How REAL is too REAL when it comes to marriage?

     I applaud most things Mark Driscoll does since I had been introduced to him about two years ago (although I don't agree with his emphasis on everything). However, with the release of his new book, Real Marriage: The Truth about Sex, Friendship, & Life Together, there appears to be some controversy stirring.

     Tim Chailles, uber blogger and lover of Jesus and His church, writes a very biting review of this much publicized new release. His conclusion is:

Having read the book through two times, I’ve found myself wondering how to best measure or evaluate it, but perhaps these criteria are useful: Would I want to read it with my wife or would I encourage her to read it on her own? Would I recommend it to the people in my church? In both cases the answer is no. This is not to say that the book is entirely without merit; Real Marriage does have things to commend it. But in my assessment the negatives far outweigh the positives. Its disjointed nature, the way it is unhinged from the gospel, the way it evaluates sexual acts through an improper grid—in all these ways and more it inadvertently lowers marriage rather than elevates it. With so many good books on marriage available to us, I see no reason to recommend this one.

     Driscoll's take on the Song of Solomon has been controversial for years but I have been refreshed, encouraged, and helped by many of his messages regarding the role of men and women in the church which is founded from their roles in the home. If Chailles' review is accurate, this will be a terrible disappointment for me and others I assume.

     Read the whole review here. But make sure to read the book for yourself, be challenged, and decide!