The Ethics of Sex

Mark D. Jordan's "The Ethics of Sex" is quite an accomplishment. In lucid prose he presents a genealogy of Christian sexual ethics (from the patrisitic fathers to the Reformers to later Protestants) and, in the latter portion of the book, progresses to a discussion of directions to explore in the possibility of redeeming pleasure in Christian sexual ethics. As an undergraduate student unfamiliar to the history of Christian views of sex, I found the genealogy alone very enlightening (even though I felt sick as I learned the genealogy of "orthodoxy"). The concluding portion of the book was excellent as well, coming as a refreshment and source of excitement for contemporary Christian sexual ethics. Jordan seems to know how pick his arguments and points of contention well, so the book feels (at times) breezy and light yet engaging and rigorous. In one sense, however, it therefore has the feel of a more introductory work - which I would argue it is! In all aspects, a highly recommended work.