Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

For Puck's Sake

Home
Pagan
The Child-Eating Scarecrow Of Christmas

The Child-Eating Scarecrow Of Christmas

Last updated on: December 6, 2019 at 4:20 pm by Mat Auryn

The Child-Eating Scarecrow Of Christmas 2019-12-06T16:20:32+00:00 Mat Auryn

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Image Credit: Pixabay | CC0 License

Hans Trapp is a legendary figure in the Alsace and Lorraine regions of France. While there are several variations of the tale the most popular one says that he was a cruel man of great wealth. However, he acquired his wealth not through hard work but from acts of magick and pacts with demons, he himself being a man who worshipped Satan. It’s said that he was heartless and vain, greedy, and would revel in sin. When the Vatican had heard of Trapp’s cruelty and occultism he was arrested and brought before the Pope. He was excommunicated for Satanism and demonolatry and upon returning back home to France he discovered that his land and property were confiscated from him and he was left without a single penny. The villagers of his hometown shunned and banished him to the woods in nearby Germany.

Enraged and full of scorn for those who took everything away from him, he devoted himself more and more to his dark sorcery. All he could think about was taking revenge on the villagers who exiled him. His hermitage in the woods made him go insane and soon he found himself craving the taste of human flesh. He became obsessed with the idea of cannibalism and so he came up with a plan. He would disguise himself as a scarecrow, wearing raggedy clothing and stuffing it with straw and sticks and would wait in the fields for his prey to come by.

One day a very young shepherd boy came strolling through the field. Taking a sharpened stick, Hans Trapp thrust into the child and killed him, dragging his corpse back to his house where he butchered the child into pieces and roasted him over his fire. Just as he was about to take the first bite of the flesh he had craved so much it’s said that God struck him with lightning. Falling down, he hit his head and died. Parents of the North-Eastern region of France warn their children that every Christmas Hans Trapp’s spirit would come back dressed as a scarecrow with a hood to enact his revenge by abducting naughty children into the forest where they were never seen again.

The legend of Hans Trapp seems to originate from the real life of Hans von Trotha who was born in 1450 and died in 1503. Hans von Trotha was a knight who was entrusted with two castles in the Palatine territory, which included territories of both France and Germany. He had a dispute with an abbot over property and possessions in one of the castles that he was given, which was supposedly originally the monastery’s possessions and the abbot refused to give them up.

So Hans von Trotha created a dam which stopped the water supply of the village below. The abbot complained and he finally tore down the dam, which flooded the village below and caused massive economic damage. Hans von Trotha began attacking the abbot, and when the Emperor couldn’t persuade Hans von Trotha to stop, the abbot went to the Vatican. The Pope summoned Hans von Trotha to be questioned about his loyalty to the church. He declined the visit instead writing a letter accusing the Pope of immorality. In response, he was excommunicated and had an Imperial Ban upon him by the Emperor shortly after his excommunication. He died two years later of natural causes.

Mat Auryn – This Fashionista Cat Devours People To Celebrate Yule

Mat Auryn – The Child-Eating Scarecrow Of Christmas

Mat Auryn -The Mischievous Tomte Spirits of Yule

Mat Auryn – A Brief History of The Krampus

Mat Auryn – The Yule Goat

Mat Auryn – What Is The Winter Solstice?

Mat Auryn – Seasonal Depression & The Winter Solstice

Connect With Me:

Click Below To Purchase My Book:

Previous Post

December 9, 2018

Jaclyn Cherie: Luciferian Witchcraft & The Nephilim Rising

Next Post

December 12, 2018 This Fashionista Cat Devours People To Celebrate Yule

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Book Reviews Deck Reviews Interviews Musings Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 August 2021 March 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the name of the sea that Moses parted?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Red Sea Jordan River Dead Sea Sea of Galilee

The Child-Eating Scarecrow Of Christmas

Related Articles:

Connect With Me:

Click Below To Purchase My Book:

What was the name of the sea that Moses parted?