Salem Whichcraft Trials

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earth, there must be witches who were instruments of the Devil.
(2) So if someone did not believe in witches it was considered heresy in
Salem. A witch was regarded as a person who had made an actual,
deliberate, formal pact with Satan and would do all in her in power to aid
him in his rebellion against God. (3) The Puritans believed that they
were living in a world of chaos and crime, and directed their efforts to
constantly guard against sin. (4)
Life in Salem Village was not easy at the best of times. Gaiety and
merrymaking were regarded as irreligious, and the people of the village
were somber and severe. Their lives were spent in hard work and
religious observance.
Even their relaxation was associated with the meeting house. On the
Sabbath there was a long service in the morning and another in the
afternoon. Village residents who came from outlying farms were not able
to get home before the services, and it gradually became a regular
...

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backsliders who did
not attend church services. (7) People were familiar with each other’s
affairs and willing to interfere at the slightest hint of sin or scandal. (8)
Any deviant behavior was criminal. The Puritans did not take into
account the myriad of shadings between various forms of misbehavior;
everything not white was black. No distinction was made between
persons who flatly violated the law and those who infringed on prescribed
customs. The court took instant notice of anyone who drank too much,
who dressed in inappropriate clothes, or in indulged some other form of
scandalous behavior, who let their hair grow too long, who talked too
much or played frivolous ...

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