I am doing research into historical perspectives on the course and causes of the European Witch Trials. Obviously a large amount of historical analysis is dedicated too the influnce of Christianity/Catholicism on these events (R.e malleus maleficarum), however I'm struggling to find a 'counter' to this view. Could anyone explain to be contemporary thought on the witch trials (history) through a Christian lense? Or point me in the direct to scholars on the issue. These are the sorts of things im intrested in: - Can / should the church be held responsible for causing the trials? - What role did the church play in undertaking and increasing witch trials? - What was is the current eccelastical thought, on the churchs role and responsiblity for these sorts of events? - If not the Church, who? - And more generally, any professional or personal thoughts on the trials, from a Christian perspective would also be appreciated. Edit: This question was closed, so as a revision consider this: How does the church respond to its role in the european witch trials

Does the Catholic Church or any particular Catholic dioceses forbid the reading of [J. K. Rowling's](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._K._Rowling) series of books known as [Harry Potter](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter) ? This same question could be applied to the movie series based on these same books. If so what are it’s theological and moral reasons for doing so. We know that there are some Catholic schools that have forbidden these books in the libraries of some Catholic Independent Schools. However I am interested if this is the case at any diocesan level or higher? Or does the Church leave such decisions about reading these books and/or watching the movies at the discretion of the individual or even the local pastor? [Harry Potter books removed from school library because they contain 'real' curses and spells](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/harry-potter-banned-school-library-nashville-tennessee-exorcist-a9087676.html)

The Bible warns us *not* to participate, engage with, or practice magic/sorcery/necromancy/etc. And magic is seen throughout the Bible (not miracles, but magic) For example turning your rod into a serpent (Egypt vs God via Moses round 1) > 2 Chronicles 33:6, Also he caused his sons to pass through the fire in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom; **he practiced soothsaying, used witchcraft and sorcery**, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger. > Revelation 21:8, But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, **sorcerers**, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death > Galatians 5:19-20, Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, **sorcery**, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, > Micah 5:10-12, “And it shall be in that day,” says the Lord, “That I will cut off your horses from your midst And destroy your chariots. I will cut off the cities of your land And throw down all your strongholds. I will cut off **sorceries** from your hand, And you shall have no **soothsayers**. > Acts 19:17-20, This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, **many of those who had practiced magic** brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed > Isaiah 8:19-20, And when they say to you, “Seek those who are **mediums and wizards**, who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. > Isaiah 47:9b Because of the multitude of **your sorceries**, For the great abundance of **your enchantments**. (This one is too long to copy and paste see full passage of Isaiah 47:8-14 here > Acts 8:9-13, [**The Sorcerer’s Profession of Faith**]; > > But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practiced **sorcery** in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.” And **they heeded him because he had astonished them with his sorceries** for a long time. But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done. > Deuteronomy 18:10-14, There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices **witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.** For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God. For these nations which you will dispossess listened to **soothsayers and diviners**; but as for you, the Lord your God has not appointed such for you. And while the passage from deuteronomy/Chronicles mentions "passing through fire"... what exactly is magic as understood by the Scriptures? We are clearly warned off and God clearly commands us to avoid it as a sin. So what is it? What am I definitely trying to avoid? - Necromancy is obvious. - Divination is obvious.

If the bible opposes the practice of magic does this mean its claims of "magic" are literally real (as opposed to metaphorically)? If so, is there scientific proof of the existence of "magic"? Is there an explanation of what "magic" is in the first place?

