The Hammer of the Wicked - Notes
In 1486 exactly eight years after the beginning of the Spanish Inquisition one of the inquisitors of Pope Innocent VIII named Heinrich Kramer of Dominican Order published a book in Speyer with the title Malleus Maleficarum (malleus = hammer /malefica = evil doer). The German name for the book became Hexenhammer =The Witch’s Hammer (witch = venefica) most likely because of its focus on witch hunting.
Once circulated, this book became the theoretical justification for the use of torture by the Christian establishment, not only against heresy, as this was already practiced by the church, but also against many ordinary Christians for their presumed pact with the devil.
Some researchers have found no connection between the Inquisition and the Witch Hunt. This I believe is because they have focused mainly on the locations of the events and type of religious establishments enforcing those rules, and not on what binds them together.
They also ignore the important aspect of how trends can spread without ever needing to refer to the origin of the influence.
Nowadays we can see an example of this aspect quite easily in the way witch hunt has been spreading in various African countries.
In my view the focal point that connects Inquisition with Witch Hunt apart from the timing, is the legitimised use of torture which gave birth to a wide spread manufacturing of torture instruments for 2 ½ - 3 centuries.
As it is unlikely that the visiting inquisitors brought their own torture instruments with them, their arrival must have meant more work for the local blacksmiths, carpenters, curriers and builders of the chambers that were going to be used and maintained..
This means that apart from those locals who accused individuals of pacts with the devil in order to appropriate their belongings, a part of the working community was also benefiting financially - along with the church and the Inquisitors – by acting against the more vulnerable section of their own communities.
To prove or disprove this point one could look to find out if there were any of the above mentioned sorts of craftsmen (1/3 of victims were men) amongst the victims?
And if so, may be because they had refused to cooperate?
Or perhaps the Inquisitor didn’t want to pay him for his work, and made him to sit on the chair he had made for others?
It is well known that people – mainly women - could be blamed to practice witchcraft for various trivial reasons, but one in particular which related to the looks was having red hair.
If this kind of hunt was systematically pursued for 12 generations (4 generations per century) then we can assume that there used to be many more people with red hair in Europe in the past than there are now.
But also that those nations with red hair as their common features did not as much took part in witch hunt as did the others.
Or if they did partic ipate, they did not include red hair as a proof for their accusations. As what is the norm cannot be persecuted unless heading for defeat.
The film below shows the use of this devilish book in the second half of the 17th Century.
As far as I know the church has never acknowledged - let alone apologised - having been spiritually occupied for so long by the devil they know so well in their beliefs, or have they? Is the church a body or a veil that covers the body?