The Misogyny of WitchcraftMain MenuIntroductionHeinrich Kramer (1430-1505) and Malleus MalleficarumMalleus Maleficarum and MisogynyA noble science?Witchcraft and mental illnessThe beginning of the endList of works in the exhibitionFurther readingSue Luftscheinc3da4f338cfb5c3d980919bd84c8fb083c380bd6
St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
1media/IMG_0413.jpg2022-09-28T14:34:29-07:00Sue Luftscheinc3da4f338cfb5c3d980919bd84c8fb083c380bd64140112image_header2022-10-03T20:31:02-07:00Sue Luftscheinc3da4f338cfb5c3d980919bd84c8fb083c380bd6Heinrich Kramer (1430-1505) and Malleus MalleficarumIn what are arguably his two most important works, Summa contra gentiles and Summa theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas condemned magic as evil and the work of demons, and its practitioners as criminals who were perpetrating illicit deeds like adultery, theft and homicide; that only God could perform miracles; that the power of magic did not come from nature, but from “bidding”; and that any unnatural occurrence came from demons. Shown here is a copy of his Summa theologica, secunda secundae (Part 2b), open to , in which Aquinas discusses magic and concludes that it is unlawful and futile.