C.S. Lewis knew exactly what he was doing when he wrote *The Chronicles of Narnia*, as many theses, dissertations, and books have shown. He purposefully fused elements from European mythology (like dwarfs, dryads, dragons), Arthurian legends, medieval feudalism, mysticism, as well as Christianity when creating the imaginary world of Narnia. While he did NOT intend to write Narnia as a Christian allegory (such as Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress), he clearly intended the Narnian characters to possess analogous moral agencies with the earth Christians counterparts through the creatures's relationship with Aslan and the Emperor beyond the sea. **Magic in Narnia vs. the Bible, explaining to children** Christian children and adults alike obviously want to read *The Chronicles of Narnia* alongside the Bible. **But how do we reconcile *some* use of magic depicted positively in Narnia with apparent Biblical condemnation of *all* use of the magical arts** (see [Bible verses](https://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/bible-verses-about-magic/)) ? When you read the Bible on some days and Narnia on other days to your kids, the natural questions from intelligent kids, especially whose parents prohibit them to read Harry Potter books are: "But Daddy, why is magic OK in Narnia, but not in the Bible? Why is it OK for me to read Narnia but not Harry Potter? Why is the magician Merlin in *The Story of King Arthur and His Knights* a good guy?" Imagine the Narnia children *themselves* (Peter, Lucy, Edmund, etc.). We presume they are Christians on earth and read the Bible. How would **they** *translate* their experience of Narnian magic: embracing the positive ones into the earthly Christian equivalent but refraining from the negative ones? **Types of magic use, and how C.S. Lewis depict them in the stories** It looks like C.S. Lewis was careful enough while the story is happening on earth to *disapprove* the use of magic: portraying the usage of the magic rings for traffic between Earth and Narnia in *The Last Battle* and the amateur magician uncle's dabbling with magic in *The Magician's Nephew* negatively. Even in Narnia, it is clear that several magicians are portrayed negatively, such as the White Witch in LWW and the hag whom Nikabrik invited in PC. That's not problematic at all. But what about Doctor Cornelius who used a little magic in PC, the magician [Coriakin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coriakin) , and even Lucy's reciting the spell to make the Duffers visible again in VDT? After that, Coriakin even used more magic to feast the Narians, generated a map of their travel magically on parchment (which Caspian then hang in Cair Paravel), and even "mended the stern of the Dawn Treader where it had been damaged by the Sea Serpent and loaded her with useful gifts." All those are depicted *positively*. Another issue is how the characters and the narrator seem to be using the word "magic" as though it's a morally neutral descriptive term. "Aslan mentions "Deep magic" in LWW. C.S. Lewis labels the traffic between Earth and Narnia as "magic", Susan's gift as "the great magic horn of Narnia", Lucy's cordial as "magic fluid", preservation of treasure in Prince Caspian as "by some magic in the air", and countless other references. **Problem of translation between Narnia magic and Biblical concepts** Obviously the answer is complicated. We probably need to translate C.S. Lewis use of the word "magic" in positive Narnian context to equally positive concept in real earth and Christianity. When Aslan attributes his resurrection to "Deep Magic" it probably means *miracle*. The operation of Susan's horn is analogous to *prayer*. Lucy's cordial is analogous to [oil of the sick](https://simplycatholic.com/what-are-holy-oils/) , etc. Rather than a case by case conceptual translation, **is there a unifying principle that ties good magic/magician in Narnia to a single concept/principle in earth Christianity and bad magic/magician in Narnia to another?** I'm looking for something relatively simple that a Christian parent can use to explain to a child. An acceptable answer has to provide a single (or a handful) of principles that can translate **every** occurrence of magic in all 7 books, either by good actors or bad actors. Especially when the narrator (C.S. Lewis) depicts the occurrence positively, because C.S. Lewis is Christian, there has to be a Christian explanation that does not violate [the Biblical prohibition on magical practices](https://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/bible-verses-about-magic/) .

