{"collection":"Paganism & Neopaganism","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/pag/mm/mm02a16a.htm","path":"pag/mm/mm02a16a.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/pag/mm/mm02a16a.htm","text":"Of Three Ways in which Men and Women may be Discovered to be Addicted to Witchcraft: Divided into Three Heads: and First of the Witchcraft of Archers.\nFor our present purpose the last class of witchcraft is that which is\npractised in three forms by men; and first we must consider the seven deadly\nand horrible crimes which are committed by wizards who are archers. For\nfirst, on the Sacred Day of the Passion of Our Lord, that is to say, on Good\nFriday, as it is called, during the solemnization of the Mass of the\nPresanctified they shoot with arrows, as at a target, at the most sacred\nimage of the Crucifix. Oh, the cruelty and injury to the Saviour! Secondly,\nthough there is some doubt whether they have to utter a verbal form of\napostasy to the devil in addition to that apostasy of deed, yet whether it\nbe so or not, no greater injury to the Faith can be done by a Christian. For\nit is certain that, if such things were done by an infidel, they would be of\nno efficacy; for no such easy method of gratifying their hostility to the\nFaith is granted to them. Therefore these wretches ought to consider the\ntruth and power of the Catholic Faith, for the confirmation of which God\njustly permits such crimes.\nThirdly, such an archer has to shoot three or four arrows in this way, and\nas a consequence he is able to kill on any day just the same number of men.\nFourthly, they have the following assurance from the devil; that though\nthey must first actually set eyes on the man they wish to kill, and must\nbend their whole will on killing him, yet it matter not where the man may\nshut himself up, for he cannot be protected, but the arrows which have been\nshot will be carried and struck into him by the devil.\nFifthly, they can shoot an arrow with such\nprecision as to shoot a penny from a person's head without hurting his head,\nand they can continue to do this indefinitely. Sixthly, in order to gain\nthis power they have to offer homage of body and soul to the devil. We shall\ngive some instances of this sort of practice.\nFor a certain prince of the Rhineland, named Eberhard Longbeard because he\nlet his beard grow, had, before he was sixty years old, acquired for himself\nsome of the Imperial territory, and was besieging a certain castle named\nLendenbrunnen because of the raids which were made by the men of the castle.\nAnd he had in his company a wizard of this sort, named Puncker, who so\nmolested the men of the castle that he killed them all in succession with\nhis arrows, except one. And this is how he proceeded. Whenever he had looked\nat a man, it did not matter where that man went to or hid himself, he had\nonly to loose an arrow and that man was mortally wounded and killed; and he\nwas able to shoot three such arrows every day because he had shot three\narrows at the image of the Saviour. It is probable that the devil favours\nthe number three more than any other, because it represents an effective\ndenial of the Holy Trinity. But after he had shot those three arrows, he\ncould only shoot with the same uncertainty as other men. At last one of the\nmen of the castle called out to him mockingly, \u201cPuncker, will you not\nat least spare the ring which hangs in the gate?\u201d And he answered from\noutside in the night, \u201cNo; I shall take it away on the day that the\ncastle is captured.\u201d And he fulfilled his promise: for when, as has\nbeen said, all were killed except one, and the castle had been taken, he\ntook that ring and hung it in his own house at Rorbach in the diocese of\nWorms, where it can be seen hanging to this day. But afterwards he was one\nnight killed with their spades by some peasants whom he had injured, and he\nperished in his sins.\nIt is told also of this man, that a very eminent person wished to have\nproof of his skill, and for a test placed his little son before the target\nwith a penny on his cap, and ordered him to shoot the penny away without\nremoving the cap. The wizard said that he would do it, but with reluctance,\nnot being sure whether the devil was seducing him to his death. But,\nyielding to the persuasions of the prince, he placed one arrow in readiness\nin the cord which was slung over his should, fitted another to his bow, and\nshot the penny from the cap without hurting the boy. Seeing this, the prince\nasked him why he had placed the arrow in that cord; and he answered: \u201cIf\nI had been deceived by the devil and had killed my son, since I should have\nhad to die I would quickly have shot you with the other arrow to avenge my\ndeath.