I’ve just reviewed Todd Wilson’s Mere Sexuality: Rediscovering the Christian Vision of Sexuality for the Gospel Coalition website.

I think Wilson’s attempt to provide an account of “mere sexuality” suffers on account of his taking current debates about homosexuality as the implicit foil of his discussion. His laudable concern to respond to the needs of those struggling with same-sex attraction often distracts him from the task of presenting the full-bodied positive account of mere sexuality he initially sets out to provide.

While he discusses same-sex attracted persons extensively, Wilson says relatively little on topics such as the rise and spread of extreme pornography, the sexualization of the entertainment industry, premarital sex, the hook-up culture, manliness and womanliness, being a husband or a wife, motherhood and fatherhood, infertility and childlessness, the gender neutralization of society, and so on, which are far more pressing personal concerns for most Christians pursuing something resembling “mere sexuality,” even though they may not be as prominent apologetically.

Despite such disappointments, Wilson’s book is a worthwhile one, with much to commend it. Its fundamental emphases are well placed, and Wilson speaks with compelling clarity and grace where it matters most.

Read the whole review here.