The Old Testament alludes to--and utterly condemns--the sacrifice of children and other condemnable pagan practices that were widespread among the Canaanite nations, for which God decided to punish them by taking their land away from them and handing it over to the nation of Israel. Below some passages that attest to this fact: Deuteronomy 18:9-14 (ESV): > 9 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. 10 **There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering**, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer 11 or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, 12 for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. And because of these abominations the Lord your God is driving them out before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God, 14 for these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this. Leviticus 18:19-25 (ESV): > 19 “You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in her menstrual uncleanness. 20 And you shall not lie sexually with your neighbor's wife and so make yourself unclean with her. 21 **You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech**, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 22 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. 23 And you shall not lie with any animal and so make yourself unclean with it, neither shall any woman give herself to an animal to lie with it: it is perversion. > > 24 “**Do not make yourselves unclean by any of these things, for by all these the nations I am driving out before you have become unclean**, 25 and the land became unclean, so that I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. Jeremiah 32:33-35 (ESV): > 33 They have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them persistently, they have not listened to receive instruction. 34 They set up their abominations in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. 35 **They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech**, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin. Sacrificing innocent children is a horrendous and condemnable practice which is obviously wrong however one looks at it. However, I find the practice itself very mysterious and perplexing, as I'm having a hard time trying to wrap my head around the practice. My educated guess would be that Baal, Molech and other pagan deities were not mere imaginary entities, but actual, powerful demonic beings that are ranked very high in the demonic hierarchy of Satan's kingdom, and by sacrificing children as an offering to these deities, some underlying spiritual laws or principles are at play by which the demons are able to receive some benefit and the individuals sacrificing the children receive some benefit as well -- like some sort of macabre "win-win" contract between the demons and the humans performing the ritual. In other words, the sacrifice becomes a "key" in the spiritual realm to "unlock" benefits from demons, and the demons would gain something in return as well, although I have no clue as to what these "benefits" might be and why the sacrifice would be required in the first place. But again, these are just my own speculations, and I'm aware that I may be completely missing the mark on this. **Question**: What happens in the spirit realm during a ritual child sacrifice? Are there spiritual laws/principles that are tapped into when a ritual child sacrifice to Molech, Baal or any other pagan deity is performed? *Note: this is a topic that has me very puzzled, and I have no preference for any particular denomination on the matter. Therefore, answers from all denominational viewpoints are welcomed.*

Acts 16:16-18 (ESV): > 16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by **a slave girl who had a spirit of divination** and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. **Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour**. Are there published testimonies from people who received deliverance from a spirit of divination or a similar spirit, as in Acts 16:16-18? I'd like to read or watch a first-hand account, told from the perspective of a person who used to have a spirit of divination or similar spirit influencing them, about (1) their experiences prior to the deliverance, (2) the deliverance itself and (3) how their life changed after the deliverance. __________________ Related questions: - [Do Christians believe in witchcraft and the occult?](https://christianity.stackexchange.com/q/84082/50422) - [How often do missionaries report encounters with demonic activity while deployed to countries belonging to the 10/40 Window?](https://christianity.stackexchange.com/q/82874/50422) - [How do Christians approach the evangelization of individuals who have had profound spiritual experiences in other religions?](https://christianity.stackexchange.com/q/84362/50422)

Do Christians believe that people can tap into supernatural powers through the practice of [witchcraft](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witchcraft) and [the occult](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occult) ? I'm aware that there are passages in the Bible that prohibit messing around with the dark arts, but I'm not sure if these practices are prohibited because they would be a waste of time (i.e. they don't work) or because they are dangerous (i.e. they do work). Do Christians believe in witchcraft and the occult? Yes? No? Why? Does the answer depend on the denomination? Are there denominations that believe in their existence and other denominations that don't?

I live in China, and there is a kind of person called Xianpo here. The Xianpo can talk to the dead soul, and the soul can tell the Xainpo what he saw. One day, I told the Xianpo that I met a woman, so the Xianpo said to me the following things: The Xianpo said: - She has neither promised nor refused to fall in love with me now. - She is my classmate. - She is a little shorter than me. - She is a outsider. - She has a good figure, an oval face, and her face is white and beautiful. - I miss her so I can't sleep at night. - She has long hair. I met this woman recently. The Xianpo hasn't seen her, but she can describe her figure and appearance very accurately. The Xianpo also said that some people have mental disorders because their souls have entered hell and married female souls. How does Christianity view such Xianpo? What is the biblical basis of this phenomenon? My respond： 1. Even if all Jesus encountered were evil souls, it cannot be said that all those with this ability are evil souls. It is unreasonable to say that others are evil just because of this ability. 2. I live in a place where I don't know what Jesus is, and I am more curious about Jesus.

I have been told that there is a letter held by the University of St. Andrews, Scotland from King James telling the translators to include words against witchcraft; this being a follow-on from the persecution of those people who were pagans or followers of the dark arts. As a Christian and a firm believer that the Bible is the true word of God, I find it difficult to believe that what I have been told is right. Therefore my question is this: Did King James ever tell those translating the Bible to include anything that was not in the original Hebrew OT or the Greek NT?

I am a Wiccan looking into converting into Christianity. Doing some research, I know that the Lord is against witchcraft. So why is there even such a thing as a Christian Witch, and what are they?