\u201d\nAnd though such wickedness is permitted by God for the proving and\nchastisement of the faithful, nevertheless more powerful miracles are\nperformed by the Saviour's mercy for the strengthening and glory of the\nFaith.\nFor in the diocese of Constance, near the castle of Hohenzorn and a convent\nof nuns, there is a newly-built church where may be seen an image of Our\nSaviour pierced with an arrow and bleeding. And the truth of this miracle\nis shown as follows. A miserable wretch who wished to be assured by the\ndevil of having three or four arrows with which he could, in the manner we\nhave told, kill whom he pleased, shot and pierced with an arrow (just as it\nis still seen) a certain Crucifix at a crossroad; and when it miraculously\nbegan to bleed, the wretch was stuck motionless\nin his steps by Divine power. And when he was asked by a passer-by why he\nstood fixed there, he shook his head, and trembling in his arms and his\nhands, in which he held the bow, and all over his body, could answer nothing.\nSo the other looked about him, and saw the Crucifix with the arrow and the\nblood, and said: \u201cYou villain, you have pierced the image of Our\nLord!\u201d And calling some others, he told them to see that he did not\nescape (although, as has been said, he could not move), and ran to the\ncastle and told what had happened. And they came down and found the wretched\nman in the same place; and when they had questioned him, and he had\nconfessed his crime, he was removed from that district by public justice,\nand suffered a miserable death in merited expiation of his deeds.\nBut, alas! how horrible it is to think that human perversity is not afraid\nto countenance such crimes. For it is said that in the halls of the great\nsuch men are maintained to glory in their crimes in open contempt of the\nFaith, to the heavy offence of the Divine Majesty, and in scorn of Our\nRedeemer; and are permitted to boast of their deeds.\nWherefore such protectors, defenders and patrons are to be judged not only\nheretics, but even apostates from the Faith, and are to be punished in the\nmanner that will be told. And this is the seventh deadly sin of these\nwizards. For first they are by very law excommunicated; and if the patrons\nare clerics they are degraded and deprived of all office and benefit, nor\ncan they be restored except by a special indulgence from the Apostolic See.\nAlso, if after their proscription such protectors remain obstinate in their\nexcommunication for the period of a year, they are to be condemned as\nheretics.\nThis is in accordance with the Canon Law; for, in Book VI, it touches on the\nquestion of direct or indirect interference with the proceedings of\nDiocesans and Inquisitors in the cause of the Faith, and mentions the\naforesaid punishment to be inflicted after a year. For it say: We forbid\nany interference from Potentates, temporal Lords and Rulers, and their\nOfficials, etc. Anyone may refer to the chapter.\nAnd further, that witches and their protectors are by very law to be\nexcommunicated is shown in the Canon of the suppressing of the heresy of\nwitchcraft; especially where it says: We excommunicate and anathematize all\nheretics, Catharists, Sectaries . . . and others, by whatever names they\nare known, etc. And with these it includes all their sympathizers and\nprotectors, and others; saying later on: Also we excommunicate all followers,\nprotectors, defenders and patrons of such heretics.\nThe Canon Law prescribes various penalties which are incurred within the\nspace of a year by such heretics, whether laymen or clerics, where it says:\nWe place under the ban of excommunication all their protectors, patrons and\ndefenders, so that when any such has been so sentenced and has scorned to\nrecant his heresy, within a year from that time he shall be considered an\noutlaw, and shall not be admitted to any office or council, nor be able to\nvote in the election of such officers, nor be allowed free opportunity of\ngiving evidence; he shall not succeed to any inheritance, and no one shall\nbe held responsible for any business transaction with him. If he be a judge,\nhis judgement shall not stand, nor shall any case be brought to his hearing.