The Occult Debate Issue #1: Historical Depletions of Witchcraft and Satanism - Reality or Myth? The historical prevalence of Witchcraft in Europe and America is still debated in many circles. On the one hand, believers in the reality theory assert that in Europe between 1400 and 1700, a highly-organized and widespread type of diabolical Witchcraft was practiced. On the other hand, advocates of the myth theory argue that between 1400 and 1700, many Europeans refused to abandon their nature-oriented primitive religions in favor of Christianity; such persons were falsely labeled and subsequently prosecuted as Satanic Witches.

Hypothesis: A widespread and dangerous kind of Witchcraft was practiced in 14th through 17th Century Europe and in 17th Century New England. At the very time it was eradicated In Europe, a similar form of Witchcraft crept into and Infiltrated Colonial America. These practices were eradicated by dedicated, God-fearing Colonists who brought the accused to trial and helped convict them. Proponents believe that by the 16th Century, Witches had literally invaded Europe. Such Witches flew to their secret, nocturnal destinations; made a pact with Satan; formally repudiated Christianity; desecrated the Eucharist and crucifix; participated in sexual orgies; sacrificed infants; and practiced cannibalism. These anti-Christian practices threatened the growth and practice of Christianity throughout Europe. Thus, Witches became known as heretics and the practice of Witchcraft became a crime against the Church. Witchcraft subsequently came under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction and authority of the Inquisitors who located Witches, obtained confessions, and secured sentences that eventually rid European society of the Satanic threat. By the 17th Century, proponents further believe, while heretical Witchcraft had been eradicated by the European ecclesiastical courts, it had become an official, fully public affair in colonial America. In 1636, Plymouth became the first colony to make Witchcraft a capital crime and all the New England colonies followed suit within decades of arrival. Witchcraft accusations were so prevalent in colonial New England that by the end of the 17th Century, 234 "cases" involved indictments and/or filed complaints and 36 "Witches" were executed. When compared on a per capita basis with both the cases and executions occurring in England during the same time period, colonial Americans were at least as active as their English counterparts in finding and prosecuting Witches. Rigorous Colonial prosecution of these offenders helped eradicate Witchcraft and the need for further trials by 1700.

Hypothesis: Persons prosecuted and tried for Witchcraft both in Europe and Colonial America were unjustly accused and punished; the vast majority were simply practitioners of primitive religions, subsequently labeled as Pagans by the Christians, who had refused to convert to Christianity. Advocates do not refute that the medieval atrocities attributed to European Witches, including devil worship, probably occurred, "but not in any organized form and with no widespread following." (Russell interview, March 17, 1989.) These proponents see the Inquisition's four centuries as a tragic, paranoid fantasy conjured by the inquisitors who were frustrated with their failure to convert Europeans to Christianity and, therefore, came to believe such people represented a real threat to Christianity. (Cohn, 1975: 125.) A rough composite of the accused New England Witch found similar non-acceptance of early American religious and societal standards. The typical accused Puritan Witch was female, middle aged and married but with few or no children; was frequently involved in trouble and conflict with other family members; was previously accused of committing crimes, especially theft and certain forms of assaultive speech; was more likely than the general population to have professed and practiced a medical vocation on a local and informal basis; was of relatively low social position; was cantankerous and demanding; and was often considered a bad neighbor. In short, she was "abrasive in style, contentious in character - and stubbornly resilient in the face of adversity." (Demos, 1982:93-94.) Her accusers were frustrated with their inability to forcibly integrate such individualistic, aggressive personalities into Colonial society. Puritan accusers were uncomfortable with the assertive, aggressive traits of such a neighbor , fearing "similar tendencies in themselves their whole assertive side." (Demos, 1982:214.) Similarly, Salem 's accusers were insecure; many were traditional farmers from the village of Salem who felt economically, socially and geographically threatened by the modern capitalist world of the accused witches who tended to be connected to the industrial-commercial town of Salem. (Boyer and Nissenbaum, 1974.) In essence, the historical Witches of Europe and Colonial America were often scapegoats for societal ills; they could be and actually were blamed for a good deal of the social trouble and difficulty within their respective societies. Similarly, in both Europe and Colonial America, when there was "less need to credit the existence, and malign activity, of witches," the legal proceedings and accusations against Witches disappeared. "Where such belief was once largely functional, it became with the passage of time, simply irrelevant." (Demos, 1982:399.)