In the beginning humans didn’t have a “polytheistic” type of religion. The correct terminology is “Animism” - whereby inanimate objects, like rocks, trees, rivers, mountains, volcanoes or certain animals etc are assigned “spirits” & special significance.
I think the truth is we don't have a clue what they thought. We can only judge on societies untouched by civilisation, but they have already been developing for at least tens of thousands of years.
For a few years now, I have been a regular reader of Ancient Origins' FB page and its many fine articles. This current one, however, parrots the utter twaddle that millions died in the witch trials. Since this twaddle is being pushed even in academia by delusional, self-styled 'feminists' as part of their spreading of monstrous misandry, a corrective and apology are called for. That is to say, Ancient Origins has with just this one grotesquely inaccurate and horrendously ill-researched article, destroyed any standing it may have had as a purveyor of accurate history. There are literally dozens of top-end SCHOLARLY studies of the issue that flatly refute the twaddle. Did you even consult them before issuing these dangerous falsehoods?
May we please be given an explanation for WHY you are issuing these falsehoods?
"About 30,000–60,000 people were executed in the whole of the main era of witchcraft persecutions, from the 1427–36 witch-hunts in Savoy (in the western Alps) to the execution of Anna Goldi in the Swiss canton of Glarus in 1782. These figures include estimates for cases where no records exist." <https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/eight-witchcraft-myths>
"While early trials fall still within the late medieval period, the peak of the witch hunt was during the period of the European wars of religion, between about 1580 and 1630. Over the entire duration of the phenomenon of some three centuries, an estimated total of 40,000 to 100,000 people were executed." <https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-herkimer-westerncivilization/chapter/the-witch-trials>
The Christians dominated and killed, all in the name of their savior, Jesus Christ. Is that really what their Jesus would have wanted them to do? Really? Did their Jesus want them to conquer and divide? I use to be a Christian, but now I am an atheist-especially since this last presidential election because so many Christians follow the path of said past president and do corrupt things all in the name of their Jesus. It is gut-wrenching!
Very true. As an atheist (ex-Catholic) I find it particularly sad that people that THINK they are Catholics can be fooled into voting for that monstrous, childish clown.
Eight million...? Lmfao where did you get that number? A christmas cracker? I’m sorry but this has got to be the most amateur, unprofessional article, full of inaccuracies and conjecture i’ve ever read from you lot. What’s happened?
I agree with a number of other comments regarding this article. It is poorly researched, purveys lazy misconceptions and in particular casts most blame at the Catholic Church, whereas as most victims of witchcraft trials occurred in Protestant controlled regimes. It grossly exaggerated the likely death toll and repeats simplistic misrepresentations of both the purpose and practice of the Inquisition. But perhaps the greatest failing is the basic error of judging actions of another age against the morals of our time. Very disappointing.
All this is a result of how far we have drifted from the Apostolic Age. Christ came to bring salvation, not condemnation. We allowed evil men to distort the gospel for their own purposes. We still do.
Norman Cohn's "Europe's Inner Demons" is a level headed history of witchcraft mania in post Mediaeval Europe. Firstly Witchcraft has always been a capital offence in almost every society - as it's defined as using magic to do evil. But for it to be crime it must be accepted as real rather than delusion. Most laws against it were targeting those who murdered another for being a witch.
Christianity tried to correct the Folk Belief in witchcraft that caused Pagans to kill each other over witchcraft accusations for millennia. Christian magistrates considered it nonsense because the Devil was a defeated enemy. But the belief persisted. It became obsession amongst the educated in the 15th and 16th Century due to other factors. The Inquisition was initially created to correct Catharism in 13th Century France and the Albigensians in the 14th. The Spanish Inquisition had been used against Conversos and the Jews, rather than Witches.
The Nature Religion thing is a 19th Century fiction rather than anything based on historical data.
Christianity didn’t “propose monotheism”. Judaism had been monotheistic for over a thousand years before Christians split away from the Jewish traditions.
Hmm interesting. The comments are "also" interesting. Altho, I have a history minor, I don't know squat about "witches"! So, as always, read about it, then laugh about it, then forget about it! Who's right?, we'll never know.
Actually persecution of witches was far more common after the Reformation under Protestantism than it ever was under Catholicism.
In the beginning humans didn’t have a “polytheistic” type of religion. The correct terminology is “Animism” - whereby inanimate objects, like rocks, trees, rivers, mountains, volcanoes or certain animals etc are assigned “spirits” & special significance.
