Witchcraft of the Past Essay -- Essays Papers

Witchcraft of the Past What images does the word enthral create in a persons mind? closely people would tend to think of an old woman wearing a black, cone-shaped hat, with a large mole on her face, and perhaps immediate on her broom. This is the stereotype of witches, and although some witches of the past may have conniption into this category, one must remember witchcraft is a religion with a variety of followers. On the obligation of the Goddess website, the basic philosophy of witchcraft is state in one simple sentence Our religion is not a series of precepts or beliefs, rather we believe that we each have indoors ourselves the capacity to reach out and experience the mystery that feeling of unexpressible oneness with all Life. 1 This website is devoted to finding the origins of witchcraft, specifically trustingness and reason, and how it has affected society over the past 700 years. In the 13th century, witches, thusly called cunning folk, played a positive role in fate people cope with calamity.2 They provided hope to townspeople that through wizard(prenominal) means, natural disasters might some how be avoided. The cunning folk provided this Copernican service that kept village life moving ahead. Possession of these so-called wizardly powers made one an important member of village society. concourse 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 service 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. ... ...tion. 8. The Burning Times. 9. Kagan, 491. 10. Witches in the ledger and in the Talmud, http//popeye.cc.biu.ac.il/barilm/witches.html (8 March 1999). 11. Witches in the Bible and in th e Talmud. BibliographyAbout the Covenant of the Goddess. Covenant of the Goddess. http//www.cog.org/general/iabout.html (8 March 1999). Beliefs & Superstitions. The program 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. velocity 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).