This book provides a sophisticated new interdisciplinary interpretation of the formulation and evolution of African American religion and culture. Theophus Smith argues for the central importance of "conjure"--a magical means of transforming reality--in black spirituality and culture. Smith shows that the Bible, the sacred text of Western civilization, has in fact functioned as a magical formulary for African Americans. Going back to slave religion, and continuing in black folk practice and literature to the present day, the Bible has provided African Americans with ritual prescriptions for prophetically re-envisioning, and thereby transforming, their history and culture. In effect the Bible is a "conjure book" for prescribing cures and curses, and for invoking extraordinary and Divine powers to effect changes in the conditions of human existence--and to bring about justice and freedom. Biblical themes, symbols, and figures like Moses, the Exodus, the Promised Land, and the Suffering Servant, as deployed by African Americans, have crucially formed and reformed not only black culture, but American society as a whole. Smith examines not only the religious and political uses of conjure, but its influence on black aesthetics, in music, drama, folklore, and literature. The concept of conjure, he shows, is at the heart of an indigenous and still vital spirituality, with exciting implications for reformulating the next generation of black studies and black theology. Even more broadly, Smith proposes, "conjuring culture" can function as a new paradigm for understanding Western religious and cultural phenomena generally.

“A fascinating and frightening book” (Los Angeles Times)—the bestselling true story about a house possessed by evil spirits, haunted by psychic phenomena almost too terrible to describe. In December 1975, the Lutz family moved into their new home on suburban Long Island. George and Kathleen Lutz knew that, one year earlier, Ronald DeFeo had murdered his parents, brothers, and sisters in the house, but the property—complete with boathouse and swimming pool—and the price had been too good to pass up. Twenty-eight days later, the entire Lutz family fled in terror. This is the spellbinding, shocking true story that gripped the nation about an American dream that turned into a nightmare beyond imagining—“this book will scare the hell out of you” (Kansas City Star).

Meet Jessica. Jessica just returned to her freshman year of college after winter break, bringing with her the anxieties of last semester’s poor grades, the awkwardness of facing a boy she wishes she’d never slept with, and an undeniably unnerving feeling of being watched. She soon comes to realize that something evil made her its target, and it will not rest until it has her in its unholy grip. But why did this sinister presence set its sights on a seemingly normal college freshman? Read this nerve-racking tale, creepily crafted by Conjuring screenwriter David L. Johnson-McGoldrick and Rex Ogle with heart-stopping art from Garry Brown and chill-inducing covers by Bill Sienkiewicz, to find out! The terrifying tie-in to The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is collected here in its entirety!

The greatest Witches of folklore practiced their craft by conjuring spirits and employing a familiar spirit. Now, centuries later, these arts—supposedly the domain of ceremonial magicians only—can be perfected by modern Witches. In this groundbreaking book, Witch and ritual magician Frater Barrabbas shares a system of Witchcraft-based magic developed for safely performing invocations and evocations, handling fallen spirits and Goetic demons, traveling in the spirit world, creating a spirit pact, and constructing your own rituals for spirit conjuring. To help you get to know the full breadth of the spirit world, Spirit Conjuring for Witches includes a unique list of spirits as well as techniques for working with sigils and recommendations for classical grimoires. Exploring history, folktales, and personal experiences, this book shows how to magically develop relationships with spirits and ultimately master both the spirit and material worlds. Praise: "A clear and distinct body of tools and rituals for working with a broad range of spirits. If you are a witch looking for a more formal approach to this field, this may be the book for you."—Ivo Dominguez Jr., author of Spirit Speaks and Practical Astrology for Witches and Pagans "Frater Barrabbas has made a valuable contribution to the practice of modern witchcraft...This is a very thorough and carefully developed invitation to revive the practice of magical evocation that historically played so central a role in witchcraft and magic."—Jim Baker, author of The Cunning Man's Handbook "Frater Barrabbas shows how modern Witches can also reclaim their ability to conjure spirits in the age-old tradition of evoking beings of the Otherworld to attain knowledge or obtain practical results in this world. With the current revival in the publication, study and use of the classical grimoires, witches who are drawn to the practice of the magickal evocation of spirits now have a detailed guide to the inner preparations and outer practices necessary to evoke spirits safely and correctly."—Jonathan Nightshade, Gardnerian HP, Traditional Crafter and Sorcerer "I wish that there had a book like Spirit Conjuring for Witches back when; it would have saved me any number of missteps along the way. With more than forty years of experience under his cincture, Frater Barabbas speaks with a voice of wisdom, clarity and authority: truly one of the Thirteen Human Treasures of Paganistan."—Steven Posch, Traditional Witch and Host of Radio Paganistan "As Witches we all work with Deity and various spirits; but can you honestly say you communicate with them? This book is a valuable resource for every serious Witch's library. The author has outlined how to truly connect with that spirit realm, which allows us to build a relationship with those we work with."—Lady Adariana, Gardnerian HPS

