Book description
Witchcraft, astrology, divination and every kind of popular magic flourished in England during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, from the belief that a blessed amulet could prevent the assaults of the Devil to the use of the same charms to recover stolen goods. At the same time the Protestant Reformation…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Religion and the Decline of Magic as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
An unlikely complement to Huizinga tracing the overlap between magical beliefs in religion as well as astrology and the emerging accusations of witchcraft. Deeply immersed in research about 16th-17th century England, this book offers a form of historical anthropology for baseline views of the strange ideas that drove spiritual life.
From Larry's list on values in European historical periods.
This classic study is now fifty years old and focuses on England. It looks at ideas about witchcraft in the context of entire worldviews in which beliefs about astrology thrived and most people wore amulets to protect themselves from spirits. It chronicles change over time and, while its arguments have been much debated since, provides a wide-ranging account that remains inspiring.
From Ulinka's list on Witchcraze.
If you love Religion and the Decline of Magic...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
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