Читать книгу The Discovery of Witchcraft. Facts, Fiction & Conspiracy Theories Behind the Medieval Witch Hunt онлайн
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Calvine10 treating of these magicians, calleth them cousenors, saieng that they use their juggling knacks onelie to amase or abuse the people; or else for fame: but he/A. iiij. v. might rather have said for gaine. Erastus himselfe, being a principall writer in the behalfe of witches omnipotencie, is forced to confesse, that these Greeke words, μαγία, μαγγαγία, φαρμακία, are most commonlie put for illusion, false packing, cousenage, fraud, knaverie and deceipt: and is further driven to saie, that in ancient time, the learned were not so blockish, as not to see that the promises of magicians and inchanters were false, and nothing else but knaverie, cousenage, and old wives fables; and yet defendeth he their flieng in the aire, their transferring of corne or grasse from one feeld to another, &c.
But as Erastus disagreeth herein with himselfe and his freends: so is there no agreement among anie of those writers, but onlie in cruelties, absurdities, and impossibilities. And these (my Lord) that fall into so manifest contradictions, and into such absurd asseverations, are not of the inferior sort of writers; neither are they all papists, but men of such accompt, as whose names give more credit to their cause, than their writings. In whose behalfe I am sorie, and partlie for reverence suppresse their fondest errors and fowlest absurdities; dealing speciallie with them that most contend in crueltie,11 whose feete are swift to shed bloud, striving (as b 12 Jesus the sonne of Sirach saith) and hasting (as c 13 Salomon the sonne of David saith) to powre out the bloud of the innocent; whose heat against these poore wretches cannot be allaied with anie other liquor than bloud. And therfore I feare that d 14 under their wings will be found the bloud of the soules of the poore, at that daie, when the Lord shall saie;/A 4 e 15 Depart from me ye bloudthirstie men.