The Devil's Scourge: Exorcism in Renaissance Italy

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Summary: Methods for devil-foiling
Review: Girolamo Menghi was the most highly-acclaimed exorcist during the Italian Renaissance. Gaetano Paxia presents a detailed, acute, well-balanced introduction to demonology, as a preface to the full text of Menghi's 16th-century exorcisms, which were widely adopted by men of the Church both inside and outside Italy. This version is based on a volume published in 1576; Paxia and Janet Sethre have translated the Menghi texts into English. Anyone interested in the "idea" of the Devil, as it has varied among cultures and evolved down through the centuries, will find this book to be an indispensable milestone.