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A Celebration of Sex
Reclaim the Bible-based concept of marriage as a satisfying one-flesh relationship. A bestselling and definitive guide to marital intimacy for Christian couples, learn how to deepen sexual pleasure and enjoy God’s gift of sexual intimacy with your spouse.
It can be difficult to find biblically based sexual advice. A licensed psychologist and family therapist, Dr. Douglas Rosenau answers specific and often unasked questions about sexual topics, presenting married couples with detailed techniques and skills to deepen their sexual pleasure and improve their marriages.
In this easy-to-read guide, Dr. Rosenau covers topics including:
Building a biblical foundation of knowledge about sexual intimacy
Enhancing pleasure and enjoying passionate intimacy
Overcoming common hurdles
Resolving problems and healing brokenness
Grounded in Scripture and written by a pioneer of Christian sex therapy, A Celebration of Sex is comprehensive, direct, and honest, treating sex with the respect it deserves and a Christ-like foundation. An excellent tool for premarital education and counseling, it’s a must-read for Christian spouses.
It can be difficult to find biblically based sexual advice. A licensed psychologist and family therapist, Dr. Douglas Rosenau answers specific and often unasked questions about sexual topics, presenting married couples with detailed techniques and skills to deepen their sexual pleasure and improve their marriages.
In this easy-to-read guide, Dr. Rosenau covers topics including:
Building a biblical foundation of knowledge about sexual intimacy
Enhancing pleasure and enjoying passionate intimacy
Overcoming common hurdles
Resolving problems and healing brokenness
Grounded in Scripture and written by a pioneer of Christian sex therapy, A Celebration of Sex is comprehensive, direct, and honest, treating sex with the respect it deserves and a Christ-like foundation. An excellent tool for premarital education and counseling, it’s a must-read for Christian spouses.
416 pages, Paperback
First published December 2, 1993
33 people are currently reading
507 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
March 20, 2021
As a Christian marriage counselor, I highly recommend this book to all lay leaders and pastors. This is by far one of the best books I’ve read on a healthy theology of sex/sexuality (and I’ve read many!), and offers practical solutions for improving sex life. This will easily be a strong resource guide that I will be offering many of my patients for many years to come!
April 27, 2021
Depending on what you're looking for, this book may be what you need. If you're coming from a conservative evangelical Christian background and have had limited honest discussions around sex for married people, this could be a helpful resource for you. If you are looking for information that is inclusive of other experiences, you will most likely be frustrated with its content. The edition I read was published long before the Marriage Equality act was passed so there is no discussion of gay marriage, and the overall perspective is from a complementarian/patriarchal view of gender roles and marriage. I found the wording in several parts to be demeaning to women; it is a product of its time and mindset.
February 26, 2008
The best Christian sex book out there written by a licensed psychologist/Christian sex therapist. This book is written for the mutual benefit of both wife and husband. It takes a very comprehensive and holistic approach, includes the spiritual elements as well as practical techniques and everything you can think of and some things you might not have even thought of. I highly recommend this to every married couple and to the engaged couple -- about one month before their wedding.
March 24, 2018
I’m just going to be honest. I hated this book. It was difficult for me to read and endure. If it had not been required for a class, I would have put it down after the first few chapters. The book had some redeeming qualities. But I just did not enjoy it. Perhaps the reason was I was already disappointed in much of the content of the class I took that required it. I will try it again at a later date and see if it is differentZ but for now. I don’t like it.
January 29, 2008
A must of newly-weds!!!
January 2, 2012
Great reference - writing is pretty easy to follow, not too clinical.
May 28, 2011
Practical and straight forward explanations. And pictures. Haha.
February 28, 2012
Best book on intimacy I have ever read. Was an aid in changing my life and leading my husband and I to hope.
May 4, 2020
Great book for newly married couples and older couples that are remarrying. I actually learned something!
January 12, 2015
An excellent book that I would highly recommend for engaged couples to work through or even newly married couples to use.
November 11, 2015
A great theology of intimacy in sex and marriage from a biblical perspective. I would recommend to any young or old couple wishing to have a deeper intimacy with their spouse.
February 24, 2019
This book is an Excellent resource for anyone looking for something to help you develop a godly perspective and understanding of sex. It covers nearly every topic imaginable in a candid, in-depth, and very respectful way. I would highly recommend it to any married (or VERY soon to be married) couple!
Favorite Quote: “Many of you reading this section who already have children are saying, ‘Who cares about a Great sex life - how about any at all, or even a mediocre sex life?’… Many things that you once took for granted may now be much more difficult to have in your life. One of these things is time alone - time to pray, take a walk, and regain your perspective; time to read; even time to go to the bathroom. Your children will often be with you, and it can become quite a task to plan your errands and grocery shopping around a nursing schedule, naps, and potty breaks. Then preteen and teens become constant disruptions with their active coming and going. But the difficulties and frustrations are good things. They are what life is really made of. They cause our spiritual weaknesses to surface and challenge us to grow and mature in love. Remember that this is only for a season of life. One day you will reap the fruit of having been there to mold their frustration into patience or their unkind response into an apology. Once your children are grown you will never again have the same impact you have on them in this stage… Being great parents and growing a fun love life will take mature choices and much self-discipline. The cornerstone of these children years is indeed maturity, but what an awesome reward grows out of this process.”
