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Books > Health, Home & Family > Mind, body & spirit > The Occult > Witchcraft & Wicca
Cotton Mather chronicles the Salem witch trials which took place in
New England in the late 18th century. Together with the trials,
this book holds detailed accounts of devilish phenomena Mather
believed were linked to the discovery of the local witches. Mather
discusses a range of spiritual phenomena reported by various
figures in the fledgling society of New England. Sudden
apparitions, visions, and other strange goings on which she
believed were linked to the frequent finding of witches are
cataloged. The bulk of the text however is concerned with the
trials of many witches, the causes of their accusations, and the
circumstances under which they were tried. Mather's book is today
one of the best and most complete primary narratives of what came
to be known as the Salem witch trials; with accounts of witnesses,
judges, and evidence put forward all present. Furthermore, Mather's
book was published in 1693, shortly after the trials were
concluded.
Witches and Warlocks of New York is a collection of legends and
historical accounts about witches and warlocks from the Empire
State. This will be the second in a series (the first being
Massachusetts publishing September 1, 2021). New York has a
surprisingly rich history of witches and witchcraft. These stories
are known locally in the towns where they occurred but have never
been collected into one book before. Included are a history and
origins of witchcraft in New York State and historical tales of
"witches" across the state including Hulda and the thirteen Witches
of the Catskills.
The Malleus Maleficarum is a seminal treatise regarding witchcraft
and demons, presented here complete with an authoritative
translation to modern English by Montague Summers. At the time this
book was published in 1487, the Christian church had considered
witchcraft a dangerous affront to the faith for many centuries.
Executions of suspected witches were intermittent, and various
explanations of behaviors deemed suspect were thought to be caused
by possession, either by the devil or demon such as an incubus or
succubus. Kramer wrote this book after he had tried and failed to
have a woman executed for witchcraft. Unhappy at the verdict of the
court, he authored the Malleus Maleficarum as a manual for other
witch seekers to refer to. For centuries the text was used by
Christians as a reference source on matters of demonology, although
it was not used directly by the Inquisition who became notorious
for their tortures and murders.
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