News about the occult is hardly considered important enough to mention in today's news media. Yet, the occult continues to grow and spread. So, it is up to each individual to become knowledgeable and put what little bit of information together. Then, we can see for ourselves what is happening in the "spirit world" today.Demons, Witchcraft and the Occult Among Us is a crash-course for all that want to understand the occult, but do not want to spend a lot of time and money to do so. Those who are involved in the occult want you to think it is a joke or a game. Then, all of a sudden, you will find that it is a force that can control and ruin your life and the lives of your loved ones. For your sake and the sake of your children, don't be caught off guard and find yourself entangled in a web of deceit known as the "Occult." Buy this book today!
Devil worship, black magic, and witchcraft have long captivated anthropologists as well as the general public. In this volume, Jean La Fontaine explores the intersection of expert and lay understandings of evil and the cultural forms that evil assumes. The chapters touch on public scares about devil-worship, misconceptions about human sacrifice and the use of body parts in healing practices, and mistaken accusations of children practicing witchcraft. Together, these cases demonstrate that comparison is a powerful method of cultural understanding, but warns of the dangers and mistaken conclusions that untrained ideas about other ways of life can lead to.
This major work offers a new interpretation of the witchcraft beliefs of European intellectuals between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries, showing how these beliefs fitted rationally with other beliefs of the period and how far the nature of rationality is dependent on its historical context.
On the heels of the moral and spiritual collapse in the second half of the twentieth century, a new interest in spirituality has emerged and is overwhelming the world. However, this interest is not one which is leading to a resurgence of Christian faith and holiness. It is one in which man is infatuated with spirits, aligned with secret powers, inclined to secret rituals, and in love with superstition. Far too many Christians today are suffering and bewildered by the spread and appeal of the occult. Priests and parents alike are unsure how to address this temptation and devastation which pursues their children. The Occult Among Us seeks to fill the gap in knowledge and understanding by directly addressing many of these new movements, the dangerous social trends they are creating, and the challenges these present to the universal Church. In this book, the reader will learn: How technology functions as a highway for the spread of the occult. What modern witchcraft and Satanism really believe. The common beliefs that bind and motivate all forms of the occult. The dangers which even occultists admit are present in these practices. The real danger within common practices like the Ouija board, Reiki, and sage smudging ... among many other topics. Like The Rise of the Occult, this second volume is based around the same stories and experiences of sixteen former occultists, eight exorcists, seven parish priests, six Catholic families, and many others who have experienced firsthand the presence and dangers and reality of the modern-day resurgence of the occult. The time has come for all Christians to understand this threat more completely and to learn how they can protect themselves and society as a whole. Charles D. Fraune is an author, teacher, and speaker with a Master of Arts in Theology and an Advanced Apostolic Catechetical Diploma. He is the author of the best-selling spiritual warfare books - Slaying Dragons: What Exorcists See & What We Should Know and The Rise of the Occult: What Exorcists & Former Occultists Want You To Know, both of which have been endorsed by Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Bishop Joseph Strickland, and exorcist Msgr. Stephen Rossetti. Find him and his other publications at www.SlayingDragonsPress.com.
What is a grimoire? The word has a familiar ring to many people, particularly as a consequence of such popular television dramas as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed. But few people are sure exactly what it means. Put simply, grimoires are books of spells that were first recorded in the Ancient Middle East and which have developed and spread across much of the Western Hemisphere and beyond over the ensuing millennia. At their most benign, they contain charms and remedies for natural and supernatural ailments and advice on contacting spirits to help find treasures and protect from evil. But at their most sinister they provide instructions on how to manipulate people for corrupt purposes and, worst of all, to call up and make a pact with the Devil. Both types have proven remarkably resilient and adaptable and retain much of their relevance and fascination to this day. But the grimoire represents much more than just magic. To understand the history of grimoires is to understand the spread of Christianity, the development of early science, the cultural influence of the print revolution, the growth of literacy, the impact of colonialism, and the expansion of western cultures across the oceans. As this book richly demonstrates, the history of grimoires illuminates many of the most important developments in European history over the last two thousand years.
This work about witchcraft, sorcery, black magic, neuromancy, damnation, satanism and every kind of magic and occult is written by the undisputed scholar in the field and is a work of unprecedented authority, of interest to all who are connected with the subject.
The Dictionary of Demons starts with a simple premise: names have power. In medieval and Renaissance Europe, it was believed that speaking a demon's true name could summon it, compel it, and bind it. Occult scholar Michelle Belanger has compiled the most complete compendium of demonic names available anywhere, using both notorious and obscure sources from the Western grimoiric tradition. Presented alphabetically from Aariel to Zynextyur, more than 1,500 demons are introduced, explored, and cross-referenced by theme and elemental or planetary correspondence. This meticulously researched reference work features fascinating short articles on demonology and a wealth of woodcuts, etchings, and paintings depicting demons through the ages.
Beliefs in witchcraft and demons still shape many societies and seem to be increasing rather than disappearing with modernization and urbanization. Witch hunts in Africa and Asia show the scope of the problem. The deliverance practices of pentecostal and charismatic churches are widely controversial and their effects are rather ambiguous. The contributions in this volume, written by experts and practitioners from four continents, analyze these phenomena from the perspectives of intercultural theology, anthropology, and ethnology, and also describe the responses of Catholic and Protestant churches. (Series: Contributions to Mission Science / Intercultural Theology // Beitrage zur Missionswissenschaft / Interkulturellen Theologie - Vol. 32) [Subject: Anthropology, Ethnology, Sociology, Religious Studies]
With research sourced by the world's greatest libraries, Robbins has compiled a rational, balanced history of 300 years of horror concentrated primarily in Western Europe. Spanning from the 15th century through the 18th century, the witch-hunt frenzy marks a period of suppressed rational thought; never before have so many been so wrong. To better understand this phenomenon, Robbins examines how the meaning of "witch" has evolved and exposes the true nature of witchcraft—a topic widely discussed in popular culture, though remarkably misunderstood. First published in 1959, Robbins' encyclopedia remains the most authoritative and comprehensive body of information about witchcraft and demonology ever compiled in a single volume. Lavishly acclaimed in academic and popular reviews, this full-scale compendium of fact, history, and legend covers about every phase of this fascinating subject from its origins in the medieval times to its last eruptions in the 18th century. Accompanying the text are 250 illustrations from rare books, contemporary prints, and old manuscripts, many of which have been published here for the first time.
