July 26, 2006

MINNEAPOLIS – The book of God is also a book of people. Love and lust, devotion and betrayal, sex, sin, jealousy, and grief – the stories of biblical couples disclose a full panorama of human emotions and actions.

In the newly-released Great Couples of the Bible from Fortress Press, these stories of love, marriage, sex, and death, historically fascinating and yet also wellsprings of great artistic traditions and religious meaning, are presented in an informative and engaging format with more than 200 full-color illustrations from classic, chiefly Western art sources.

Distinguished scholars discuss not only the biblical legends and their history but also how they have animated subsequent religious, artistic, and literary achievements. In image and text we glimpse the lure and power, the pain and purpose, of human love.

From the tenderness of Rachel and Jacob's first meeting to David's scheming to get Bathsheba, from Sarah's faithful hope to Judith's bold murder of Holofernes, the timeless stories of the Hebrew Bible reveal the awesome complexity of men's and women's relationships. This lavishly illustrated book, sure to be appreciated by all, relates these stories in all their complexity within the larger biblical story of human interaction with the divine.

Some of the couples explored are: Adam and Eve, Jacob and Leah and Rachel, Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, Tobias and Sara, Amnon and Tamar, Judith and Holofernes, Joseph and Potiphar's wife, Ruth and Boaz, Abraham and Hagar, Moses and Zipporah, Ahab and Isabel, and more.

"In the biblical stories that are the substance of this book, we celebrate the struggles of women and men to love, and we find time and again the intimate connection between erotic and divine love." – Dorothee Soelle

This volume will suit readers of all backgrounds and is ideal for couples of all ages and stages in life.

Great Couples of the Bible, By Herbert Haag, Dorothee Soelle, Helen Schungel-Straumann, Christoph Wetzel, Katharina Elliger, Marianne Grohmann. Translated by Brian McNeil, Format: 5.5" x 11," sewn hardcover with jacket, 192 pp, ISBN: 0-8006-3831-X, Price: $29.00, Publisher: Fortress Press, Rights: World English.

To order Great Couples of the Bible please call Fortress Press at 1-800-328-4648 or visit the Web site at http://www.fortresspress.com/.

Fortress Press