Witchcraft

Witchcraft In the modern world witchcraft is a form of nature religion that emphasizes the healing arts. The term is also applied to various kinds of magic practiced in Asian, African, and Latin American communities. Little is known about the history of witchcraft in Europe, and what is known comes from hostile sources. In traditional European society witchcraft was believed to be a kind of harmful sorcery associated with the worship of Satan, or the …

…in the 1920s, witchcraft was revived in Europe and America by groups that considered it a survival of pre-Christian religious practices. This phenomenon was partly inspired by such books as Margaret Murray's The Witch Cult in Western Europe (1921). Some forms of modern witchcraft follow the traditions of medieval herbalists and lay healers. The term witch-hunt is used today to describe a drive to punish political criminals or dissidents without regard for the normal legal rules.