The Shack

I was sitting on an old wooden porch this past summer - book in hand - every so often glancing up at the quiet lake in front of me. Every so often a boat would race by, usually towing some kids on tubes or ski's. Company arrived for lunch - a pastor and his wife who now minister in the Southern U.S. We got to talking, and since I was in the middle of a book, the pastor asked if I had read The Shack. The what? The Shack, he repeated, it's taking the country by storm! Now this sounds interesting...

He explained the premise of the book, and I was intrigued. He raved about it; it's a work of fiction to be sure, but contains a large dose of theology, set in a fictional story. Okay, let's give it a read. I picked it up at a local bookseller and dug in. It didn't take long to get drawn in to the storyline...

I put the book down. Finished. Good book - engaging, thought provoking and, at times, powerful and emotional. To be honest, I enjoyed the book very much and I would say that it challenged me to look at God in a slightly different way.

I was then sent a review by a friend. The review is by Gary Gilley, and the review is linked here. Initially I wanted to refute much of his review. For some reason, I didn't like the way Gilley critiqued the book and thought he was biased. Looking back, I think I was put off by a statement made early in the review:

Young’s message centers on the Trinity and salvation, but before we tackle Young’s main objective it is significant that he has a couple of axes to grind concerning the Bible and the church.

To be honest, that kind of irked me. How does he know? Although the main character seems to be upset with the local church, that doesn't necessarily mean that the author shares that view - after all, we can't assume that the author is always projecting into his/her writings!

I was challenged by my friend, and hopped on the net to do some research. I turned to the page the most might think to look up first - Wikipedia. That thing knows everything (not really, but you know what I mean...). I looked up the author and found the page. Hmm. Funny thing... Mr. Young no longer attends church; looks like he might have an ax or two to grind after all.

Anyway, now I'm in research mode. I'm still somewhat annoyed with Gilley's review, and I protest to my friend. In fact, I started writing a blog entry about it. Then my friend passed on another link to me. Tim Challies. Who in the world...

Anyway, turns out Challies churns out some pretty good book reviews and wrote a long one on The Shack. I'll link it here - and it's worth reading! You're able to download the .pdf file a read it (save a tree will ya?), or print it out...

I won't go into a full review of the book - Challies does a much better job than I, and I'll encourage you to point your mouse that way.

So where do I stand now? Well... after much consideration, I think that The Shack is an engaging novel which I found challenging and eye-opening, but further than that, I think The Shack could be quite dangerous. For seekers and new-believers, this book has the potential to warp their view of God and the trinity. Indeed, as I read with my guard down, I was susceptible to what some theologians blatantly call heresy! I think that much discernment is needed when reading this book, and we need to consider the implication of Young's theology.

Sometimes these kind of ideas sound good when you first read them - especially when they are presented in such a personal/relational story like The Shack, but when you consider the implications of those ideas - you realize that they won't fit with your theological cornerstones. That's what happened for me, anyways.

I must admit, because the book was written by a Pastor (and a respected one at that - not some random crack-pot rev), my guard was down. I don't think The Shack is without merit and I think there are some valid points that challenge and encourage relationship with God, especially for people who feel far from Him, but I do worry that this book could have a damaging effect on many.

Read The Shack, but with much discernment. Read the reviews... Read the blogs (just google "The Shack" and "Blog", you'll get zillions of pages). Compare all the ideas with Scripture - think it through.

For those YouTubers - here's Mark Driscoll (Mars Hill Church - Seattle) talking about The Shack, and here's the author himself on the 700 Club. Last one - here - he talks in Atlanta and describes his past (and his book).

I welcome some feedback - either in the comment section or privately - this has sure been a hot topic that has generated a lot of thought, argument and discussion.

(And I should give a 'shout out' to the friend I mentioned. If you're reading this, you know who you are, and I'm grateful for your insight, weblinks, and personal challenge. You gave me a lot to think about, and I appreciate it. Thanks).