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum, authors of Salem Possessed, use primary sources, both published and unpublished, to tell the crazy and eventful history of Salem. They go into great detail in why some folks were accused of being Witches, the arrests and the so popular Salem Witch Trials. The main reason for this book was to try and find out what caused the terrible outbreak of events that happened in Salem and they do so by looking into the History and Social life in the famed Salem Village. The history of Witchcraft in Salem is a well-known story from High School on and this book goes in depth about why things happened the way they did and how the social aspect played a big role is the story.
Witchcraft was relentlessly thought as the work of the devil with only sinful and immoral intentions. Julio Caro Baroja explains in his book on Basque witchcraft that women who were out casted from society and unable to fulfill their womanly duties became witches as a way to compensate for her failed life. They were thought to be a threat to society as they dwindled in evil magic. This misunderstanding may have originated from the literary works of Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger, in their published book, “Malleus Maleficarum”. Accusations of being adulterous, liars and dealing with the devil materialized because of the...
In order to understand the outbreak of the witchcraft hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum, authors of Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft, explore the social and economic divisions and tensions within Salem and the surrounding communities. Both Boyer and Nissenbaum have a strong background in history. Paul Boyer (1935-2012) was the Merle Curti Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as well as a cultural and intellectual historian who authored several other books. Stephen Nissenbaum was a Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst who authored several other books as well. In Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of
The witch hunts in early modern Europe were extensive and far reaching. Christina Larner, a sociology professor at the University of Glasgow and an influential witchcraft historian provides valuable insight into the witch trials in early modern Europe in her article 'Was Witch-Hunting Woman-Hunting?'. Larner writes that witchcraft was not sex-specific, although it was sex-related (Larner, 2002). It cannot be denied that gender plays a tremendous role in the witch hunts in early modern Europe, with females accounting for an estimated 80 percent of those accused (Larner, 2002). However, it would be negligent to pay no heed to the remaining 20 percent, representing alleged male witches (Larner, 2002). The legal definition of a witch in this time, encompassed both females and males (Levack, 1987). This essay will explore the various fundamental reasons for this gender discrepancy and highlight particular cases of witchcraft allegations against both women and men. These reasons arise from several fundamental pieces of literature that depict the stereotypical witch as female. These works are misogynistic and display women as morally inferior to men and highly vulnerable to temptations from demons (Levack, 1987). This idea is blatantly outlined in the text of the 'Malleus Maleficarum' written by James Sprenger and Henry Kramer in the late fifteenth century. This book is used as the basis for many of the witch trials in early modern Europe (Levack, 1987). The text describes women as sexually submissive creatures and while remarking that all witchcraft is derived from intense sexual lust, a women is thus a prime candidate for witchcraft (Sprenger & Kramer, 1487). In this time period, men are seen as powerful and in control and thus rarely...
Witchcraft had always fascinated many people and been a very controversial topic in North America during (seventeenth) 17th century. Many People believe that witchcraft implies the ability to injure or using supernatural power to harm others. People believed that a witch represents dark side of female present and were more likely to embrace witchcraft than men. There are still real witches among us in the Utah whom believe that witchcraft is the oldest religion dealing with the occult. However the popular conception of a witch has not changed at least since the seventeenth century; they still caused panic, fear and variety of other emotions in people…………………….
Throughout the late 17th century and into the early 18th century witchcraft prosecutions had been declining. This trend was the result of a multitude of social developments which altered the mentality of society. One of the predominant factors in this decline was the Scientific Revolution, the most important effect of these advances was making society question concepts of witchcraft. Along with this new mental outlook, we see that the Reformation had a similar effect on social opinion concerning witchcraft and magic. These two developments changed societies view on the occult and this led to a wider scepticism concerning witchcraft, this favoured those who had been accused and therefore caused a decline in prosecutions. Beyond the two trends mentioned however, it is important to consider judicial reforms and an improved socio-economic situation which reduced tensions within society. These two changes were certainly not as influential as the Scientific Revolution and the Reformation but heavily altered the circumstances in which accusations were normally made. With the altered social attitudes and mental outlook these changes in living situations all contributed to bring about the decline in witchcraft prosecutions.