This collection of essays explains the emergence of black women novelists in contemporary American literature and the cultural and personal influences that made it possible for them to find their literary authority. Beginning with the 19th century origins of the tradition--the autobiographical writings and slave narratives--the volume discusses individual writers such as Pauline Hopkins, Jessie Redmon Fauset, Ann Petry and Octavia Butler; the aggregate significance of fiction by black women; and their influence on each other. Novels examined include Toni Cade Bambara's The Salt Eaters, Ann Petry's The Street, and Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon and The Bluest Eye. ISBN 0-253-31407-0 : $29.95; ISBN 0-253-20360-0 (pbk.) : $10.95.

Roger and Carolyn Perron purchased the home of their dreams and eventual nightmares in December of 1970. The Arnold Estate, located just beyond the village of Harrisville, Rhode Island seemed the idyllic setting in which to raise a family. The couple unwittingly moved their five young daughters into the ancient and mysterious farmhouse. Secrets were kept and then revealed within a space shared by mortal and immortal alike. Time suddenly became irrelevant; fractured by spirits making their presence known then dispersing into the ether. The house is a portal to the past and a passage to the future. This is a sacred story of spiritual enlightenment, told some thirty years hence. The family is now somewhat less reticent to divulge a closely-guarded experience. Their odyssey is chronicled by the eldest sibling and is an unabridged account of a supernatural excursion. Ed and Lorraine Warren investigated this haunting in a futile attempt to intervene on their behalf. They consider the Perron family saga to be one of the most compelling and significant of a famously ghost-storied career as paranormal researchers. During a seance gone horribly wrong, they unleashed an unholy hostess; the spirit called Bathsheba; a God-forsaken soul. Perceiving herself to be the mistress of the house, she did not appreciate the competition. Carolyn had long been under siege; overt threats issued in the form of firea mother's greatest fear. It transformed the woman in unimaginable ways. After nearly a decade the family left a once beloved home behind though it will never leave them, as each remains haunted by a memory. This tale is an inspiring testament to the resilience of the human spirit on a pathway of discovery: an eternal journey for the living and the dead.

For over five decades Ed and Lorraine Warren have been known as the world's most renowned paranormal investigators. Lorraine is a gifted clairvoyant, while Ed is the only non-ordained demonologist recognized by the Catholic Church. Together they have investigated thousands of hauntings in their career.

PRETEND FAMILY Jessica loved playing with the family of dolls she had found in the old house. She slipped away to visit them every chance she had, and pretended that she belonged there with this, her family-with her mother, the blond haired woman in the picture on the wall. As she played, she began to realize that sometimes the dolls were not where she had left them. At times she even imagined that she heard them whispering to her. And the name they whispered was-Annabelle-not her real name Jessica. PROTECTIVE FAMILYThe dolls were so relieved, happy that Annabelle had finally come back to them. Surely everything would return to normal now-just as it had been. And this time they would protect Annabelle, to make sure that she never left them again ¿

In 2013 an apparently simple, back-to-basics scary movie transformed horror cinema for the rest of the decade. Based on the allegedly true story of the Perron family haunting and subsequent investigation by ghost hunters Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring has to-date spawned six sequels and prequels, making up a Conjuring ‘universe’ that has taken over a billion dollars around the world. The New York Times called The Conjuring ‘a fantastically effective haunted-house movie’ which, following his earlier film Insidious, established director James Wan as a force in horror cinema. In this Devil’s Advocates, horror scholar Kevin Wetmore examines what elements in the film are truly terrifying, how the filmmakers’ claims of being based on a true story hold up against the actual history of the haunting and the Warrens, and the relationship between The Conjuring and the many films in its universe. Along the way this book also considers how games, toys and dolls play an important role in the series, offers a critique of gender roles in the films, and asks the question, what is actually ‘conjured’ in The Conjuring? The delightful result is an in-depth, close reading of a film that uses standard horror tropes masterfully to create a truly scary film.