Craft History: The Burning Times
itchcraft has a long eventful
history, some of those events are
joyous while others serve to remind us of the consequences of seeking to
live freely. Witchcraft is often called the oldest religion existent in
the West. It is pre-Christian. It is also pre-Judaism, pre-Buddhism,
pre-Islam and pre-Hinduism. Many statements made about Witchcraft are
disputed and judged even by those with no real research or knowledge of
their own. In actuality, it is closer to Native American traditions and
the early Shamanic traditions of many areas. Unlike many of the more
modern religions, those currently referred to as mainstream, Witchcraft is
not based on dogma and scriptures. Witchcraft, the Old Religion, takes its
teachings and inspirations from nature. The Sun, Moon and Stars are looked
to for their insights and information, as well as trees, birds, animals,
seasonal cycles and other vibrational realities.
t is probably important to note here that Wicca or Witchcraft is
not Shamanism, and that Shamanism is not a religion but rather an ancient
mystical practice that uses altered states to contact Gods, Spirits and
other energies from this realm and others. These efforts were made to
bring healing, wholeness and guidance into the life of the Shaman and his
or her tribe. Shamanic practices exist within Witchcraft and many other
religions. The Shamanic view is "that for wholeness all realms must be
incorporated including the mental, physical and spiritual realms."
nthropologist Dr. Margaret Murray felt that she had traced back
and saw Witchcraft's roots in Paleolithic times some 25,000 to 30,000
years ago. She felt that it was a fully organized religion throughout
Western Europe. Many recent scholars have disputed and sought to dismiss
her findings with regard to Witchcraft, but few have disputed or found
fault with her opinions regarding the existence of a religio-magick
system. We can see throughout anthropological research that early man and
woman tended to deify that which they held in awe or did not understand.
This is a process now called animism. Early man and woman also practiced
what we now call sympathetic magic. Sympathetic magic is the art of
showing a deity what one wants or needs by acting out the symbolism
necessary to bring about an understanding of that need or desire. Tribes
gathered to show the deity that food was needed through successful hunts
or that fertility was required within the tribe or animal population. In
this way the act of ritual was born and became a part of the Old Religion
then and now.
he primitive people of those thousands of years ago were hunters
who followed animal herds. Some of those primitive people were called
Shamans. These Shamans were said to be able to attune themselves with
nature and the animals. Early man believed the concept of a Mother
(female) lifegiver and a Father (male) who hunted and protected. Early man
respected animals and their lives that had to be taken for the tribe's
survival. To show this respect, after hunting, the unused parts and skins
were filled with rocks and given to the waters or the womb of the Great
Mother. Their skulls were kept and used for portents and guidance. During
these times, many symbols of the Goddess were carved in stone, and womb
cave openings were honored as symbols of the Mother. Symbols of the God
were also carved on cave walls along with symbols of the animals that came
to sacrifice themselves for the survival of the tribe.
he phases of the Moon were marked, as well as the Sun's cyclic
journey through the sky. As time passed, fishing and wild food collection
became an important part of life. During all this time the Shamans were
working with the energies of the times and as villages grew from settling
tribes, the people combined their energies and efforts for the good of the
clan. In this we see what probably represented the first covens. These
groups continued working with the energies of the land. Working more and
more to attune with the areas they had settled in. Learning the ways of
planting and growing crops. Marking the seasonal wheel and watching the
signs of the earth and sky, planet and star, animal and plant became
magical sciences. As these magical sciences became more understood they
could be more easily worked with and further studied.
uring this time other cultures, more organized and Warrior based
were coming into power. Sometimes these Warrior clans would drive the
followers of the Old Religion into the hills and mountains where they
became known as the Faeries, the Sidhe or spirit people. In some cases the
Goddess of the Old Religion would be married to the invading clans Gods
within newly created mythology. The Celts, like others, adopted many of
the Goddess features and incorporated them into the incoming Druidic
Mysteries. Through this intermingling and marriage the "faerie blood" was
implanted into the new conquerors.
hen Christianity first arrived there was no real change. The
people viewed the Mother/Child/Sacrificial King of the Christ mythos as
simply another version of their own earlier tales. The mythology of the
Goddess cycle with Consort/Mother/Child was often adjusted by conquering
Patriarchies. The Priest of the new Christian Religion would often work
with the Priest of the Old Religion in the celebrating of seasonal rites.
