Invoking The Akelarre

With their dramatic descriptions of black masses and cannibalistic feasts, the records generated by the Basque witch-craze of 160914 provide us with arguably the most demonologically-stereotypical accounts of the witches sabbath or akelarre to have emerged from early modern Europe. While the trials have attracted scholarly attention, the most substantial monograph on the subject was written nearly forty years ago and most works have focused on the ways in which interrogators shaped the pattern of prosecutions and the testimonies of defendants. Invoking the Akelarre diverts from this norm by employing more recent historiographical paradigms to analyze the contributions of the accused. Through interdisciplinary analyses of both French- and Spanish-Basque records, it argues that suspects were not passive recipients of elite demonological stereotypes but animated these received templates with their own belief and experience, from the dark exoticism of magical conjuration, liturgical cursing and theatrical misrule to the sharp pragmatism of domestic medical practice and everyday religious observance. In highlighting the range of raw materials available to the suspects, the book helps us to understand how the fiction of the witches sabbath emerged to such prominence in contemporary mentalities, whilst also restoring some agency to the defendants and nuancing the historical thesis that stereotypical content points to interrogatorial opinion and folkloric content to the voices of the accused. In its local context, this study provides an intimate portrait of peasant communities as they flourished in the Basque region in this period and leaves us with the irony that Europes most sensationally-demonological accounts of the witches sabbath may have evolved out of a particularly ardent commitment, on the part of ordinary Basques, to the social and devotional structures of popular Catholicism.

The confessions of Isobel Gowdie are widely recognised as the most extraordinary on record in Britain. Using historical, psychological, comparative religious and anthropological perspectives, this book sets out to separate the voice of Isobel Gowdie from that of her interrogators.

This book is a microsociological study of religious practice, based on fieldwork with Conservative Jews, Bible Belt Muslims, white Baptists, black Baptists, Buddhist meditators, and Latino Catholics. In each case, the author scrutinizes how a congregation's ritual strategies help or hinder their efforts to achieve a transformative spiritual encounter, an intense feeling that becomes the basis of their most fundamental understandings of reality. The book shows how these transformative spiritual encounters routinely depend on issues that can seem rather mundane by comparison, such as where the sanctuary's entrance is located, how many misprints end up in the church bulletin, or how long the preacher continues to preach beyond lunchtime. The spirit responds to other dynamics, as well, such as how congregations collectively imagine outsiders, or how they talk about ideas like individualism and patriarchy. Building on provocative theories from sociologists such as mile Durkheim, Erving Goffman, Randall Collins, and Anne Warfield Rawls, this book shows how "interaction ritual theory" opens compelling new pathways for sociological scholarship on religion. Micro-level specifics from fieldwork in Texas are supplemented with large-scale survey analysis of a wide array of religious organizations from across the United States.

"As technologies that work by computing numbers, digital media apparently epitomize what is considered scientific and rational. Yet, people experience the effects of digital devices and algorithms in their everyday life also through the lenses of magic and the supernatural. Algorithms, for instance, are discussed for their capacity to "read minds" and predict the future; Artificial Intelligence as an opportunity to overcome death and achieve immortality through singularity; and avatars and robots are accorded a dignity that traditional religions restricted to humans. The essays collected in this volume address these and similar phenomena, challenging and redefining established understandings of digital media and culture by employing the notions of belief, religion, and the supernatural." -- Provided by publisher.

In the hundreds of confessions relating to witchcraft and sorcery trials from early modern Britain we frequently find detailed descriptions of intimate working relationships between popular magical practitioners and familiar spirits of either human or animal form. Until recently historians often dismissed these descriptions as elaborate fictions created by judicial interrogators eager to find evidence of stereotypical pacts with the Devil. Although this paradigm is now routinely questioned, and most historians acknowledge that there was a folkloric component to familiar lore in the period, these beliefs and the experiences reportedly associated with them, remain substantially unexamined. Cunning-Folk and Familiar Spirits examines the folkloric roots of familiar lore from historical, anthropological and comparative religious perspectives. It argues that beliefs about witches' familiars were rooted in beliefs surrounding the use of fairy familiars by beneficent magical practitioners or 'cunning folk', and corroborates this through a comparative analysis of familiar beliefs found in traditional native American and Siberian shamanism. The author explores the experiential dimension of familiar lore by drawing parallels between early modern familiar encounters and visionary mysticism as it appears in both tribal shamanism and medieval European contemplative traditions. These perspectives challenge the reductionist view of popular magic in early modern British often presented by historians.

Get Unstuck, Find Inspiration, and Take the Next Step on Your Path The Witch's Path is all about raising your Witchcraft practice to the next level—whether you're a beginner who feels overwhelmed, a disillusioned adept, a jaded coven leader, or anyone in between. This book shares specific, hands-on tips for what you can do to move forward spiritually today, no matter what your starting point. Join Thorn Mooney on an exploration of the most common themes practitioners need to look into when they're feeling stagnant or stuck: sacred space, devotion, ritual and magic, personal practice, and community. Every chapter features four separate exercises, designed for four different types of readers, so you can come back to this book as you grow and discover fresh techniques and activities. The Witch's Path helps renew your sense of engagement with the Craft so you can continue evolving your spirit, your practice, and yourself.

This edited collection investigates metal music’s enduring fascination with the medieval period from a variety of critical perspectives, exploring how metal musicians and fans use the medieval period as a fount for creativity and critique.

Historical Dictionary of Spanish Cinema covers Spanish cinema, its treasures its constant attempts to break through internationally, reaching out towards universal themes and conventions, and the specific obstacles and opportunities that have shaped the careers of filmmakers and stars. This book contains a chronology, an introduction, an appendix and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 200 cross-referenced entries on titles, movements, filmmakers and performers, and genres (such as homosexuality, nuevo cine español or horror). This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Spanish cinema.

This book brings together twelve studies that collectively provide an overview of the main issues of live interest in Scottish witchcraft. As well as fresh studies of the well-established topic of witch-hunting, the book also launches an exploration of some of the more esoteric aspects of magical belief and practice.

Discover the Hidden Depths of the Sabbath Take flight for a mesmerizing exploration of an event long shrouded in fear and mystery—the Witches' Sabbath. Kelden presents an in-depth examination of the Sabbath's historical and folkloric development as well as its re-emergence within the modern practice of Witchcraft. From discussions on the folklore of flight and the events of nocturnal gatherings to enchanting rituals and recipes, you'll find everything you need to not only understand the nature of the legendary Sabbath, but also journey there yourself. Offering impressive research and compelling stories from across Europe and the early American colonies, this book is the ultimate resource for discovering an oft misunderstood and overlooked aspect of Witchcraft. Includes a foreword by Jason Mankey, author of The Horned God of the Witches