Was there any evidence of a real witch coven of heretics? Assuming not how about evidence that those hunted as witches were really just pagans and folk religions?
I know cathars and other offshoots of classic Christianity were kinda demonized, so is there any evidence some of those feared to be witches practiced some kinda of tradition (religious, medicines, science, or folk traditions) that was old and thus feared/demonized? Or do we assume all were kinda wrong place, wrong time, not liked, or part of a hallucination?
Hi there! Second-year history major here. I'm just going to answer this in relation to the Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692 because that's what I'm most qualified to discuss.
In the late 20th century, some historians (led predominantly by Chadwick Hansen, especially after his book Witchcraft at Salem) began speculating that, perhaps, those accused actually were witches. Wilmot Reed, in particular, was viewed as an actual witch. This theory has been often debunked, as there is very little evidence to suggest this. In particular, I would highly recommend Bernard Rosenthal's Salem Story: Reading the Witch Trials of 1692, which, albeit briefly, discusses how this theory took root. Some of the accusations and confessions, especially Tituba's, mention covens in Boston. However, very few contemporary historians (aside from those following in Hansen's tradition) actually believe that there were real covens. There was religious diversity, though that had little to do with the accusations. Throughout the trials, only three Quakers were accused of witchcraft and none of the accusations against them actually mentioned their religion as a reason, despite Quakers often being demonized in Puritan society.
Folk medicine was in fairly common practice, both in England and the recently-formed New England colonies in 1692. In 1621, Robert Burton wrote that in England, "‘Sorcerers are too common; cunning men, wizards, and white witches, as they call them, in every village, which, if they be sought unto, will help almost all infirmities of body and mind" (Anatomy of Melancholy, page 382). This carried over to many of the New England colonies, which formed around the time Burton was writing. There are even records of full church members in New England like Mary Sibley using some form of folk magic. Folk magic alone would normally not warrant an accusation of witchcraft given how pervasive it was/how often people sought the services of folk magic practitioners. Richard Goodbeer's The Devil's Dominion is a fantastic resource for learning about the use of folk magic in New England colonies if you're more interested.
That said, other historians have suggested that practicing folk magic, or "doctoring," could be one of the many traits associated with accused witches in Salem. John Demos has 9 characteristics of accused witches, including "doctoring." This would normally be in conjunction with other traits, such as being a woman, being middle-aged, having an abrasive personality, etc.
There's no single, overarching, unanimously agreed upon reason behind witchcraft accusations. While being a practitioner of folk magic could make someone more likely to be accused, there are no records of people being accused solely because of it.