The early groups of the Old Religion (the covens) became known as the
benders and shapers of the subtle forces that they had knowledge of. They
became known as the "Wit", "Witta", "Wicca", "Wicce",or "Vitki", Irish,
Anglo Saxon and Germanic words respectively meaning " to bend or
shape".
uring the 12th and 13th century many temples were built for this
new religions' Goddess "Mary." By now Pope Gregory The Great decided to
make an attempt to mass convert to Christianity. He did this by building
new Christian churches over ancient pagan worshiping sites. He was
somewhat successful since the artisans who built the churches were most
often pagans. Because of this many of the churches to this date can be
seen full of Green Men, quarter guardians and pentacles. At this time the
Church began to truly realize how difficult a rival the Horned God and
Fertility Goddess were in their created battle for followers. The early
Old Religion had a much more attractive P.R. package than the religion of
Christianity with all of its restrictions. Christianity incorporated this
information when creating the concept of a totally evil opponent to their
own deity. It was no accident that this figure resembled the Horned
God.
oetry and the music of the Goddess were still widespread
compensating the peoples need for the Goddess in some manner. Pope Gregory
also instituted the first Papal Bull in 1233. In 1324, an Irish coven led
by Dame Alice Kyteler was tried by the Bishop of Ossory for worshiping a
Non-Christian god. Dame Kyteler was saved because of her title but the
rest of her group were burned for heresy. During the next centuries' wars,
plagues and crusades advanced over Europe. Joan of Arc lead the armies of
France to victory. She was popularly bruited as a sorceress and originally
alleged a witch, but she was officially condemned as a heretic and was
burned at the stake on May 30, 1431, as a relapsed heretic. This fact
indicates the embryonic stages of Witchcraft accusations, when in 1431 it
was much simpler to secure a conviction for heresy rather than sorcery.
Unfortunately within the century the reverse would be true. During this
time the stability of the Medieval Church was shaken and the feudal system
was breaking down. The Christian Church was swept by religious revolts
that Church felt it could no longer tolerate. In 1494 The Papal Bull of
Innocent the VIII unleashed the inquisition against the Old Religion.
Issued on December 5, 1494, it served as justification for pitiless
persecution. It instituted the of combating the "Devil" and saving mankind
from "his" clutches. (Three earlier Bulls "Sixtus 4th," were the first to
equate sorcery and black magic with heresy, thereby facilitating the task
of the Witch hunters. 1473, 1478 & 1483).
n 1486 the Malleus Maleficarum "the Hammer of the Witches," was
produced by Dominicans Kramer and Springer, two of Pope Innocents
Inquisitors. This laid the ground work for a reign of terror that gripped
Europe well into the 18th century. All of this indelibly equated the
incorrect definition of the word Witch, created by the Christian Church,
as a reality in the minds of many. During this period it is estimated that
9 million men, women and children were tortured, some estimate 85% of
those were women and children. They were tortured and killed under this
incorrect and convenient (for the Church) definition. Misogyny (hatred of
women) is evidenced as a strong element in the medieval Christianity.
Because women gave birth they became acutely identified with sexuality,
and due to the views at that time regarding sexuality, they were
associated with evil. The Malleus stated "All Witchcraft stems from carnal
lust, which is in women, insatiable." Anyone could be accused of this
concocted evil and anyone could accuse anyone else, including children. In
those days it was "Guilty until proven innocent." These so called Witches
(per Christian definition) were held prisoner, stripped, tortured (at the
time it was legal), deprived of sleep, food and much more, all in an
effort to obtain a confession to the act of Witchcraft, as the Church
defined it. Even after confessing to the inquisitors many times, the
torture would continue until a full coven of thirteen names were given.
Confessions were all written entirely by the Inquisitors to be signed by
the prisoners. Occasionally torture would bring a merciful strangulation
before the pyre, but this was not usually the case. The job of inquisitor
became quite profitable since these hunters were paid for each conviction.
Midwives (who were considered threatening to the patriarchal medical
society), up-spoken women, the elderly and any other possible problem
creators for the Church were targeted. Many say that few who died were
actually members of any covens of the Old Religion, but due to the sheer
numbers some may have been. In the Bishopric of Trier in Germany, in 1585,
there were only two villagers left and only one single female inhabitant
after the arrival of the Inquisition. In 1586 the Archbishop of Treves
accused the local Witches of causing severe weather. After torture and
confession one hundred and twenty men and women were burned to death for
interfering with the elements. Those who could escape did, but those who
could not suffered a cruel fate.
y the late 17th century the surviving craft was well underground.
