The Sacred Fire: the Story of Sex in Religion

New York: Horace Liveright. Good+. 1930. 1st. Hardcover. Gutters starting. Slightly bumped corners and edgewear to top and bottom of spine. ; Signed by the author on the front free endpaper, slightly blurred. "This book records the story of the relief man found in religion from the sexual suppressions. It tells of primitive sacred love and its gross sexual orgiastic rites; of the sacred love of classical times, in the temples of Baal, Aphrodite, Moloch, and Dionysos; of the refinement of this sexual love in religion through the spiritual love of the early Christians and in the highly aesthetic symbolism in word and image, of modern religion, which is erotic nevertheless. It tells of the place of love and sex in the religions of today, and of its peculiar decadent form in the esoteric sects of all times." [publisher's blurb] "There is a huge amount of academic 19th century literature relating to sacred sexuality. However, there are not many books which cover this subject matter for the general reader: this book is one of the few. Goldberg approaches the culturally sensitive issue of the intersection of religion and sex frankly and in some depth." [sacred-texts.] ; 8vo 8" - 9" tall; 386 pages; Signed by Author .