You probably know the phrase ‘hocus pocus’ for its association – often tongue in cheek – with magic and mystery. But did you know that the phrase has quite a long history?
As a term associated with conjuring and tricks, ‘hocus pocus’ dates to at least the early 1600s, when it first appears in writing, with reference to street performers.
However, one likely explanation to its origin dates earlier, to the Reformation in Europe, and the devastating religious wars that followed. Whereas the Protestants held their religious services in the actual languages of the various communities (e.g. English, German or Swedish), the Catholic Church still used Latin for Mass until after the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.
The term ‘Hoc est corpus meum,’ which means ‘this is my body,’ is used in Catholic Mass. Some historical linguists believe that ‘hocus pocus,’ referring to trickery and deception, derives from a mocking, deliberate mispronunciation of these Latin words.
These particular words would have resonated especially strongly during the Reformation when “transubstantiation” (the Catholic belief that the Communion bread and wine become the literal body and blood of Christ) was a matter of active theological debate, with the newly formed Protestant churches rejecting this doctrine.
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