CRM 1301 Midterm uOttawa Carolyn Gordon Essay

Professor of religious studies Karen Armstrong finds in the early Christian Church examples of hostility toward women and fear of their sexual power, which she contends led to the eventual exclusion of women from full participation in a male-dominated church.

There are countless different assumptions about witches. The majority of individuals in the sixteenth and seventeenth century presumed that God and Satan were real (Lambert 1). They also assumed that “witches” were in allegiance with Satan and made a vow to bow down and serve him (Lambert 1). Furthermore, another common belief was

The notion of witchcraft has been around long before the witch trials in Early Modern Europe. Different cultures have different images and stereotypes on what a witch is and what “magical” abilities he or she may possess. Many people however, did not look at these “magical” men and women as bad until the Holy Roman Empire began to look negatively on those people who were different, and opposed the norm set by the elites. Driven by fear, those living under the control of the Holy Roman Empire would began to blame other people for diabolical actions, or malicious activities. Women and some men, were tortured and tested in cruel ways in attempt of finding evidence or gaining a confession that the accused was a witch. Laws about how which were persecuted

By the mid-seventeenth century, the process of witchcraft in England had already subsided. The persecution on such a scale as they occurred in England and Scotland can be explained by the crises of England during the Civil War. All controls failed because the state and its judiciary were not working

Even in ancient Biblical times, there have been people who follow the devil and oppose Believers. Witches are people who are under the influence of the devil or demonic spirits.

In early January of 1692, cries of witchery flew through the town of Salem. Allegations surrounded two young girls, Abigail Williams, age 11, and Elizabeth Parris, age 9. These girls would spend their free time listening to their slave, Tituba, reminisce about her life back in Barbados. Soon after the girls started to have convulsive fits and outcries. Once the local doctor deemed it spiritual doing and not physical, the trial’s wheels were set into motion, rolling over many of

During the time of the Salem Witch Trials, many women and even a few men were accused of witchery. There have been many theories as to why the residents of Salem were being accused of witchcraft including mental illnesses, spiritual ideas, and the influence of the society. The most popular theory was spiritual ideas, which spread throughout the community. Some believed the hallucinations and strange actions were all caused by the devil and medicine could not cure it. The doctors believed the girls were “under an Evil Hand” (Carlson, 1999---page 10). People in Salem at the time thought one little mishap was the work of the devil and only the church could cure the person. Also, the people believed they could do all this because they had traded

The Demonization of Women into Witches Witches have been around for centuries and everyone has either seen them or even dressed up as them for Halloween. It is a common thought that witches are bad and that they are the stereotypical look with the pointy black hat, broomstick, or the horrid

The idea of Witch Trials first came about around 560 BC in the Bible. The lines “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live,” and, “A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them,” appeared in the

Also known as, the Four Powers of the Witches’ Temple, the Witch’s Pyramid, is the basis for all magickal work, symbolizes the belief that is required to create magick and the traits to be accepted by all witches. It is the learning tool for pupils of the Craft. There are four declarations that epitomize The Witch’s Pyramid: To Know, To Will, To Dare, and To Keep Silent. Each one of the influences is linked with a direction as well as an element. each of these powers can be applied as a way of seeing a method to study. In order for a Witch to have a perfect understanding of anything, all these powers should be present.

Prior to 1400 CE, during the middle ages, there was a popular belief that “Satan-worshiping Witches” existed, who devoted their entire lives to harming others by using dark magic. At this time the Christian church stated that there were no Witches (Robinson, 2002).

Traditionally in ancient studies of various civilizations, women assume a submissive role as caretaker of the house and family. Generally, this trend continues throughout early organized society until around the time of sixty four A.D. with the rapid spread and judgment of the new religious dynamic of Christianity. The novel faith becomes notorious for the strong ties and companionship between members of the community as well as the appealing views of a compassionate deity and rewarding afterlife. These characteristics attracted women and impoverished peoples of Rome in particular. As the belief system caught on in the Empire many pagans and Emperors such as Nero rejected the faith and began to persecute these people for their beliefs. The

Woman in relation to asceticism were seen as the opposite than how we would like everyone to view them today. Women were seen as weaker than men, and responsible for the way that they make men feel (Cark, 34). The majority of women in early Christian asceticism were seen as a pathway to temptation and were depicted as tempting the most strong willed of followers of Jesus’ teachings.

Prior to the 11th century the Catholic Church did not even acknowledge the existence of Witches. To accuse or take action against one suspected of being a "dark witch", Vampire or other supernatural being was punishable by cannon law. It was only towards the