Throughout history, people’s reactions to witchcraft have started mass panic, hysteria, disturbing witch trials, and countless executions and hangings. Witchcraft was once and still can be a very controversial topic, as it challenges other’s religions and beliefs and is against Christianity. Back when the Church was the main source of authority and guidance, reactions to witchcraft were particularly strong and heated, as there are even bible quotes ordering the instant death of any witch or wizard. Concern was commonplace, especially considering the Salem Witchcraft Trials, since children were the main people afflicted. However, as time passed and humanitarianism ideas spread, reactions to witchcraft weren’t nearly as hysterical as they once were. In hindsight, the change is almost astounding when considering the strength and severity of reactions then, and the subtlety of reactions to witchcraft now.
Witchcraft accusations began in Massachusetts after people began to say that they saw others with different symptoms which includes “fits”, “spectral visions”, “mental distraction”, “pinching, pin pricking, and bites”, “lethargy”, and “death” (Carlson, xiii). These accusations spread rapidly and took off within Massachusetts due to the large number of people living in the area. The large population allowed for the idea of witchcraft to spread because of how rapidly the large population heard of these allegations. Through the word of mouth, friends told friends, family members told other family members, neighbors spoke among each other, community members were updated through each other. This is what caused the idea of witchcraft to gain so much momentum.
Spanos, Nicholas P.. "Witchcraft and social history: An essay review." Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences 21: 60-67. Print.
Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft is a concise, 231 page informational text by Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum. Published in 1974, it explores the economic and social conditions present in the Salem village during the 1600s that led to the hysteria surrounding witchcraft. Multiple graphs and illustrations are present, as well as an average sized font, an abundance of footnotes typically on the left page, and a prominent voice from the authors. The book was written to serve as a more comprehensive informational piece on the Salem witch trials due to the authors finding other pieces written about the same topic to be inaccurate. Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum wanted to create something that utilized
Witchcraft in the 17th Century Witchcraft in Europe during the 17th century was common. It mainly took place in Germany, but also took place in England. Witches were associated with evil; it was believed witches inherited magical powers from Satan in exchange for the witch’s soul. Some of these magical powers included outrageous claims such as flying, being able to transform and cursing bad luck on others. It was extremely dangerous to be accused of being a witch as the most common punishment was death, often by beheading or even being burnt at the stake.
What do you think when someone calls someone a witch? What comes to mind? Do you think of the movie, ‘Hocus Pocus’ or do you think of the black pointed hats and the long black, slit ended dresses? What about witchcraft? Does the term “Devil worshiper” ever cross your mind? Do you think of potions and spells? For many, many generations, we have underestimated what the true meaning of a witch and what witchcraft really is. What is the history that hides behind it? Witches and witchcraft have been in our history since the ancient times. There is a little bit more than the ghost stories told on Halloween, the movies shown on TV and dressing up on Halloween.
For nearly two centuries, witchcraft seemed to have disappeared. Although it was driven underground for a time, it is now the fastest growing religion in the United States. There are several reasons for its disappearance and now, for its return.
In demonological theology, the familiar spirit was more commonly associated with a second type of witch, one which reflected the majority of biblical references to witchcraft far more accurately than the malefic witch. These were ‘cunning’ or ‘white’ witches, to whom Cooper connected the power of “Diuining, where…strange things are reuealed…[including] the past, present, or [things] to come”, whilst in popular culture they also provided the valuable services of healing and finding lost goods. Although historians have noted that the demonological writers of early Stuart England concentrated much attention on demonising the cunning-witch to wean the populace away from both ‘popish’ and pre-Christian superstitions, the influence of biblical precepts
In most African societies, a witch is seen as the enemy of life and society. Laurenti Magesa affirmed “African Religion has a pragmatic approach to life: Everything that promotes the well-being of the community is good, and everything that destroys the community is evil.”