Naphy, William G. 1960–

PERSONAL: Born 1960. Education: College of William & Mary, B.A., 1982; Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminar, M.Div., 1987; University of St Andrews, Ph.D., 1993.

ADDRESSES: Home—Aberdeen, Scotland. Office—College of Arts & Social Sciences, School of Divinity, History & Philosophy, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3FX, Scotland. E-mail—w.g.naphy@abdn. ac.uk.

CAREER: University of Aberdeen, Abderdeen, Scotland, senior lecturer in history and head of department of history. Member and former general secretary, European Reformation Research Group.

MEMBER: Royal Historical Society, Sixteenth Century Studies Society, American Catholic Historical Society.

WRITINGS:

Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1994, with a new preface, Westminster John Knox Press (Louisville, KY), 2003.

(Editor and translator) Documents on the Continental Reformation, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1996.

(Editor, with Penny Roberts) Fear in Early Modern Society, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1997.

(Editor, with Helen Parish) Religion and Superstition in Reformation Europe, Manchester University Press (Manchester, NY), 2002.

Plagues, Poisons, and Potions: Plague-spreading Conspiracies in the Western Alps, c. 1530–1640, Palgrave (New York, NY), 2002.

Sex Crimes: From Renaissance to Enlightenment, Tempus/Trafalgar Square (North Pomfret, VT), 2004.

Born to Be Gay: A History of Homosexuality, Tempus/Trafalgar Square (North Pomfret, VT), 2004.

SIDELIGHTS: William G. Naphy is an historian who has written several books on how religious beliefs in the Reformation era impacted daily life. In Religion and Superstition in Reformation Europe, a collection of essays Naphy edited with Helen Parish, he brings together the work of nine scholars who explore the many faces of superstition as espoused by Catholics and Protestants in sixteenth-century Europe. Topics include a discussion of how Protestants were quick to denounce Catholic practices, such as worship of the Virgin Mary, as superstitious, yet refused to acknowledge superstitions in their own beliefs. Other essays explore latter-day "prophets" such as Archbishop James Ussher, John Knox, and Nostradamus; widespread belief in astrology and ghosts; regional superstitions in Transylvania, Rottweil, and Nuremburg; and the popular distrust of the Jesuits. Catholic Historical Review contributor Robin B. Barnes criticized Naphy and Parish for gathering essays "with no common theme," in which the term "superstition" "often takes on precisely that 'misleading and negative' implication against which the editors warn." On the other hand, Andrew Pettegree, writing in the Journal of Ecclesiastical History, observed that the book "explores these ten-sions [between church doctrine and parishioners' colloquial beliefs] in a thoughtful and well-constructed collection."

Naphy served as editor and translator of Documents on the Continental Reformation, a collection of primary materials that explores the tension of everyday life in Europe as people dealt with the changing tides of religion during the Reformation. Firsthand accounts of everyday vitriol and violence bring to life for modern readers the impact of the transition for individuals during the time. Writing in the Australian Journal of Politics and History, Christine Churches noted that Naphy "is above all concerned to demonstrate how much a part of everyone's life religious belief was." She also pointed out that the author "employs material which is rarely anthologised or not readily available in English translation."

In Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation Naphy details how Jean Calvin and Calvinism came to dominate religious life in the city-state of Geneva in the mid-sixteenth century. In particular, Naphy sheds light on the events of 1546, a watershed year in Geneva's history, in which Calvinism became firmly established after many years of religious instability. Irena Backus, writing in the Journal of Theological Studies, was not convinced that Naphy uncovers new material on the topic and thought he attempts "to cover too much ground in too few pages." Similarly, N.M. Sutherland, writing in the Journal of Ecclesiastical History, noted that Naphy "assumes a great deal on the part of his readers," but also ultimately "deepens our knowledge of the social and political context" of Calvin's triumph.

Plagues, Poisons, and Potions: Plague-spreading Conspiracies in the Western Alps, c. 1530–1640 examines the sixteenth-century outbreaks of bubonic plague in Geneva. Naphy uncovers evidence that the plagues were intentionally spread as a criminal strategy designed to kill wealthy citizens in order to rob their riches. City records indicate that hospital staffers (often societal outcasts shunted into the thankless task of caring for plague victims) conspired to spread infected clothing and mixtures containing fluids from the dead to those they wished to victimize. Indeed, many were convicted of and executed for these crimes in the outbreaks of 1530 and 1545. In subsequent outbreaks, citizens were more likely to view plague through a religious lens and attribute it to demons or the wrath of God. Lancet reviewer James A. Galloway wrote that "Naphy's account is largely convincing, and opens a window into a fascinating, if horrific, episode in European history."

Naphy shifts focus with Sex Crimes: From Renaissance to Enlightenment, a survey of unsanctioned sexual practices and their punishments. Such acts were historically divided into the categories of illegal and unnatural, with the first category often reinforcing gender discrimination: Women were often executed for adultery and men only censured. Beyond the expected topics of prostitution and homosexuality, Naphy delves into the sensational aspects of bestiality, sadism, and satanic rituals. A writer for Kirkus Reviews called the book "scholarly, yet also bright and bawdy."

Born to Be Gay: A History of Homosexuality is a survey of homosexuality throughout history. Just as he illustrated the prevalence of various sexual practices throughout time and place in Sex Crimes, here Naphy demonstrates how a variety of cultures throughout history have dealt with ever-present homosexuality. Originally, the author purports, gays were neither vilified nor ostracized. Only as Christianity spread throughout the globe did homosexuality become politicized and driven underground. Ironically, Naphy theorizes, the West is seen in contemporary times as a liberal force promoting lax moral values through "gay rights," when, in fact, Western Christianity initially imposed its antigay culture to previously tolerant lands through colonization. The book was shortlisted for the American Library Association's Stonewall Prize, and a writer for Choice called it "truly global in scope."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Australian Journal of Politics and History, March, 1998, Christine Churches, review of Documents on the Continental Reformation, p. 145.

Catholic Historical Review, October, 2004, Robin B. Barnes, review of Religion and Superstition in Reformation Europe, p. 784.

Choice, April, 2005, review of Born to Be Gay: A History of Homosexuality, p. 1479.

Contemporary Review, April, 2003, review of Religion and Superstition in Reformation Europe, p. 253.

Guardian (London, England), November 23, 2002, Kathryn Hughes, review of Sex Crimes: From Renaissance to Enlightenment.

Journal of Ecclesiastical History, October, 1995, N.M. Sutherland, review of Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation, p. 727; April, 2004, Andrew Pettegree, review of Religion and Superstition in Reformation Europe, p. 391.

Journal of Theological Studies, April, 1997, Irena Backus, review of Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation, p. 320.

Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 2004, review of Sex Crimes, p. 950.

Lancet, August 3, 2002, James A. Galloway, review of Plagues, Poisons, and Potions: Plague-spreading Conspiracies in the Western Alps, c. 1530–1640, p. 418.