It almost sounded too good to be true… Those who worked in the sex-trafficking arena and dealing with people trapped in addictive behaviors were saying it was working. People were finally starting to get some breakthrough.
To be honest, I was excited when I first saw it. I saw a glimmer of hope. Only hope, because, while what they were presenting on the outside was certainly some good language towards some of the deeper things of looking at the heart, I also know the trickery of modern moves of Christianity.
So I gave it a look. I watched all the promotional videos. I searched for more information on the subject. And, eventually, I bought the book, Feels Like Redemption, by Seth Alan Taylor (http://www.sethalantaylor.com/). And this is the text of the 1* review I left on Amazon after reading the first few chapters (I did eventually continue on in the book, but it didn’t actually improve).
Good Principle, Absolutely Wrong Book – Heresy
I was excited about this book, because XXX Church lauded it, and proclaimed the hope that was in my heart– that you can be free from sexual addiction without an ongoing battle for the rest of your life. Real and lasting victory without fear! This is what I had hoped this book would be, but it is not. Instead, while it may contain some things that might help some on this path, it is about the author’s personal angst with and departure from the church and all “orthodoxy,” such as what the Bible says about salvation, sin, righteousness, Christ’s sacrifice, and eternal punishment.
From the forward, where Mr. Gross participates in “Hawaiian chanting” in a “spiritual retreat” in Alaska, to the introduction where Seth Taylor wraps up his opening thoughts with the statement, “I do not think one’s beliefs regarding Jesus are the determining factor as to whether they can be transformed by the Spirit of God or not,” this is anything but a “Christian” book. Seth states his belief at the end of chapter one, saying, “Divine nature is inside of us all, if only we are willing to do the work of chipping away at the stone.” This is humanistic to its core and is the same New Age nonsense that is being broadcast through mainstream media all over the place. And while it isn’t clear if he intends this to indicate non-Christians as well, if he does, it is the same historical Pelagian heresy from centuries ago that all are “good.”
The premise of Craig Gross’s reasoning for supporting this book may be sound: “[M]any people don’t actually struggle with PORN but rather USE porn as a means to cover up some deeper hurt or wound” (from his January 16, 2016 blog article). However, this book is a mouthpiece for Seth Taylor to bad-mouth the faith, talk people out of their convictions, and lead them down the path of gauging the truth of something based upon personal “experience” rather than the Word of God. The fact that this book is endorsed by Rob Bell should have been the first clue, but I somehow missed that while starting in.
There are godly resources out there that can help people get maintenance-free victory from sexual addiction. This is not one of them.