Of the Method of
passing Sentence upon a Witch who Annuls Spells wrought
by Witchcraft; and of Witch Midwives and Archer-Wizards
THE
fifteenth method of bringing a process on behalf of the
faith to a definitive sentence is employed when the
person accused of heresy is not found to be one who
casts injurious spells of witchcraft, but one who
removes them; and in such a case the procedure will be
as follows. The remedies which she uses will either be
lawful or unlawful; and if they are lawful, she is not
to be judged a witch but a good Christian. But we have
already shown at length what sort of remedies are
lawful.
Unlawful
remedies, on the other hand, are to be distinguished as
either absolutely unlawful, or in some respect unlawful.
If they are absolutely unlawful, these again can be
divided into two classes, according as they do or do not
involve some injury to another party; but in either case
they are always accompanied by an expressed invocation
of devils. But if they are only in some respect
unlawful, that is to say, if they are practised with
only a tacit, and not an expressed, invocation of
devils, such are to be judged rather vain than unlawful,
according to the Canonists and some Theologians, as we
have already shown.
Therefore the
Judge, whether ecclesiastical or civil, must not punish
the first and last of the above practices, having rather
to commend the first and tolerate the last, since the
Canonists maintain that it is lawful to oppose vanity
with vanity. But he must by no means tolerate those who
remove spells by an expressed invocation of devils,
especially those who in doing so bring some injury upon
a third part; and this last is said to happen when the
spell is taken off one person and transferred to
another. And we have already made it clear in a former
part of this work that it makes no difference whether
the person to whom the spell is transferred be herself a
witch or not or whether or not she be the person who
cast the original spell, or whether it be a man or any
other creature.
It may be
asked what the Judge should do when such a person
maintains that she removes spells by lawful and not
unlawful means; and how the Judge can arrive at the
truth of such a case. We answer that he should summon
her and ask her what remedies she uses; but he must not
rely only upon her word, for the ecclesiastical Judge
whose duty it is must make diligent inquiry, either
himself or by means of some parish priest who shall
examine all his parishioners after placing them upon
oath, as to what remedies she uses. And if, as is
usually the case, they are found to be superstitious
remedies, they must in no way be tolerated, on account
of the terrible penalties laid down by the Canon Law, as
will be shown.
Again, it may
be asked how the lawful remedies can be distinguished
from the unlawful, since they always assert that they
remove spells by certain prayers and the use of herbs.
We answer that this will be easy, provided that a
diligent inquiry be made. For although they must
necessarily conceal their superstitious remedies, either
that they may not be arrested, or that they may the more
easily ensnare the minds of the simple, and therefore
make great show of their use of prayers and herbs, yet
they can be manifestly convicted by four superstitious
actions as sorceresses and witches.
For there are
some who can divine secrets, and are able to tell things
which they could only know through the revelation of
evil spirits. For example: when the injured come to them
to be healed, they can discover and make known the cause
of their injury; and they can perfectly know this and
tell it to those who consult them.
Secondly,
they sometimes undertake to cure the injury or spell of
one person, but will have nothing to do with that of
another. For in the Diocese of Spires there is a witch
in a certain place called Zunhofen who, although she
seems to heal many persons, confesses that she can in no
way heal certain others; and this is for no other reason
than, as the inhabitants of the place assert, that the
spells case on such person have been so potently wrought
by other witches with the help of devils that the devils
themselves cannot remove them. For one devil cannot or
will not always yield to another.
Thirdly, it
sometimes happens that they must make some reservation
or exception in their cure of such injuries. Such a case
is known to have occured in the town of Spires itself.
And honest woman who had been bewitched in her shins
sent for a diviner of this sort to come and heal her;
and when the witch had entered her house and looked at
her, she made such an exception. For she said: It there
are no scales and hairs in the wound, I could take out
all the other evil matter. And she revealed the cause of
the injury, although she had come from the country from
a distance of two miles, saying: You quarrelled with
your neighbour on such a day, and therefore this had
happened to you. Then, having extracted from the wound
many other matters of various sorts, which were not
scales or hairs, she restored her to health.
