Sodomy in Reformation Germany and Switzerland, 1400-1600

"Sodomy in Reformation Germany and Switzerland, 1400-1600" may not exactly sound like a fun book to read, but Helmut Puff's extensively researched text (which includes a staggering 120 pages of notes and bibliographic sources) provides a fascinating glimpse into how the rise of the Protestant Reformation was aided by brutal propaganda that connected Catholicism with homosexuality.

As everyone knows, the roots of the Reformation came in Germany. One of the trickier aspects of establishing a new religious foundation independent of the Vatican was to discredit the institution which was being jettisoned. While Martin Luther and company had more than enough theological ammunition to shoot into the corrupt Catholic hierarchy, they decided to fuel the fires by equated Catholicism in general and its Italian governing board in particular with acts of sodomy. A catch phrase, "Italian weddings," was coined to describe anal sex

Of course this was pure garbage, but in that repressive era the very mention of the word "sodomy" was considered a lethal sin that was equivalent to actually discovering two men in the act itself. Being accused of sodomy was a capital offense and it was not uncommon for men in Germany and the German-speaking parts of Switzerland to be executed at the stake when they were found guilty (which seemed to be the legal trend).

Concurrent to these events was a sharp Protestant push to celebrate the state of marriage between a man and a woman. Sound familiar? Indeed, the shocking thing about this book is the fact how little things have changed from the Reformation. The religious hysteria, bully-boy media tactics and the obscene misappropriation of the Bible to solidify political gains which are detailed here echo with chilling strength in today's socio-political climate. While Puff's book is an invaluable history lesson, it also provides us with more than few contemporary parallels.