Summary Of The Witch's Hammer

The Witch’s Hammer is another name for a manual known as the Malleus Maleficarum. This manual was written by Heinrich Kramer in 1486. Jacob Sprenger was originally attributed as an author as well but some scholars now believe that was an attempt on Kramer’s part to lend his book more official credentials. Both Kramer and Sprenger were from the Dominican Monastatic Order. The goal of this manual was to eradicate heretics, including those who followed the Catholic faith but denied the existence of witchcraft or professed to be Catholic but practiced witchcraft.

Though the Malleus Maleficarum was not the first manual published on witchcraft it did accomplish several highly influential things. Firstly, it introduced many ideas about witchcraft

Using Eve from The Bible as a reference, the text introduced a sexual element to witchcraft and portrayed women as having lower intelligence levels, being more superstitious, more impressionable, and insatiable with carnal lust as well as being deceivers. The text itself was limited and was not sanctioned by The Pope at the time, (Pope Innocent VIII). It gained credibility, however when a papal bull issued by Pope Innocent VII was attached to it, but was later condemned by the Catholic Church in 1490. The Papal bull accused witches of abandoning the Catholic faith

Our lives have become ruled by technology. The internet, television, radio and social media have become a part of our daily lives. Each and every time we log onto a website or turn on the television we are exposed to someone else’s views. In the Malleus Maleficarum someone chose to express their views. They chose to prosecute a specific group of people with so much hate people were violently tortured and killed. I think this should serve to remind the modern Pagan how easy it can be to be influenced. Prior to it’s publication the Catholic church did not normally punish practitioners of witchcraft violently.

The Canon Episcopi, written approx 900 A.D. described the church’s views towards witchcraft as something that did not actually exist, and in fact, prior to the 1400’s it was very rare for someone to even be accused of witchcraft. Between the 13th and 15th centuries belief in witches, especially as a threat to others had become more widespread. Harsher punishments and persecution became widely accepted after the publication of the Malleus