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Sex, Lies & Religion by Randy Elrod, cre:ate 2.0 Publishing, 2010
As the subtitle suggests, Sex, Lies & Religion is about “enjoying the freedom of unconditional sexuality.” The closing pages reveal the book’s purpose:
Perhaps it’s time to utilize the Bible as our sex manual. And for those aspects where it is silent, we should then depend on an open dialogue with those we trust.
This work is a great catalyst for such a dialogue as it addresses six prevailing lies before five chapters that offer “truths” concerning biology, spirituality, the body, communion, and immortal longings. Although Elrod’s sources extend beyond the Bible, he offers compelling reasons to celebrate the God-intended beauty of our bodies and sexuality.
For the most part, Elrod is effective in his attempts to provide freedom for God-honoring spouses. Some of his assertions are now conventional wisdom having been thrust from the repressed mores of the past. He provides substantial support of his arguments, but at times he appears to be merely rationalizing his own ethics. For example, while the author’s distinction between art and pornography has merit, his defense of masturbation is less persuasive.
Arguably the most provocative writing concerns communion:
Like the Eucharistic feast called Holy Communion that many Christians celebrate regularly, sexual communion contains amazing parallels and is also a powerful and sacramental celebration of love, both human and divine. God celebrates the mystery of intimate love, and one of the best ways to commune with Him is to be a part of a loving, committed, mutually giving and receiving sexual relationship.
This book will hopefully liberate the marriage bed and, more importantly, help people connect not only with their spouse but also their Creator in new and profound ways.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from cre:ate 2.0 Publishing to read and post a review on my site. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255