Synopses & Reviews
Rumors of Devil-worship, or Satanism, have circulated for centuries. Tales of Black Masses, demonic possession, mysterious nighttime ceremonies, and human sacrifices have captured the popular consciousness, prompting the Christian Church to move aggressively to root out Satanism and its practioners through often extraordinarily brutal means of detection and interrogation.
Until recently the stuff of myths and stories, allegations of occult worship have of late taken the form of police investigations concerning ritual child abuse, teens involved in Satanic cults, and serial killings. Unsubstantiated rumors have found their way into the popular and serious press and have been reported as fact, often with little or no verification. Obsessive anti-Satanists find evidence of Satanic lyrics in rock music from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" to Live Aid's "We are the World," while the numbers "666" are found in barcodes in supermarkets.
The Lure of the Sinister draws on a remarkable range of sources, from newspapers and pulp literature to early modern works on demonology to explore the entire history of Satanism from the origins of the Devil in pre-Christian theology through the Inquisition to the life and times of Aleister Crowley, "the "wickedest man in the world." The book also investigates modern charges of Satanism, the psychology of the people who make the allegations, and the legal and religious contexts in which they arise, showing how rumors of Devil-worship come to take on a life of their own. Lively and wittily written, The Lure of the Sinister reveals a strange tapestry of dark and fearful beliefs which have haunted our imagination for centuries.
Review
"A solidly researched, sombre book, well-written, carefully documented and lit throughout by flashes of sardonic humour."-Jean La Fontaine,author of Speak of the Devil: Tales of Satanic Abuse in Contemporary England
Review
"The first truly authoritative book on the subject."-New York Press,Nov. 14-20, 2001
Review
"This scholarly, provocative and wide-ranging book is the clearest and wisest yet written on Satanism."-Ronald Hutton,University of Bristol
Review
"An indispensable reference for anyone wishing to sort out fact from folklore in the Satanism Scare. In the murky world of claims and counterclaims over the danger of the occult, Medway's patient documentation of verifiable facts is welcome indeed. He makes a convincing case for seeing modern cult-busters as using the same strategies that were notorious during the witch trials of the 1600s."-Bill Ellis,author of Raising the Devil: Satanism, New Religions, and the Media
Review
"Seeks to debunk the outlandish accusations leveled against Pagan practices by irresponsible journalists, overzealous evangelists and outright liars. . . .Convincing"Publishers Weekly"A breath of fresh air and common sense . . . should be compulsory reading for clergy, therapists, [and] tabloid journalists."-The Catholic Herald,
Review
"The first truly authoritative book on the subject."
"A solidly researched, sombre book, well-written, carefully documented and lit throughout by flashes of sardonic humour."
"This scholarly, provocative and wide-ranging book is the clearest and wisest yet written on Satanism."
"An indispensable reference for anyone wishing to sort out fact from folklore in the Satanism Scare. In the murky world of claims and counterclaims over the danger of the occult, Medway's patient documentation of verifiable facts is welcome indeed. He makes a convincing case for seeing modern cult-busters as using the same strategies that were notorious during the witch trials of the 1600s."
"Seeks to debunk the outlandish accusations leveled against Pagan practices by irresponsible journalists, overzealous evangelists and outright liars. . . .Convincing"Publishers Weekly"A breath of fresh air and common sense . . . should be compulsory reading for clergy, therapists, [and] tabloid journalists."
Review
”In his crisp That Ever Loyal Island, Papas explores the experiences of the inhabitants of Staten Island during the Revolutionary War to explain why many of them sided with the British instead of joining the American revolutionaries or remaining neutral.”
-Journal of American History,
Review
“This is an admirable history—thoroughly researched, clearly written, and persuasively argued. It adds significantly to what we have known about the identity of Loyalists and the intensity of the hostility that they faced during the Revolutionary War in the middle colonies.”
-The Journal of Military History,
Review
“A beautifully written, richly descriptive, and thoroughly-researched account of the importance of Staten Island in the American Revolution. This is an important book, demonstrating that a close examination and analysis of local politics, economics, and social structure can hold the key to understanding national history.”
-Carol Berkin,author of Revolutionary Mothers
Review
“Is not only a micro-history, it provides lessons in the winning—and keeping—the ‘hearts and minds of a local civilian population.”
-On Point,
Review
“An excellent book—succinct yet deeply researched, well written and filled with telling bits of evidence worked smoothly into an interpretive narrative. An insightful, important study.”
-Robert Calhoon,author of The Loyalists in Revolutionary America, 1760-1781
Synopsis
Of crucial strategic importance to both the British and the Continental Army, Staten Island was, for a good part of the American Revolution, a bastion of Loyalist support. With its military and political significance, Staten Island provides rich terrain for Phillip Papas's illuminating case study of the local dimensions of the Revolutionary War.
Papas traces Staten Island's political sympathies not to strong ties with Britain, but instead to local conditions that favored the status quo instead of revolutionary change. With a thriving agricultural economy, stable political structure, and strong allegiance to the Anglican Church, on the eve of war it was in Staten Island's self-interest to throw its support behind the British, in order to maintain its favorable economic, social, and political climate.
Over the course of the conflict, continual occupation and attack by invading armies deeply eroded Staten Island's natural and other resources, and these pressures, combined with general war weariness, created fissures among the residents of “that ever loyal island,” with Loyalist neighbors fighting against Patriot neighbors in a civil war. Papass thoughtful study reminds us that the Revolution was both a civil war and a war for independence—a duality that is best viewed from a local perspective.
About the Author
Gareth Medway studied physics at Imperial College, University of London and has since been a freelance writer specializing in comparative religion and the history of occultism. His writing has been published in numerous specialist journals and magazines including Fortean Studies, Magonia (which awarded him the Roger Sandell Memorial Prize), and Pagan News.