Favorite Quote: “Many of you reading this section who already have children are saying, ‘Who cares about a Great sex life - how about any at all, or even a mediocre sex life?’… Many things that you once took for granted may now be much more difficult to have in your life. One of these things is time alone - time to pray, take a walk, and regain your perspective; time to read; even time to go to the bathroom. Your children will often be with you, and it can become quite a task to plan your errands and grocery shopping around a nursing schedule, naps, and potty breaks. Then preteen and teens become constant disruptions with their active coming and going. But the difficulties and frustrations are good things. They are what life is really made of. They cause our spiritual weaknesses to surface and challenge us to grow and mature in love. Remember that this is only for a season of life. One day you will reap the fruit of having been there to mold their frustration into patience or their unkind response into an apology. Once your children are grown you will never again have the same impact you have on them in this stage… Being great parents and growing a fun love life will take mature choices and much self-discipline. The cornerstone of these children years is indeed maturity, but what an awesome reward grows out of this process.”
February 25, 2023
Plenty of sound material, the strongest theme being that erotic love between husband and wife is more than just intercourse. However, as the book bounces from topic to topic it gets noticeably drier. This is in part because the latter chapters are not as in-depth and thus seem to exist only to prop up professional psychology, psychotherapy and counseling. It is also in part because the author noticeably repeats himself.
July 18, 2012
Hands down the best book I've read about sex, sexuality, and marriage/relationships. Of course he talks about techniques, but he emphasizes the importance of creating an intimate and committed relationship that is simply enhanced by the techniques and tips he offers. Very practical and, perhaps more importantly, deals with the realities of sex and the realities of life. I would definitely recommend it to any married couple regardless of the state of your marriage.
April 6, 2021
This book is very practical in terms of it's advice on developing sexual intimacy and it is sprinkled with a number of Biblical principles. However, the book is what it says it is. It is moreso a guide, and might be helpful to be read through with a spouse in order to take full advantage of the content. The book does lack in some areas of biblical interpretation and application.
November 21, 2017
While not endorsing everything in this book, it is very good and quite comprehensive guide to love-making. Christians have a corner on the wonder of marriage and ought to enjoy this mystery more.
February 8, 2017
Having a strong, Christian faith will flourish any marriage with these Sex Tips. It explains how to connect on a more intimate level when two become one flesh.
February 17, 2025
If you grew up in an environment where sex was considered dirty and shame filled; this book will help you overcome the religiously imposed dogma foundational to evangelicalism. It celebrates sex if you identify as straight and Christian. But as someone who is straight and Christian our homies in the LGBT community were left out. Woman’s sexual agency was ignored. Fun non vanilla sex is ignored. Needless to say the book hasn’t aged well. I believe the author means well but hasn’t bothered to really engage or update to the real modern world. I struggled to get through this book let alone finish it. It’s a shame because people have sex in different ways and this could have been a really inclusive book free of criticism. Anyway I cannot in good faith suggest this book to most people.
September 5, 2018
That awkward moment when you admit to reading a book about sex and post a review of it for the public to see. I'm not on board with everything prescribed inside (i.e., squirt guns), but generally this is a good text on the subject that is both practical and still honoring the marital bed God established.
March 31, 2023
This author cherry picked bible verses and applied them in ways so far out of context that in my mind he disqualified himself as a legit expert on either Christianity or sex. Because it was a bookclub pick, I slogged through the first 7 chapters of repetitive, ridiculous rhetoric. At that point, I thought 'he cherry picks, so will I.' So I skipped around and tried a few chapters that I thought might be interesting. Nope. Nada. Nothing.
October 20, 2022
This is a book I frequently recommend to my clients. Rosenau does a beautiful job of combining anatomy/scientific understanding with the Biblical narrative and design for sex. I would recommend this be the go to book for premarital counselors to give out.
November 20, 2021
Helpful and encouraging but very repetitive.
March 7, 2022
Very comprehensive. A good read aimed at monogamous married couples. Bible based teaching on a sensitive, often off-limits subject.
June 13, 2024
Pretty basic. Didn't really ask me deeper questions or take me anywhere new.
August 26, 2016
Read the Ebook version, very interesting, especially enjoyed the first few chapters which go through what the bible says about marriage. A good reference book to dip in and out of.
June 8, 2020
Rosenau is helpfully clear and practical on married sexual topics while never slipping into crass humor. Would recommend to any husband and wife who are looking to grow in their sexual relationship.
March 15, 2010
Great book. Touches on so any important topics of all sorts.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews