WHY SUPERSTITION IS CHIEFLY FOUND IN WOMEN

From The Hammer of Witches, 1486:

                             Why Superstition Is Chiefly Found In Women

• They are more credulous than men, and since the chief aim of the devil is to corrupt faith, he attacks them by preference.
• They are readier to receive spiritual influences. When they use this quality well, they are very good, but when they abuse it, they are very bad.
• They have slippery tongues.
• They are feebler in mind and body than men.
• They were formed from a bent rib [of Adam], which makes them deceptive.
• The word femina [Latin for woman] is derived from fe [faith] and minor [less].
• They are affected by strong passions, given to brooding and vengeance…wherefore it is no wonder that so great a number of witches exist.
• Women have weak memories…to follow their own impulses without thinking of what is due – that’s all they can keep in mind.
• Woman is a liar by nature.
• She is more dangerous than a snare…If she places her hands on a creature to bewitch it, she achieves her purpose with the help of the devil.