During this underground period Christianity published much on its version
of Witchcraft. When James the Sixth of Scotland became James the First of
Scotland and England in 1603 he brought with him new versions of his
"Demonology". In 1604 he convinced Parliament to pass his new act changing
the emphasis from the Malleficarum to "a pact with the Devil" type
thinking, to heighten the acts against Witches. By the end of his reign
even though his attitude had changed, his act remained in effect until
1736. It was then replaced in England with an act from George the Second
that stated there was no such thing as Witchcraft and to pretend to have
occult powers was fraud.
ost of the Salem Witch trials were persecuted under the King
James the First statute. On December 14, 1692, the Massachusetts General
Counsel enacted the 1604 bill to give "more particular direction in the
execution of the laws against Witchcraft." It remained Massachusetts Law
until 1695. In 1692 there were many areas of tension in New England. Those
included political, land related, disease and those related to religious
repression. Because of the strict religious society of the time with its
strict upbringing of children and adherence to the Bible, it created a
very strong societal belief in the Devil and so called Witchcraft that had
already been accepted overseas. Though the Witchcraft craze abroad was
starting to subside (the last execution was in 1685) New England was
heading into its own crazed entanglement with the inaccurate Christian
definition of Witchcraft. The onset of hysteria in New England was related
to a group of young girls, one of them being the daughter of Rev. Samuel
Parris. Their meetings with a West Indian slave Tituba to do divinations
about future husbands and other things prompted their guilt and anxiety.
When some of the girls started "taking fits", no one could make sense of
the behavior or discover medical causes for the episodes. This led to the
opinion of bewitchment as the cause. Questions started being asked, the
first was always "Who is bothering you ?" As the calls came out for names
the accusations against more vulnerable members in society started. Some
believe it was easier for the girls to name these people and view their
punishment rather than admit to their own lies. Others had explored
theories of an alkaloid type toxin called "ergot", a mold that produces
the fits and other symptoms.
egardless of the causes the accusations started to spread. The
difference in the New England trials was none of those who confessed were
put to death. Those who denied the accusations and fought to clear their
names were the ones who were hanged. What started with the vulnerable
people in society spread to the more prosperous members in society, Martha
Corey was one of these people. Martha Corey was believed to have a good
position in the church and politics of society, but she was very outspoken
against the Witchcraft Trials. During her trial Sheriff Corwin, appointed
by those who did the hangings, surprised even her when he presented her
husband as a witness. He claimed he could not say his prayers one evening
while they were home. After Martha Corey's conviction floods of people
from all society were accused. Even Martha's husband Giles did not escape
the trials. He found himself accused and when he refused to speak or
present a plea so that he could be tried, he was pressed to death in the
attempt to get that plea. This was probably done by Giles Corey because he
knew that people who went to court were always found guilty. These
incidents brought about the beginning of the end of the New England
Witchcraft Trials. Soon after the fifty prisoners still confined to jail
were released. It is claimed that one hundred and fifty people were
accused and fifty five were found guilty, but even today more records are
being uncovered and reviewed about the accuracy of those
claims.
inally in 1711, the General Court declared the use of spectral
evidence unlawful, and reversed twenty-two of the thirty one convictions.
It was not until 1957 that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts reversed the
remaining guilty verdicts finally acknowledging the errors of that time.
During the Witch Trials much misinformation came to the forefront. Most of
the actual Witches had gone underground and most were not very
enthusiastic about volunteering information regarding the real practices
to try to combat the misinformation.
n 1921, Dr. Margaret Murray produced her book "Witch Cult in
Western Europe". In that book she discussed the Pre-Christian religion of
Witchcraft. Though many of her opinions have disputed there is still
important information in her book. In 1931, her second book "God of the
Witches" elaborated on some of her other comments.
n 1949 "High Magicks Aid" by Squire (Gerald Gardner) was written.
It combined Witchcraft and some ceremonial magic in a fiction book to
spread information safely. Finally , in 1951 England repealed its last
Witchcraft Laws and replaced them with the Fraudulent Mediums Act. This
opened the way for two more books by Gardner; "Witchcraft Today" and "The
Meaning of Witchcraft".
ther Witches followed. Raymond Buckland was initiated in Perth
Scotland, and is considered responsible for bringing Gardnerian Witchcraft
to the USA. Sybil Leek and Laurie Cabot brought other family traditions
and European traditions to the forefront in America. Today there are many
well known Witches, some from the more modern traditions, and others from
older traditions, all providing a wide range of choices for the beginning
Witch. Some resent the more public Witches, while others believe that
their involvement has enabled many people who would not otherwise have
known about the Craft, to become involved. Many early Witches have taken
much abuse so that those of us who follow in their path can have the hope
of suffering less.
oday Witchcraft is growing as more and more people are drawn to
reconnect with the Old Ways, and through them, to the
Earth.
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