Who came up with that bright idea?
2007-03-09 08:27:28 · 32 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
She turned me into a newt......I got better.
2007-03-09 08:29:26 · answer #1 · answered by Samurai Jack 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Monty Python came up with that idea in the movie "The Holy Grail". but it is based off of the ridiculous ideas of the Malleus Malleficarum which many Christian zealots adopted during The Burning Times when a lot of innocent people were tortured and killed all in the name of salvation.
And to Giovanni Daempoli, the Malleus Malleficarum wasn't a work of fiction, it was a handbook of how to torture and kill which shows just how low humans can sink. Although the Pope originally didn't support the book the two writers managed to get the book published and it found its way into the hands of the masses, including the would-be witch hunters, causing the deaths of countless humans. I say countless because we will never know the actual number of murders due to angry mobs killing innocent people without any form of trial.
Blessed Be )O(
2007-03-11 23:47:49 · answer #2 · answered by Stephen 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You have that backwards. If the accused sinks, she is innocent, but drowns. If the accused floats, she is guilty, but then burned at the stake. It's a catch-22.
The Malleus Malleficarum (mentioned below) was a work of fiction only in the sense that witches, gods, devils, and demons don't exist. The people that wrote it and those that practiced it believed it to be very real.
2007-03-09 08:31:16 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
That would be your friendly neighborhood Christians. But you do have it backwards, if they floated they were guilty. Either way they were dead. You might find the Malleus Mallifcarum interesting (if you can find it) It tells all about how to identify a witch and what to do with them. Written by 2 German Monks in 1486. And that is apparently where and when the witch hysteria started.
2007-03-09 10:42:42 · answer #4 · answered by Enchanted Gypsy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You got that wrong, I think.
If the witch floats, she's obviously guilty of being a witch.
All this was described in the Malleus Maleficarum (The Witch Hammer), first published in 1486, arguably one of the most infamous books ever written. It served as a guidebook for Inquisitors during the Inquisition, and was designed to aid them in the identification, prosecution, and dispatching of Witches.
2007-03-12 18:57:27 · answer #5 · answered by Sue_C 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No it was the other way around...if they float they were a witch becasue they here light enough to float being that it was believed that they had no souls and were therefore more likely to float. If they sank they were innocent, of course, they were also dead, but they were innocent and were thus alowed to be buried in hollowed ground and receive the sacraments of death and all that.
2007-03-09 17:38:34 · answer #6 · answered by gotherunereadings 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, if they floated , it was proof they were in league with the devil . They could only prove their innocents by sinking and dieing. This method comes from a book called " The Witches Hammer " it was a work of poorly written fiction .
2007-03-09 08:32:26 · answer #7 · answered by lickit_suckit_slammit 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, no. If they SANK they were innocent, but by then what did it really matter? If they floated then they were evil and would be taken from the water and burned at the stake. Sensible notion. How else to frighten people into your beliefs than by drowning and burning? I know a few religions that use this tactic myself.
2007-03-09 11:39:48 · answer #8 · answered by Me, Thrice-Baked 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
So then - If they used volcanic rock, the witch would be innocent, if they used another kind of rock - say granite, the witch would be guilty. I would say, a very smart man who knew how to manipulate the masses.
2007-03-09 08:48:01 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
at one time they would make the "witch" stick her right hand and arm into a vat of acid for 60 seconds and if she didn't scream then she would be innocent and if she did she would be guilty. of course, even if she could take it her right arm would be completely useless from that point on which left her basically unable to do work of almost any kind for the rest of her life. none of the "witches" ever stood a chance.
2007-03-09 08:33:30 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Actually, if they sank they were innocent, but they were also drowning victims.
Basically broke down like this:
You float, you're a witch and are burned at the stake
You sink, you're not a witch, but you're dead anyway from drowning.
2007-03-09 08:32:51 · answer #11 · answered by Maverick 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