The devil's dominion : magic and religion in early New England

The Devil's Dominion examines the use of folk magic by ordinary men and women in early New England. The book describes in vivid detail the magical techniques used by settlers and the assumptions which underlaid them. Godbeer argues that layfolk were generally far less consistent in their beliefs and actions than their ministers would have liked; even church members sometimes turned to magic. The Devil's Dominion reveals that the relationship between magical and religious belief was complex and ambivalent: some members of the community rejected magic altogether, but others did not. Godbeer argues that the controversy surrounding astrological prediction in early New England paralleled clerical condemnation of magical practice, and that the different perspectives on witchcraft engendered by magical tradition and Puritan doctrine often caused confusion and disagreement when New Englanders sought legal punishment of witches. Early New Englanders Used Magical Techniques To Divine The Future, To Heal The Sick, To Protect Against Harm, And To Inflict Harm. Protestant Ministers Of The Time Claimed That Religious Faith And Magical Practice Were Incompatible, And Yet, As Richard Godbeer Shows In This Book, There Were Significant Affinities Between The Two That Enabled Layfolk To Switch From One To The Other Without Any Immediate Sense Of Wrongdoing. The Devil's Dominion Examines The Use Of Folk Magic By Ordinary Men And Women In Early New England. The Book Describes In Vivid Detail The Magical Techniques Used By Settlers And The Assumptions That Underlay Them. Godbeer Argues That Layfolk Were Generally Far Less Consistent In Their Beliefs And Actions Than Their Ministers Would Have Liked; Even Church Members Sometimes Turned To Magic. The Devil's Dominion Reveals That The Relationship Between Magical And Religious Belief Was Complex And Ambivalent; Some Members Of The Community Rejected Magic Altogether, But Others Did Not. Godbeer Also Argues That The Controversy Surrounding Astrological Prediction In Early New England Paralleled Clerical Condemnation Of Magical Practice And That The Different Perspectives On Witchcraft Engendered By Magical Tradition And Puritan Doctrine Often Caused Confusion And Disagreement When New Englanders Sought Legal Punishment Of Witches.--jacket. Magical Experiments : Divining, Healing And Destroying In Seventeenth-century New England -- The Serpent That Lies In The Grass Unseen : Clerical And Lay Opposition To Magic -- Entertaining Satan : Sin, Suffering, And Countermagic -- Sinful Curiosity : Astrological Discourse In Early New England -- Insufficient Grounds Of Conviction : Witchcraft, The Courts, And Countermagic -- Rape Of A Whole Colony : The 1692 Witch Hunt. Richard Godbeer. Based On The Author's Thesis (brandeis University). Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. Cover......Page 1 Frontmatter......Page 4 Contents......Page 10 Acknowledgments......Page 12 Prologue......Page 14 Introduction......Page 20 1 - Magical Experiments: Divining, Healing, and Destroying in Seventeenth-Century New England......Page 37 2 - The Serpent that Lies in the Grass Unseen: Clerical and Lay Opposition to Magic......Page 68 3 - Entertaining Satan: Sin, Suffering, and Countermagic......Page 98 4 - Sinful Curiosity: Astrological Discourse in Early New England......Page 135 5 - Insufficient Grounds of Conviction: Witchcraft, the Courts, and Countermagic......Page 166 6 - Rape of a Whole Colony: The 1692 Witch Hunt......Page 192 Epilogue......Page 236 Appendix A - Witchcraft Trials in Seventeenth-Century New England (Excluding Persons Accused During the Salem Witch Hunt)......Page 248 Appendix B - Persons Accused During the Salem Witch Hunt......Page 251 Name Index......Page 256 Subject Index......Page 261 Showing that there were significant affinities between religious faith and magical practices, this study of the use of folk magic by early New Englanders reveals that even church members sometimes turned to magic to divine the future, heal the sick, and protect against harm or inflict it.