Witchcraft was an imaginary crime and 80% of women have suffered and died from this
infringement. This fictitious misdemeanor had occurred during the 15th, 16th and 17th century in
Western Europe and the new world. In European history, the most frequent torture was in
defense of the Roman Catholic Church versus strong religious beliefs or heresies. Witchcraft had
soon become a heresy when Pope Innocent VIII published a bull in 1484 known as the Summis
Desidrantes Affectibus, desiring with deepest anxiety. Subsequently, within two years after the
publication of the bull, an additional decree or book would follow it, titled Malleus Maleficarum,
Hammer of the Witches. This was an enchiridion to all witch hunters, also to expose this new
heresy and bring unity within the classes and religion. The witch hunt craze was a mechanism to
conceal the actual situation of the country. These hunts were achieved by accusing women and
being scapegoats. Since religion had aided in these expeditions of the bloodbath. These hunts
were obvious that women were easy victims because of females being inferior to men. According
to the old Catholic religion, a woman was evil. Furthermore, the increasing number of people
involved in the witch hunts were caused by a mental illness. Thus, women were brutally tortured
during those three centuries.
Firstly, the reformation was a long term cause of the witch hunts. The religious conflicts
assisted in the witch hunts. Protestants and Catholics were taught that any magic was sinful since
it indicated a belief in divine assistance in the physical world. The only supernatural energy in the
physical world was to be of the devil. Without magic to counter evil or misfortune, people were
left with no form of protection other than to kill the "devil's agent" (Innes: 2003 ,57), the witch.
This increased perception of the Devil's work in the world, tempting Christians to at every step,
would combine with the increased consciousness of religion. During the Reformation witches
were becoming a scapegoat for the general ills of society during their rapid time of change. The
church's belief was witches were a serious danger, but this was at the same time when the church
"broke" apart because of the Reformation. A cause of the witch hunts in Europe was the
Reformation. It created a social turmoil that intensified witch hunts. The Reformation diminished
the important role of community and placed a greater demand for personal moral perfection. On
October thirty-first fifteen-seventeen, Martin Luther had nailed his 95 theses on the cathedral
door at Wittenberg, Germany. This triggered the Protestant Reformation, or the Catholic counter
reformation. When the Church was at the height of its power, eleventh to fourteenth century, very
few witches died. Persecutions did not reach epidemic levels until after the Reformation, when
the Catholic Church had lost its position as Europe's absolute moral authority. The Roman
Catholic countries courts continued to burn witches. While Protestant lands were more lenient, at
first, the witches were mainly hung and some Protestant countries did not allow torture. The
developing countries in Europe had a more virulent witch craze, also a weak religious system.
For example, Germany, France and Switzerland had a weak Catholic church. However, countries
with a strong Catholic church, did not experience any craze, such as: Spain, Italy and Portugal.
When the Protestant religion became more endangered, Protestants started the persecuted witches
with almost the same zeal as the Catholics. During this time the church was losing its power, and
needed to formally unify the Christian church because it was shattered into Catholic and
Protestant sects. The worst panics took place in areas like Switzerland and Germany, where rival
Christians sects fought to impose their religious views on each other. Furthermore, most of the
extermination of witches was done by secular courts. Church courts judged many witches but
they usually imposed non-lethal penalties. A witch might be isolated, given penance, or
imprisoned, but she was rarely killed. The Inquisition almost constantly excused any witch who
confessed and repented. The believers of one branch of Christianity scarcely ever used the
accusation of witchcraft specifically to persecute someone of another branch. Many Witch Hunts
were carried out by people of the same type of Christianity as the victims. Also, the civil courts
handled black witchcraft cases, trials involving charges of magical murder, arson, and other
violent crimes. Civil courts "protected" society by punishing and killing convicted criminals.
Church courts concentrated on white witchcraft: Cases of magical healing, and soothsaying. The
evidence from the trials established that courts always treated healing more leniently than
cursing. Furthermore, secular and religious courts served two different purposes. According to
the Church's court system, it was designed to "save" the criminal, by forcing him or her to be
good Christian. The sinners who had no remorse were to be executed by the Church's courts.
There were many sects of within Christianity created at this time period and created many
conflicts towards society.
