Book Review: Sex God by Rob Bell

I really enjoyed the book Sex God by Rob Bell. I can't say enough good things about this book. It is completely unique. It compares sex to spirituality. Specifically, it compares sex to having an intimate relationship with God. Bell says you can't talk about one without talking about the other. He makes a strong case, although it is not written in a linear style. He meanders from stories to conversations to scenes from the Bible to secular quotes. His writing style is very meandering.

This is what I got out of this book: Our extreme desire for sex is really a desire for a relationship with God.

Now, I can just hear people saying right now: "No, uh, I really want sex." Bell is not saying we should do without sex, but rather, sex is a physical expression of our truest desire: to be completely naked in front of someone and be unashamed; to be unconditionally loved and swallowed whole; to be connected with someone in the deepest way possible. In his chapter, Make Whoopee Forever, Bell says he thinks of heaven as one big orgy, where we are all the swallowed into Christ's complete and utter love. The joy and agony of sex, according to Bell, is that you come together but are then torn apart. In heaven, the tearing apart won't happen. It will be connection with all beings around you.

Bell covers all sorts of topics: pornography, male/female relationships, why marriages fail. And he does it in his signature writing style. Short paragraphs, some of them only lasting a sentence. The result is a book that flows and reads quickly.

It is also just a beautiful book to look at and hold. The cover is very smooth and soothing, with stripes in different colors. It kind of reminded me of a desert. The pages have a crisp feel. It is one of those books when you open it and you smell that really good book smell. Lastly, there is a small cracking noise when you open the cover. The pages are a soft pink color. I read a chapter a night and finished it in about a week.

Whether you are Christian or not, I think this book is a winner. It brings a unique perspective to the topics of sex and spirituality. And you may never look at sex the same way again. I think you could give these to age 17 through adult. There is nothing inappropriate in it, but the concepts would be difficult to understand without some mental maturity.