I am writing a novel happening in 1346. In it, a satanist sect worships some relics of a person that embodies evil (a biblical or historical devil worshipper). In the novel, the chuch will unroot and dismantle this sect. The triumph of Faith over Evil. I have the perfect embodiment of Faith (the Knights Hospitaller) now I need the embodiment of Evil. If the novel was taking place few centuries later, I would have chosen the relics of "Gilles de Rais". An accurate enough embodiment of evil and a historical devil worshipper. But in 1346 he isn't born yet. I had several ideas, but couldn't find anyone historical or biblical that would be fitting. - Judas may have repented before his death - Cain is a too obvious choice - Nebuchadnezzar II did embody evil but his expansion was allowed by god - Frederick II was considered the antichrist by pope Gregory IX, but he wasn't that evil and didn't worship the devil - Pope Honorius I was considered a heretic, but wasn't really evil either. - King Solomon did worship idols at the end of his life, but he was blessed by god for his whole life and was never evil. So far, the best candidate that I have would be "Bishop Nicétas" the antipope of Catharism. But it's not clear how evil the Cathars were and their dogma was not an open worship of the devil. I have browsed several parts of the bible and the history of Christianity, but couldn't find anyone evil enough. So I would love to have the input of someone more knowledgeable than me : Who could be a biblical or historical devil worshipper who died before 1346 ?

I was listening to Derek PrInce speaking about nature of occult and witchcraft. He tells this story about Africans using witchcraft, there was one man who goes to a witch doctor so that he can get rid of his enemy. The witch doctor tells the man, when the Jacqual howls tomorrow, his enemy will no longer be there. I understand similar thing have happened in bible. New international version Mathew 26:34 "Truly I tell you," Jesus answered, "this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times." Can we compare this statement of Jesus to witchcraft? Can God do witchcraft?

I recently came across this: > Gal 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Gal 5:20 Idolatry, **witchcraft**, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Gal 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Would Christianity have me believe in [the existence of] witchcraft, too!?

If we don't count lynchings, have people ever been executed for witchcraft by the Eastern Orthodox Church? In western Christianity, the execution of witches was condemned until 1484 , four centuries after the schism of the eastern and western churches, so I'd guess no, but I'd be glad for some evidence for it.

Was the "spirit of Samuel" that the witch of Endor summoned (1st Samuel 28:11-19 ) from God or from Satan?

I saw a witch a while back being mistreated, which deeply troubled me. I am strong proponent for Luke 6:31 . I am familiar with Exodus 22:18 which usually translates to something like: Do not allow a sorceress/witch to live. This brings to mind one main question: * Is there anything in the Bible suggesting a better way to interpret this? Are Christians expected to commit murder? I understand innumerable witches have been murdered over the millennia but this is just not acceptable to me. The society I live in deems this illegal as well. Then I have two sub-questions: 1. Is there a biblical difference between witches and sorceresses? I know there are witches out there but I have not met a sorceress. 1. In the Bible is the word sorceress truly gender specific? e.g. male sorcerers are exempted from this? I am trying to reconcile this with other portions of the Bible that denounce the mistreatment of others. Answers that cite more clear and easily understandable Bible passages will get preferential treatment for approval. The sub-questions are optional but will count towards approval should all other elements of the answer be deemed equal.

My ancestors were Brownist pilgrims, leading up to the Salem witch trials, my Great-great-great-something-aunt was hung for having *a lack of the fear of God* in her. The people at the time were no doubt very superstitious, attributing misfortunes like infant death and crop failure to devils and the supernatural, and if someone was accused of being possessed by the devil, they were often arrested, or worse... The Mosaic law stated: > "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." (Exodus 22:18) But Paul taught in Romans 7 that the law of Moses was fulfilled in Christ. > "But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we > were held; that ***we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the > oldness of the letter.***" (Romans 7:5;) Christ told his diciples to cast out devils: > "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, **cast out devils**: > freely ye have received, freely give." (Matt 10:8;) If the law was fulfilled and the new command was to cast out devils, then why was there a series of executions instead of exorcisms? In Salem Village, as in the colony at large, life was governed by the precepts of the Church, which was Calvinist. By what law did they justify capital punishment? Did the Calvinists hold to the old law even though it was fulfilled? Or did they have some other justification for executing people?