Page:The history of Witchcraft and demonology.djvu/112

 act with human beings,” but they affirm, “None the less the opposite opinion is most certain and must be followed.” Charles René Billuart, the celebrated Dominican, in his Tractatus de Angelis expressly declares: “The same evil spirit may serve as a succubus to a man, and as an incubus to a woman.” One of the most learned—if not the most learned—of the popes, Benedict XIV, in his erudite work De Seruorum Dei Beatificatione, treats this whole question at considerable length with amplest detail and solid references, Liber IV, Pars i. c. 3. Commenting upon the passage “The sons of God went unto the daughters of men” (Genesis vi. 4), the pontiff writes: “This passage has reference to those Demons who are known as incubiand succubi. … It is true that whilst nearly all authors admit the fact, some writers deny that there can be offspring. … On the other hand, several writers assert that connexion of this kind is possible and that children may be born from it, nay, indeed, they tell us that this has taken place, although it were done in some new and mysterious way which is ordinarily unknown to man.”

S. Alphonsus Liguori in his Praxis confessariorum, VII, n. 111, writes: “Some deny that there are evil spirits, incubi and succubi; but writers of authority for the most part assert that such is the case.”

In his Theologia Moralis he speaks quite precisely when defining the technical nature of the sin witches commit in commerce with incubi. This opinion is also that of Martino Bonacina, and of Vincenzo Filliucci, S.J. “Busembaum has excellently observed that carnal sins with an evil spirit fall under the head of the technical term bestialitas.” This is also the conclusion of Thomas Tamburini, S.J. (1591–1675); Benjamin Elbel, O.F.M. (1690–1756); Cardinal Cajetan, O.P. (1469–1534) “the lamp of the Church”; Juan Azor, S.J. (1535–1603); “in wisdom, in depth of learning and in gravity of judgement taking deservedly high rank among theologians” (Gury); and many other authorities. What a penitent should say in confession is considered by Monsignor Craisson, sometime Rector of the Grand Seminary of Valence and Vicar-General of the diocese, in his Tractate De Rebus Uenereis ad usum Confessariorum. Jean-Baptiste Bouvier (1783–1854) the famous bishop of Le Mans, in his Dissertatio