More Real Sex

So a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I had Lauren Winner's Real Sex on my reading list. I have since read the book, and found it very, very good. Good enough that I intend to post further on it shortly (right after I finish re-reading it). Good enough that I will be recommending it to a lot of friends and their spouses (or significant others), with the invitation to sit down and talk about it afterwards. This is an exceptional book for facilitating dialogue, about how our sexuality relates to our Christian community - Winner never titillates, but she doesn't pull any punches either. If Real Sex is not already on your radar, it needs to be.

Ok, enough gushing. If you want to know more sooner rather than later, I'd encourage you to check out the recent World Magazine interview with Winner. They are quick to point out that Winner has not always held this position - as recently as 2000 Winner was wrestling with whether or not it's ok to be a single Christian who is sexually active (cf. Sex and the Single Evangelical. Winner has since modified her views, but this article is still a great example of her writing style).

So what types of things is Lauren saying today? Here's an example...

Chastity is not just about keeping your pants zipped. It is about renouncing bodily union with another person so that you can find a deeper union with the Body of Christ. This is why some of the recent books on modesty irk me. Many of these books suggest to women that they should be chaste because godly men don't want to date women who wear tubetops; because farmers won't buy the cow if they can get the milk for free; because chaste women will attract godly men. If that's your reason for dressing modestly—if your attention is still focused on attracting the right kind of guy—then I'm not sure you're really inhabiting chastity.

Inhabiting chastity. Sound interesting? Read the articles, grab a copy of Winner's book, and then check back soon for further discussion...