Fallen angels : Balthasar Bekker, spirit belief, and confessionalism in the seventeenth century Dutch Republic
Dutch Reformed pastor Balthasar Bekker (1634-1698) has long been recognized as a key figure in the end of the witchcraft persecutions in early modern Europe. With an examination of the ideas of Bekker, his opponents and supporters, this book places the controversy around "The World Bewitched" within the context of the Cartesian debates.
175 p. ; 25 cm.
9780792358763, 0792358767
185816362
One Balthasar Bekker and the Spirit Debate.- Two Bekker, the Sabbath, and Dutch Reformed Confessionalism.- Three Cartesianism and the Spirit Controversy.- Four The Friesian Hercules.- Five Bekker’s Opponents: Confessionalism Under Siege and Cartesianism in Crisis.- Six Cats Not to be Touched Without Gloves: Eric Walten and other Supporters of Bekker.- Seven Most Attacked and Least Defeated: Confessionalism, Anti Confessionalism, and Religious Controversy in the Dutch Republic.- The Death of an Atheist.