On Sexuality in Martha's Vine by Sheree Zielke
I FOLLOW A WILD God, a passionate God—a God who responds in an extreme and passionate way. I worship a God who embraces the coming together of men and women (have you read Genesis?), and a God who embraces the notion of sex. Heck, he created it.
I am a Christian—born again, and adult-baptized. I am also a passionate woman, a creative writer, and—as an ex-crime reporter and mystery theatre producer—I am an ardent fan of details--all the details. Sex is just another detail—more titillating than most, to be sure—but still, just a detail.
As one of my colleagues pointed out, I detailed everything else in this novel, from childbirth to the destruction of a kitten, so why wouldn’t I detail physical expressions between a man and a woman, too? It naturally followed then that sex would be included as a necessary detail in my character’s lives; especially in Martha’s life.
However, I must admit, the writing of the sexual content in Martha’s Vine surprised me. What I thought was going to be a middle-of-the-road Christian romance novel, took a turn. I followed the bend in the road to see where it went.
Not at all what I had initially planned. Not at all.
Something interesting happens when you write a story filled with characters rich in human emotions. If you have infused them with enough of your own life’s energy, they begin to take on energies of their own; they begin to make their own decisions; begin to tell their own story.
That is exactly what happened in Martha’s Vine.
I wrestled with the sexual content in Martha’s Vine; I even tried to cut some of the details, but it felt like attempted murder; I couldn’t do it.
I prayed and sought the counsel of friends—both Christian and non-Christian—but the answer always came back the same:
Leave the novel as is. Don’t change it. Publish it. And then leave it to God.
Nevertheless, the decision to print Martha’s Vine intact with its sexuality remained a tough choice. Very tough.
Because of what people might think.
So… I continued to think it through . . . .
Does my God embrace a wild abandonment to sexuality? No, that’s why He also created love. My God hates promiscuous activity (see Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis 19).
But He is very much a fan of the passions between a man and a woman. He could have left well enough alone when he created Adam, but he knew that man needed more—so he created Eve. To love…and to make love to Adam. My God also knows those passions sometimes extend beyond the marriage boundaries—they have since time began. Otherwise, there would be no Seventh Commandment: You shall not commit adultery.
I could see unexpected, unplanned, incorrect loves occurring very easily in Martha’s world—a world in chaos where the human instinct is to grab hold and to love—deeply and with passion, in an effort to escape the confusion. Regardless of right or wrong.
I like novels, and I have read my fair share of Christian novels, but their characters have always struck me as so contrived, so one-dimensional, so pious, and so holier than thou. Not like people in real life—not at all. At least not like the people I know. That includes my saved Christian friends. I wanted the characters in Martha’s Vine to be real, complete with all the gory details. So, the sexual details were a must.
As to the swearing…. What?—Christians don’t swear? Like heck, they don’t. Especially in their minds. Just another detail.
As a contemporary writer, I see sex as part of life—part of my life—and certainly part of Martha’s life. Therefore, it must be part of this novel.
God created sex; he included sex in the Bible. Song of Songs is one of the hottest reads in the Bible. If sex is good enough for Him, then it is good enough for me.
Martha’s Vine is a very violent book. Martha’s vine is a very passionate book.
But then--
So is… the Bible.
There is a favorite saying among evangelistic Christians:
Let go, and let God.
It feels like good advice.
I am a Christian—born again, and adult-baptized. I am also a passionate woman, a creative writer, and—as an ex-crime reporter and mystery theatre producer—I am an ardent fan of details--all the details. Sex is just another detail—more titillating than most, to be sure—but still, just a detail.
As one of my colleagues pointed out, I detailed everything else in this novel, from childbirth to the destruction of a kitten, so why wouldn’t I detail physical expressions between a man and a woman, too? It naturally followed then that sex would be included as a necessary detail in my character’s lives; especially in Martha’s life.
However, I must admit, the writing of the sexual content in Martha’s Vine surprised me. What I thought was going to be a middle-of-the-road Christian romance novel, took a turn. I followed the bend in the road to see where it went.
Not at all what I had initially planned. Not at all.
Something interesting happens when you write a story filled with characters rich in human emotions. If you have infused them with enough of your own life’s energy, they begin to take on energies of their own; they begin to make their own decisions; begin to tell their own story.
That is exactly what happened in Martha’s Vine.
I wrestled with the sexual content in Martha’s Vine; I even tried to cut some of the details, but it felt like attempted murder; I couldn’t do it.
I prayed and sought the counsel of friends—both Christian and non-Christian—but the answer always came back the same:
Leave the novel as is. Don’t change it. Publish it. And then leave it to God.
Nevertheless, the decision to print Martha’s Vine intact with its sexuality remained a tough choice. Very tough.
Because of what people might think.
So… I continued to think it through . . . .
Does my God embrace a wild abandonment to sexuality? No, that’s why He also created love. My God hates promiscuous activity (see Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis 19).
But He is very much a fan of the passions between a man and a woman. He could have left well enough alone when he created Adam, but he knew that man needed more—so he created Eve. To love…and to make love to Adam. My God also knows those passions sometimes extend beyond the marriage boundaries—they have since time began. Otherwise, there would be no Seventh Commandment: You shall not commit adultery.
I could see unexpected, unplanned, incorrect loves occurring very easily in Martha’s world—a world in chaos where the human instinct is to grab hold and to love—deeply and with passion, in an effort to escape the confusion. Regardless of right or wrong.
I like novels, and I have read my fair share of Christian novels, but their characters have always struck me as so contrived, so one-dimensional, so pious, and so holier than thou. Not like people in real life—not at all. At least not like the people I know. That includes my saved Christian friends. I wanted the characters in Martha’s Vine to be real, complete with all the gory details. So, the sexual details were a must.
As to the swearing…. What?—Christians don’t swear? Like heck, they don’t. Especially in their minds. Just another detail.
As a contemporary writer, I see sex as part of life—part of my life—and certainly part of Martha’s life. Therefore, it must be part of this novel.
God created sex; he included sex in the Bible. Song of Songs is one of the hottest reads in the Bible. If sex is good enough for Him, then it is good enough for me.
Martha’s Vine is a very violent book. Martha’s vine is a very passionate book.
But then--
So is… the Bible.
There is a favorite saying among evangelistic Christians:
Let go, and let God.
It feels like good advice.
