Final Essay, Final Reflections

The time has come! The ultimate reflection! I cannot believe the semester is coming to a close. Not only that, my time at TCU is coming to a close. When I enrolled as a freshman 4 years ago, I would not have predicted that I would be taking a course on witches, witchcraft, and witch hunts to wrap up my undergraduate experience. Nonetheless, here I am, and I am sincerely grateful for this course. As I write below, one of my favorite parts about this course has been the opportunity to take time to reflect in these blog posts. I personally thoroughly enjoy writing (and thinking), but I don't take enough opportunities to translate the latter into the former. I spend more time contemplating various ideas and thoughts in my head and rarely put pen to paper. However, this course has forced me to write, and I am thankful for that opportunity.

In this final reflection (or final essay), I will present and discuss five things that I have learned this semester and my reactions to those things. The list of "things" is found below.

1. The widespread nature of witchcraft and the occult (across time and space)

2. The lamentable response of the Church to witchcraft

3. The fact that disagreement did exist about the proceedings of the Salem Witch Trials

4. The diverse portrayal of witches in popular media

5. The complexity, nuance, and relevance of witchcraft

Thing #1: The widespread nature of witchcraft and the occult (across time and space)

My first takeaway in this course comes from A History of Magic, Witchcraft, and the Occult. I remember being startled by the seemingly omnipresent nature of magic and witchcraft throughout human civilization. From the "Ancient Roots" chapter to "Modern Magic," I was dumbfounded by how nearly every portion of the globe and time period had been affected by the occult in some shape or form. From a religious perspective, many people think of the "Three World Religions" as being the dominant forms of supernatural engagement on earth. Dominant though they are in number of reported adherents, that does not minimize the amount of syncretism that takes places and the sheer amount of people who practice more "spiritual" beliefs. I also think that the idea of the "Three World Religions" minimizes the role of other beliefs from time past. We forget about the very mystical practices of the ancient civilizations that shaped and influenced every culture that followed. In this way, my appreciation of the popularity of supernatural beliefs has increased, learning that even the Enlightenment was influenced and reacted against by practitioners of the occult. Having this perspective helps me understand the world more holistically. Humans are not just rational, robotic creatures, nor are the religious affiliations of today the ones that have always existed. Human civilization has had a deep relationship with diverse supernatural practices.

Thing #2: The lamentable response of the Church to witchcraft

I spent a whole blog discussing this topic, so I won't rehash everything here. Instead, I want to use this space to more so address the impact of this learning experience. It is easier for Christians and the Church more broadly to talk about the grievances of the past than to truly repent of them (as seen by continued abuses of power, legalism, and self-interest). It is frustrating and saddening to understand that the faith that I see as being full of richness and truth being represented in such a way. I am disappointed that the Church-- an organization that is missional by mandate-- damages its own witness by its sometimes gross actions. For that, I lament. At the same time, I want to be able to stand up for the Church, to proclaim its real graces. Woe to me if I critique and lob tomatoes from the stands without giving myself to labor for its purity and peace. Moving forward, I want to continue to engage with people who have been grieved by the Church instead of nurtured through it. One of the Church's primary missional tasks over the next century will be its ability to accept and confess its own shortcomings as well as the truth and love of its Lord. I also have curiosity: how should the Church have responded to magic and witchcraft? I disagree with what happened in the past, but what would be a better stance of the Church? How can we condemn practices where necessary in light of the teachings we have yet also stand for the truth in a way that is compassionate and merciful? How does the Church do that specifically in the context of witchcraft? (Even if it is not as "pressing" today, I am still curious more so for looking back on how the past could have been done differently).

Thing #3: The fact that disagreement did exist about the proceedings of the Salem Witch Trials

Though this revelation might sound silly, this class taught me that not every citizen of Salem ignorantly followed the claims of witchcraft and the sham trials. Previously, the Salem Witch Trials was taught to me as something where mass hysteria controlled the town's population, as if there were no dissenters or folks who raised concerns about the court proceedings. I was even surprised that the initial reaction was to check with a doctor to explain the mysterious behaviors and conditions of the girls at the beginning of the whole debacle. Moreover, I didn't know that the concept of spectral evidence wasn't new-- that it had been debated and discussed and previously cast out for not being a strong enough form of evidence. It wasn't as if the people of Salem came up with spectral evidence in a vacuum and thought it to be reasonable. I didn't have a major life-changing reaction to this revelation, but I almost felt a sense of relief. Though it doesn't negate what actually did happen, it makes the happenings seem more real. There were people who dissented. There were people who had concerns and frustrations. I also think that this insight makes the situation more cautionary, that even in light of disagreement and dissent, the trials still happened. How can we more value opposing opinions and give them due consideration?

Thing #4: The diverse portrayal of witches in popular media

With the popular media presentations being a large portion of the course, I can't ignore them in my final reflections and takeaways. Though the first article that we read at the beginning of the class set the stage for this reality, I have been intrigued by how many different depictions of witches exist. We see witches in horror films. We see crafty and cunning witches. We see a group of teenage females that join together as witches. We see a super hero witch. We see a White Witch. Interestingly enough, where arguments can be made for similarities in all the portrayals, I am of the camp that believes that the differences might be even more stark and telling. In this way, witches seem to occupy a variety of roles in films and storytelling, even allowing creators to craft witches to fit into the image that they want to project. The "historical" vs "cinematic" dichotomy of witchcraft is real and helpful. With most people consuming information regarding witchcraft from media instead of a semester-long course, there is no wonder why different beliefs/convictions about witches exist. Even in films that try to be "based on true events," there is always some end-goal, some character-arc that will be fulfilled by the witch (regardless of its consistency with history). If anything, from history we see a lot more nuance and complication with the portrayal with witches than most shows or films have the ability to convey.

Thing #5: The complexity, nuance, and relevance of witchcraft

I'm not going to lie: I expected this course to be watching Harry Potter and playing with magical wands. For that reason, I am also not going to lie here either: I was disappointed that the course was more historical than fantastical in design. However, in April rather than January, there is a lot that I appreciate from this course. In particular, I am impressed by how complex and vast the study of witchcraft is. For something that initially seems like it would be chalked up to superstition or mythical belief systems, there is a lot more complication and consideration to be given to this topic. If anything, I appreciate A _____ Short Introduction for this perspective. I think the chapters that we read from that book helped me to see more of the nuance in this subject. My reaction to this perspective was both surprise and respect. It even helps me understand the relevance of witchcraft today, whether we are discussing the social implications of witchcraft, the lessons learned from how witches were handled in the past, or even recognizing that people in the 21st century actually still believe in forms of witchcraft and magic. Understanding these things reveals that humans are not as much "brain on a stick" as we might be led to believe. Solving complex problems in the 21st century and into the future will need to be carried out in a way that recognizes the unavoidable relevance of the supernatural and spiritual to humanity. Witchcraft has carried significance since the beginning of civilization, carries significance today, and will carry significance into the future.

Conclusion

To conclude, I have learned much about witchcraft from this course. More than those subject-matter-specific takeaways, I have been forced to contemplate my own worldview more, reflect on the various historical events and belief systems that have led to our cultural moment today, appreciate ways of life that are completely different than my own, and carefully examine the beliefs and suppositions that we all hold. 

You might say that I have been spellbound.