Christy Miller, age 14, of Charleston, W. Va., for her question:
IS THERE SUCH A THING AS A WITCH?
According to an old superstition, if a black cat crosses a person's path it will bring bad luck. The superstition is tied in with another belief that says every witch has a personal demon called a familiar. Many familiars, which actually live with and serve their witches, exist in the form of black cats or some other small animals.
No scientific evidence has been found that proves and confirms the existence of witches. Despite this rejection, many still believe that witches do indeed exist.
A witch is supposed to be a person who has magical powers. The witch's powers are believed to be able to harm people or damage their property.
From our earliest days of history, many people have believed in witches. The European witchcraft tradition is anti Christian and deals in an association with the devil. Witchcraft in the West Indies and Africa and among the North American Indians, however, does not involved the devil.
The word witch comes from the Anglo Saxon word wicca, which means wise one or magician. Originally, a witch was either a man or a woman who supposedly had supernatural powers. Through the years, however, only women came to be considered witches. Men with similar powers were called wizards, warlocks or sorcerers.
From abort 1480 to about 1780, according to some historians, about 300,000 women were put to death by members of the Christian church for witchcraft. An almost hysterical fear of witches swept Europe. Courts allowed gossip and rumor to be used as evidence and many children testified against their own parents.
Suspected witches suffered during the American Colonist period, too. Witches were persecuted in Virginia, Connecticut with the most famous hunt being held in Salem, Massachusetts.
People used to think a witch could make a cow go dry or cast a spell on a churn to prevent butter from forming.
Some also thought witches could raise storms, ruin crops and turn people into beasts. In addition, it was believed that a witch could ride through the air on a broom. They met, many believed, on 31 each year to worship their master, the devil.
A test used to be given during the Middle Ages to determine if a person was a witch. The suspected woman's arms and legs were tied and she was thrown into a pool of deep water. If she floated, she was considered guilty of being a witch. If she sank, she was innocent.
Today many witches are portrayed as attractive, fun loving people whose supernatural activities do harm to no one.