Samuel Parris Points First Finger

Tituba and Mary Sibley Blasted from the Pulpit

Oct 28, 2006 Mary Trotter Kion

Parris points the way towards the Salem Witch Hunt by blasting Tituba, Mary Sibley, and others for baking a witch cake.

Faultering Starts and Final Failures

When Samuel Parris' father died he was left with far less than he had expected to receive. It was also far from what Samuel felt was his rightful due from his father's estate in England and his business in Barbados.

Parris left Harvard without a degree. Whether it was a matter of flunking out or lack of funds is unclear. Before becoming a minister he attempted to go into business but this failed.

Parris' Bewitched Children

In spite of his obsession with seeing evil all around him, Parris delayed for some weeks after his daughter Elizabeth and niece Abigail were pronounced, by a doctor, to be bewitched and a witch cake was baked in his own home before publicly castigating the provokers of this devilish desert. Then, from his pulpit he blasted Mary Sibley, who had made the original suggestion, and other church members for this offensive act. At this same time he also let it be known that his own sinful slaves, Tituba and John Indian, had taken a major role in the baking of this cake that contained the urine from his bewitched daughter and niece.

In essence, Samuel Parris had pointed the first finger, as he declared that the devil was loose amongst them, in what would become the Salem Witch Trial.

That the devil was loose amongst them was certain since by then Mercy Lewis had joined the other three girls in the ranks of the bewitched.

Previous:

The Reverend Samuel Parris : The Pious Puritan Preacher of Salem Village.

Recommended Reading:

Sarah Good: Second Accused Witch of Salem Village, Available October 29, 2006.

Sundays in Salem, Massachusetts:Droning Sermons and Hard Benches.

October, the Bewitching Month: Devils, Demons, Witches and Salem! Oh My!

The Haunting Month: Puritans, Witches, and Demons in Salem. A Continued Index of Bewitching Articles.

Sources:

Hill, Frances. A Delusion of Satan: The Full Story of the Salem Witch Trials. De Capo Press, 1995.

Hill, Frances. The Salem Witch Trials Reader. De Capo Press, 1995.

Jackson, Shirley. The Witchcraft of Salem Village. Random House, New York, 1956.

The copyright of the article Samuel Parris Points First Finger in American History is owned by Mary Trotter Kion. Permission to republish Samuel Parris Points First Finger in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.