\nIf he be an advocate, he shall not be allowed to plead. If he be a notary,\nno instrument drawn up by him shall have any weight, but is to be condemned\ntogether with its condemned author; and similar penalties are decreed for\nthe holders of other offices. But if he be a cleric, he is to be degraded\nfrom all office and benefice; for, his guilt being the greater, it is more\nheavily avenged. And if any such, after they have been marked down by the\nChurch, contemptuously try to ignore their punishment, the sentence of\nexcommunication is to be rigorously applied to them to the extreme limits of\nvengeance. And the clergy shall not administer the Sacraments of the Church\nto such heretics, nor presume to give them Christian burial, nor accept\ntheir alms and oblations, on pain of being deprived of their office, to\nwhich they can in no way be restored without a special indulgence from the\nApostolic See.\nThere are, finally, many other penalties incurred by such heretics even when\nthey do not persist in their obstinacy for a year, and also by their\nchildren and grandchildren: for they can be degraded by a Bishop or by an\nInquisitor, declared deprived of all titles, possessions, honours and\necclesiastical benefits, in fine of all public offices whatsoever. But this\nis only when they are persistently and obstinately impenitent. Also their\nsons to the second generation may be disqualified and unable to obtain\neither ecclesiastical preferment or public office; but this is to be\nunderstood only of the descendants on the father's side, and not on the\nmother's, and only of those who are impenitent. Also all their followers,\nprotectors, fautors and patrons shall be denied all right of petition or\nappeal; and this is explained as meaning that, after a verdict has been\nreturned that they are such heretics, then can they make no appeal before\ntheir sentence, however much they may have been in any respect ill-used or\ntreated with undue severity. Much more could be adduced in support of our\nstandpoint, but this is sufficient.\nNow for the better understanding of what has been said, some few points are\nto be discussed. And first, if a prince or secular potentate employ such\na wizard as we have described for the destruction of some castle in a just\nwar, and with his help crushes the tyranny of wicked men; is his whole army\nto be considered as protectors and patrons of that wizard, and to be\nsubjected to the penalties we have mentioned? The answer seems to be that\nthe rigour of justice must be tempered on account of their numbers. For the\nleader, with his counsellors and advisers, must be considered to have aided\nand abetted such witchcraft, and they are by law implicated in the aforesaid\npenalties when, after being warned by their spiritual advisers, they have\npersisted in their bad course; and then they are to be judged protectors\nand patrons, and are to be punished. But the rest of the army, since they\nhave no part in their leaders' council, but are simply prepared to risk\ntheir lives in defence of their country, although they may view with\napproval the feats of the wizard, nevertheless escape the sentence of\nexcommunication; but they must in their confession acknowledge the guilt\nof the wizard, and in their absolution by the confessor must receive a\nsolemn warning to hold all such practices for ever in detestation, and as\nfar as they are able drive from their land all such wizards.\nIt may be asked by whom such princes are to be absolved when they come to\ntheir senses, whether by their own spiritual advisers or by the Inquisitors?\nWe answer that, if they repent, they may be absolved either by their\nspiritual advisers, or by the Inquisitors. This is provided in the Canon Law\nconcerning the proceedings to be taken, in the fear of God and as a warning\nto men, against heretics, their followers, protectors, patrons and fautors,\nas also against those who are accused or suspected of heresy. But if any of\nthe above, forswearing his former lapse into heresy, wish to return to the\nunity of the Church, he may receive the benefit of absolution provided by\nHoly Church.\nA prince, or any other, may be said to have returned to his senses when he\nhas delivered up the wizard to be punished for his offences against the\nCreator; when he has banished from his dominions all who have been found\nguilty of witchcraft or heresy; when he is truly penitent for the past; and\nwhen, as becomes a Catholic prince, he is firmly determined in his mind not\nto show any favour to any other such wizard.\nNext: Question II Introduction, wherein is Set Forth the Difficulty of this Question.","title":"Malleus Maleficarum Part 2 Chapter XVI","type":"page"}