The people executed as witches were not victims of religious intolerance, though...they were usually practitioners of the dominant religious tradition (like the Puritans in Salem Village) who were victimized because other community members wanted to ostracize them, often for the purpose of acquiring their property, or for petty revenge over some previous slight...


I have always wondered why modern witches claim some sort of spiritual connection to the Salem witches--because they weren't witches at all, but Puritans!