Hocus Pocus

Comments on Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports
#1

There may be an earlier origin of Hocus Pocus than your conjurer. I remember reading (I thought it was in one of your books, but obviously not) that “Hocus Pocus” was used by an early Protestant theologian to belittle the Roman Catholic doctrine of Transubstantiation, that the eucharistic host (the wine and bread) actually become in fact the body and blood of Christ. He was saying, in effect, that Transubstantiation is so much “Hoc es” Pocus.

I am by no means a scholar or acedemic, so I can’t offer any citation, just my memory.

Daniel R. Harwick
Voorhees, NJ

#2

From the Oxford English Dictionary:

“The notion that hocus pocus was a parody of the Latin words used in the Eucharist, rests merely on a conjecture thrown out by Tillotson: see below.”

Looking below we find:

“1694 Tillotson … In all probability those common juggling words of hocus pocus are nothing else but a corruption of hoc est corpus, by way of ridiculous imitation of the priests of the Church of Rome in their trick of Transubstantiation.”

In short, while it’s possible a Protestant theologian dreamed up this term, there is no proof of this.

#3

All of the theories and references I see on this subject are interesting —but—

Going back 7 /12 decades [plus] I recall altar boy’s humor saying “Oh rap yer nose up” for Ora Pro Nobis. and “Hocus pocus dominocus” for hoc est corpus dominicus. [I’m a little sketchy on the latin in that last one.]

Find yourselves a local septua or octa genarion ex-altar boy and there’ll be a lot more that I’ve forgotten.

Geez----forget the library–find a local
“used to be”

#4

All of the theories and references I see on this subject are interesting —but—

Going back 7 /12 decades [plus] I recall altar boy’s humor saying “Oh rap yer nose up” for Ora Pro Nobis. and “Hocus pocus dominocus” for hoc est corpus dominicus. [I’m a little sketchy on the latin in that last one.]

Find yourselves a local septua or octa genarion ex-altar boy and there’ll be a lot more that I’ve forgotten.

Geez----forget the library–find a local
“used to be”

#5

All of the references mentioned on this subject are interesting—but—

More than 7 1/2 decades ago [plus] I remember the altar boys humor which substituted “Oh rap yer nose up” for Ora Pro Nobis and hocus pocus dominocus for Hoc est dominicus.

I’m a little sketchy on the latin in that second example.

So, I think it began a long time ago and was indeed a parody of some of the things in the latin church ritual–and who knows but that Hocus Pocus was merely the way the latin fell on the on the ears of the illiterate parishioner.

Many terms and words are in common use long before they’re recognized and recorded in dictionaries.

Who said it first can be a lot different that who wrote down first.

I recall that “ain’t” was frowned upon for many years before Webster finally recognized it.