| Adult Book Review | |
 |
|
|
Advertising
|
The
X-Rated Bible
View
the X-Rated Bible Companion Gallery
I remember sitting down and rereading the Bible as an adult and being shocked. Not so much about the sex, but about the sheer brutality that wends its way throughout the text, primarily in the Old Testament. I don't think any book in print contains more sex and violence than the Bible, including incest, rape, slaughter, castration, exhibitionism, adultery, orgies and debauchery of every type. Oddly, the conservatives never call for banning it, but I honestly don't believe that most of the Bible is appropriate reading for children. Akerley's book points out a lot of things I did not know about some of the Bible stories. I used to be a Sunday School teacher in my late teens before falling away from the church, but we never taught any of this stuff. Often, because of the language, different customs of the time, and veiled references, we don't always know exactly what the authors are describing. This book makes some of the more sexual and seedy elements a little more clear. This book is controversial, and is written by a non-believer who is also a gay man. Obviously, his background will not sit well with believers who take the Bible literally. It is well researched, thoughtful, and thought provoking, even if some of the conclusions may be debatable. Moses led his people in slaughtering other tribes down to the last man, woman, and child, including killing 24,000 of his own people for participating in an orgy. King David has a soldier sent to the frontlines to die so he can continue his affair with the soldier's wife. When men arrive at Lot's door hoping to rape the visiting male angels, he offers them his daughters to rape instead. Fortunately for the daughters, they decline. After escaping Sodom and hiding in a cave, both his daughters get him drunk, have sex with him, and get pregnant. These are just a few of the stories included that typically get glossed over in Bible class. There is a lot of interesting stuff here, but in a way, the more you know about what is really in the Bible, the more depressing it is. It is hard to accept that these are the inspired words a loving God wants us to read, or that according to the Old Testament, God was ever this vicious, violent, and pathologically evil. He kills a man who tries to keep His Ark from falling over (II Samuel 6: 6-8), He forces a man to burn his daughter alive after helping him slaughter thousands (Judges 11). He urges his followers on endless campaigns of bloodthirsty warfare, and even encourages them to rape (Isaiah 13: 11-16). The book is organized by topic, so it tends to jump around a lot, which can be a little confusing. It includes lots of Bilblical quotes so that you can follow along. It also includes the interesting factlet that many conservative churches are now discouraging their flock from using the King James translation of the Bible. As it turns out, historians have pretty much verified that King James lived as an openly gay man. -JB The Adult Book Review Archives
|
Special
deal on
|
The
X-Rated Bible: An Irreverant Survey of Sex in the Scriptures
