Graus, Andrea (Author)
History of the Human Sciences
Volume: 31
Issue: 3
Pages: 21-40
Publication date: 2018
Language: English
This article examines how and why criminal proceedings were brought against alleged cases of Catholic mysticism in several European countries during modernity. In particular, it explores how criminal charges were derived from mystical experiences and shows how these charges were examined inside the courtroom. To bring a lawsuit against supposed mystics, justice systems had to reduce their mysticism to ‘facts’ or actions involving a breach of the law, usually fraud. Such accusations were not the main reason why alleged mystics were taken to court, however. Focusing on three representative examples, in Spain, France and Germany, I argue that ‘mystic trials’ had more to do with specific conflicts between the defendant and the ecclesiastical or secular authorities than with public concern regarding pretence of the supernatural. Criminal courts in Europe approached such cases in a similar way. Just as in ecclesiastical inquiries, during the trials, judges called upon expert testimony to debunk the allegedly supernatural. Once a mystic entered the courtroom, his or her reputation was profoundly affected. Criminal lawsuits had a certain ‘demystifying power’ and were effective in stifling the fervour surrounding the alleged mystics. All in all, mystic trials offer a rich example of the ways in which modern criminal justice dealt with increasing enthusiasm for the supernatural during the 19th century.
...MoreSimilar Citations
Book
Susanna L. Blumenthal;
(2016)
Law and the Modern Mind: Consciousness and Responsibility in American Legal Culture
Article
Giuseppe Sartori;
Giulia Melis;
(2022)
Deception in Court
Article
John Jeffries Martin;
Manuela Bragagnolo;
(2024)
Physiognomy and Visual Judgment in Medieval and Early Modern Europe
Book
Bach, Thomas;
Maatsch, Jonas;
Rasche, Ulrich;
(2008)
“Gelehrte” Wissenschaft: Das Vorlesungsprogramm der Universität Jena um 1800
Thesis
Smith, Jennifer;
(2006)
Mysticism as an Escape from Scientific Discourse: Eluding Female Subjectivity in Late Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Spain
Book
íguez-Ocaña, Esteban Rodr;
(2002)
The Politics of the Healthy Life: An International Perspective
Book
Blanchard, Pascal;
(2008)
Human Zoos: Science and Spectacle in the Age of Colonial Empires
Article
Suay Belenguer, Juan Miguel;
(2013)
La cometa en las obras de física y de divulgación científica de los siglos XVIII y XIX
Book
Heather Wolffram;
(2018)
Forensic Psychology in Germany: Witnessing Crime, 1880-1939
Article
Wetzell, Richard;
(2009)
Psychiatry and Criminal Justice in Modern Germany, 1880--1933
Article
Verplaetse, Jan;
(2002)
Prosper Despine's Psychologie naturelle and the Discovery of the Remorseless Criminal in Nineteenth-Century France
Article
E. Claire Cage;
(2019)
Child Sexual Abuse and Medical Expertise in Nineteenth-Century France
Article
Sara Black;
(2019)
Morphine on Trial: Legal Medicine and Criminal Responsibility in the Fin de Siècle
Article
Aubusson de Cavarlay, Bruno;
(2007)
Des comptes rendus à la statistique criminelle: c'est l'unité qui compte (France, XIXe-XXe siècles)
Book
Pierre Janet;
Stéphane Gumpper;
Florent Serina;
(2021)
Les formes de la croyance
Book
Lachapelle, Sofie;
(2011)
Investigating the Supernatural: From Spiritism and Occultism to Psychical Research and Metapsychics in France, 1853--1931
Article
Szabo, Jason;
(2002)
Seeing is Believing? The Form and Substance of French Medical Debates over Lourdes
Book
Oppitz, Ulrich-Dieter;
Uexküll, Thure von;
(1999)
Medizinverbrechen vor Gericht: das Urteil im Nürnberger Ärzteprozess gegen Karl Brandt und andere sowie aus dem Prozess gegen Generalfeldmarschall Milch
Book
Vega, Amador;
(2003)
Ramon Llull and the Secret of Life
Essay Review
Leslie, Stuart W.;
(1999)
The Scientists and the Generals
Be the first to comment!