I think the truth is we don't have a clue what they thought. We can only judge on societies untouched by civilisation, but they have already been developing for at least tens of thousands of years.
For a few years now, I have been a regular reader of Ancient Origins' FB page and its many fine articles. This current one, however, parrots the utter twaddle that millions died in the witch trials. Since this twaddle is being pushed even in academia by delusional, self-styled 'feminists' as part of their spreading of monstrous misandry, a corrective and apology are called for. That is to say, Ancient Origins has with just this one grotesquely inaccurate and horrendously ill-researched article, destroyed any standing it may have had as a purveyor of accurate history. There are literally dozens of top-end SCHOLARLY studies of the issue that flatly refute the twaddle. Did you even consult them before issuing these dangerous falsehoods?
May we please be given an explanation for WHY you are issuing these falsehoods?
"About 30,000–60,000 people were executed in the whole of the main era of witchcraft persecutions, from the 1427–36 witch-hunts in Savoy (in the western Alps) to the execution of Anna Goldi in the Swiss canton of Glarus in 1782. These figures include estimates for cases where no records exist." <https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/eight-witchcraft-myths>
"While early trials fall still within the late medieval period, the peak of the witch hunt was during the period of the European wars of religion, between about 1580 and 1630. Over the entire duration of the phenomenon of some three centuries, an estimated total of 40,000 to 100,000 people were executed." <https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-herkimer-westerncivilization/chapter/the-witch-trials>
"Between 1400 to 1782, when Switzerland tried and executed Europe’s last supposed witch, between 40,000 and 60,000 people were put to death for witchcraft, according to historical consensus." <https://qz.com/1183992/why-europe-was-overrun-by-witch-hunts-in-early-modern-history>
The Christians dominated and killed, all in the name of their savior, Jesus Christ. Is that really what their Jesus would have wanted them to do? Really? Did their Jesus want them to conquer and divide? I use to be a Christian, but now I am an atheist-especially since this last presidential election because so many Christians follow the path of said past president and do corrupt things all in the name of their Jesus. It is gut-wrenching!
Very true. As an atheist (ex-Catholic) I find it particularly sad that people that THINK they are Catholics can be fooled into voting for that monstrous, childish clown.
Eight million...? Lmfao where did you get that number? A christmas cracker? I’m sorry but this has got to be the most amateur, unprofessional article, full of inaccuracies and conjecture i’ve ever read from you lot. What’s happened?
EXACTLY. THAT POST IS UTTER TWADDLE.
In 1509, Henry Vlll ascended the throne. The Anglican Church was founded in 1534 by King Henry VIII's Act of Supremacy.
I agree with a number of other comments regarding this article. It is poorly researched, purveys lazy misconceptions and in particular casts most blame at the Catholic Church, whereas as most victims of witchcraft trials occurred in Protestant controlled regimes. It grossly exaggerated the likely death toll and repeats simplistic misrepresentations of both the purpose and practice of the Inquisition. But perhaps the greatest failing is the basic error of judging actions of another age against the morals of our time. Very disappointing.
All this is a result of how far we have drifted from the Apostolic Age. Christ came to bring salvation, not condemnation. We allowed evil men to distort the gospel for their own purposes. We still do.
Norman Cohn's "Europe's Inner Demons" is a level headed history of witchcraft mania in post Mediaeval Europe. Firstly Witchcraft has always been a capital offence in almost every society - as it's defined as using magic to do evil. But for it to be crime it must be accepted as real rather than delusion. Most laws against it were targeting those who murdered another for being a witch.
Christianity tried to correct the Folk Belief in witchcraft that caused Pagans to kill each other over witchcraft accusations for millennia. Christian magistrates considered it nonsense because the Devil was a defeated enemy. But the belief persisted. It became obsession amongst the educated in the 15th and 16th Century due to other factors. The Inquisition was initially created to correct Catharism in 13th Century France and the Albigensians in the 14th. The Spanish Inquisition had been used against Conversos and the Jews, rather than Witches.
The Nature Religion thing is a 19th Century fiction rather than anything based on historical data.
Christianity didn’t “propose monotheism”. Judaism had been monotheistic for over a thousand years before Christians split away from the Jewish traditions.
Hmm interesting. The comments are "also" interesting. Altho, I have a history minor, I don't know squat about "witches"! So, as always, read about it, then laugh about it, then forget about it! Who's right?, we'll never know.