Witchcraft

Witchcraft

In the modern world witchcraft is a form of nature religion that
emphasizes the healing arts. The term is also applied to various kinds
of magic practiced in Asian, African, and Latin American communities.

Little is known about the history of witchcraft in Europe, and what is
known comes from hostile sources. In traditional European society
witchcraft was believed to be a kind of harmful sorcery associated with
the worship of Satan, or the devil (a spirit hostile to God).

The European doctrine of witchcraft was formulated in the late Middle
Ages. Just how many of the beliefs about witches were based on reality
and how many on delusion will never be known. The punishment of supposed
witches by the death penalty did not become common until the 15th
century. The first major witch-hunt occurred in Switzerland in 1427, and
the first important book on the subject, the Malleus maleficarum (Hammer
of Sorceresses), appeared in Germany in 1486. The persecution of witches
reached its height between 1580 and 1660, when witch trials became
almost universal throughout western Europe.

Geographically, the center of witch-burning lay in Germany, Austria, and
Switzerland, but few areas were left untouched by it. No one knows the
total number of victims. In southwestern Germany alone, however, more
than 3,000 witches were executed between 1560 and 1680. Not all witch
trials ended in deaths. In England, where torture was prohibited, only
about 20 percent of accus...

Witchcraft

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