Fourthly,
they sometimes themselves observe, or cause to be
observed, certain superstitious ceremonies. For
instance, they fix some such time as before sunrise for
people to visit them; or say that they cannot heal
injuries which were caused beyond the limits of the
estate on which they live, or that they can only heal
two or three persons in a year. Yet they do not heal
them, but only seem to do so by creasing to injure them.
We could add
many other considerations as touching the condition of
such persons: as that, after the lapse of a certain time
they have incurred the reputation of leading a bad and
sinful life, or that they are adulteresses, or the
survivors from covens of other witches. Therefore their
gift of healing is not derived from God on account of
the sanctity of their lives.
Here we must
refer incidentally to witch midwives, who surpass all
other witches in their crimes, as we have shown in the
First Part of this work. And the number of them is so
great that, as has been found form their confessions, it
is thought they there is scarcely any tiny hamlet in
which at least one is not to be found. And that the
magistrates may in some degree meet this danger, they
should allow no midwife to practise without having been
first sworn as a good Catholic; at the same time
observing the other safeguards mentioned in the Second
Part of this work.
Here too we
must consider archer-wizards, who constitute the graver
danger to the Christian religion in that they have
obtained protection on the estates of nobles and Princes
who receive, patronize, and defend them. But that all
such receivers and protectors are more damnable than all
witches, especially in certain cases, is shown as
follows. The Canonists and Theologians divide into two
classes the patrons of such archer-wizards, according as
they defend the error or the person. They who defend the
error are more damnable than the wizards themselves,
since they are judged to be not only heretics but
heresiarchs (24, quest. 3). And the laws do not make
much special mention of such patrons, because they do
not distinguish them from other heretics.
But there are
others who, while not excusing the sin, yet defend the
sinner. These, for example, will do all in their power
to protect such wizards (or other heretics) from trial
and punishment at the hands of the Judge acting on
behalf of the Faith.
Similarly
there are those in public authority, that is to say,
public persons such as temporal Lords, and also
spiritual Lords who have temporal jurisdiction, who are,
either by omission or commission, patrons of such
wizards and heretics.
They are
their patrons by omission when they neglect to perform
their duty in regard to such wizards and suspects, or to
their followers, receivers, defenders and patrons, when
they are required by the Bishops or Inquisitors to do
this: that is, by falling to arrest them, by not
guarding them carefully when they are arrested, by not
taking them to the place within their jurisdiction which
has been appointed for them, by not promptly executing
the sentence passed upon them, and by other such
derelictions of their duty.
They are
their patrons by commission when, after such heretics
have been arrested, they liberate them from prison
without the licence or order of the Bishop or Judge; or
when they directly or indirectly obstruct the trial,
judgement, and sentence of such, or act in some similar
way. The penalties for this have been declared in the
Second Part of this work, where we treated of
archer-wizards and other enchanters of weapons.
It is enough
now to say that all these are by law excommunicated, and
incur the twelve great penalties. And if they continues
obstinate in that excommunication for a year, they are
then to be condemned as heretics.
Who, then,
are to be called receivers of such; and are they to be
reckoned as heretics? All they, we answer, who receive
such archer-wizards, enchanters of weapons,
necromancers, or heretic witches as are the subject of
this whole work. And such receivers are of two classes,
as was the case with the defenders and patrons of such.
For there are
some who do not receive them only once or twice, but
many times and often; and these are well called in Latin
receptatores, from the frequentative form of the
verb. And receivers of this class are sometimes
blameless, since they act in ignorance and there is no
sinister suspicion attaching to them. But sometimes they
are to blame, as being well aware of the sins of those
whom they receive; for the Church always denounces these
wizards as the most cruel enemies of the faith. And if
nevertheless temporal Lords receive, keep and defend
them, etc., they are and are rightly called receivers of
heretics. And with regard to such, the laws say that
they are to be excommunicated.
