Heksengeloof: toverij en religie in Nederland tussen 1890 en 1940

Samenvatting

Although recent European witchcraft has been a blind spot for most anthropologists & historians, it has drawn the attention of folklorists. The link between witchcraft & religion has not generally been acknowledged. To investigate the relationship between orthodox Calvinism & witchcraft in the Netherlands from 1890 to 1940, attention is focused on the folklorist category of superstition, ie, everything not accepted as official belief. The existence of countercharms to undo the witch's magic, eg, boiling a live black hen in order to draw the witch to her alleged victim & withdraw the curse, coincided geographically with orthodox Calvinism. Although the Calvinists found justification in the Bible for the existence of witches, they resorted to violence or sought help from Roman Catholic priests, since their own religion offered them no remedy. Similar relations between witchcraft & orthodox religion can be found in other parts of Europe. 81 References. Modified HA