But others
there are who do not often or many times receive such
wizards or heretics, but only once or twice; and these
are not properly called receptatores, but receptores,
since they are not frequent receivers. (Yet the
Arch-deacon disagrees with this view; but it is no great
matter, for we are considering not words but deeds.)
But there is
this difference between receptatores and receptores:
those temporal Princes are always receptatores
who simply will not or cannot drive away such heretics.
But receptores may be quite innocent.
Finally, it
is asked who are they who are said to be obstructors of
the duty of Inquisitors and Bishops against such
heretics; and whether they are to be reckoned as
heretics. We answer that such obstructors are of two
kinds. For there are some who cause a direct
obstruction, by rashly on their own responsibility
releasing from gaol those who have been detained on a
charge of heresy, or by interfering with the process of
the Inquisition by wreaking some injury to witnesses on
behalf of the Faith because of the evidence they have
given; or it may be that the temporal Lord issues an
order that none but himself may try such a case, and
that anyone charged with this crime should be brought
before no one but himself, and that the evidence should
be given only in his presence, or some similar order.
And such, according to Giovanni d'Andrea, are direct
obstructors. They who directly obstruct the process,
judgement or sentence on behalf of the Faith, or help,
advise or favour others in doing so, although they are
guilty of a great sin, are not on that account to be
judged heretics, unless it appears in other ways that
they are obstinately and wilfully involved in such
heresies of witches. But they are to be smitten with the
sword of excommunication; and if they stubbornly endure
that excommunication for a year, then are they to be
condemned as heretics.
But others
are indirect obstructors. These, as Giovanni d'Andrea
explains, are those who give such orders as that no one
shall bear arms for the capture of heretics except the
servants of the said temporal Lord. Such are less guilty
than the former, and are not heretics; but they, and
also any who advise, help or patronize them in such
actions, are to be excommunicated; and if they
obstinately remain in that excommunication for a year,
they are then to be condemned as if they were heretics.
And here it is to be understood that they are in such a
way to be condemned as heretics that if they are willing
to return, they are received back to mercy, having first
abjured their error; but if not, they are to be handed
over to the secular Court as impenitents.
To sum up.
Witch-midwives, like other witches, are to be condemned
and sentences according to the nature of their crimes;
and this is true also of those who, as we have said,
remove spells of witchcraft superstitiously and by the
help of devils; for it can hardly be doubted that, just
as they are able to remove them, so can they inflict
them. And it is a fact that some definite agreement is
formed between witches and devils whereby some shall be
able to hurt and others to heal, that so they may more
easily ensnare the minds of the simple and recruit the
ranks of their abandoned and hateful society.
Archer-wizards and enchanters of weapons, who are only
protected by being patronized, defended and received by
temporal Lords, are subject to the same penalties; and
they who patronize them, etc., or obstruct the officers
of justice in their proceedings against them, are
subject to all the penalties to which the patrons of
heretics are liable, and are to be excommunicated. And
if after they have obstinately endured that
excommunication for a year they wish to repent, let them
abjure that obstruction and patronage, and if not, they
must be handed over as impenitents to the secular Court.
And even if they have not endured their excommunication
for a year, such obstructors can still be proceeded
against as patrons of heretics.
And all that
has been said with regard to patrons, defenders,
receivers, and obstructors in the case of
archer-wizards, etc., applies equally in respect of all
other witches who work various injuries to men, animals,
and the fruits of the earth. But even the witches
themselves, when in the court of conscience with humble
and contrite spirit they weep for their sins and make
clean confession asking forgiveness, are taken back to
mercy. But when they are known, those whose duty it is
must proceed against them, summoning, examining, and
detaining them, and in all things proceeding in
accordance with the nature of their crimes to a
definitive and conclusive sentence, as has been shown,
if they wish to avoid the snare of eternal damnation by
reason of the excommunication pronounced upon them by
the Church when they deliberately fail in their duty.
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