The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity by William P. Young Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity
Book Review: "Astounded" in a different sense than I had hoped
Summary: 3 Stars
I was given this book with glowing recommendation, and my interest was further aroused by the description on the cover: a book that "wrestles with the timeless question: Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain? The answers Mack gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him."
I love fictional works that WRESTLE with important issues rather than giving cookie-cutter answers like some cheap self-help book. Isn't that the mark of a great novelist? Nathanial Hawthorne, Victor Hugo, Herman Hesse, Mark Twain -- they all WRESTLED with the big questions of life. So I was excited that I was to read a modern book that wrestled with what is perhaps the biggest issue of all for those who believe -- or hope -- in the existence of a God who cares for us.
It started off well enough. Wm. P. Young tried to show the pain of a man who had been abused by a Bible-thumping father and then lost his youngest daughter to a serial killer. Though popular authors like Stephen King do a better job at depicting human pain and tragedy, the story succeeded in pulling me in. I felt for Mack and his "Great Sadness," as the book puts it, and was looking forward to how the author would skillfully weave his thoughts into the storyline.
It didn't happen. Instead, Mack literally gets a letter from God in the mail, goes off to the shack where his daughter had been murdered, and spends a weekend with the Trinity in the form of an African-American Mama, a not-so-handsome Middle-Eastern Jew, and an Asian woman. They talk. The book ceases to be a novel and turns into chapters of Christian teaching packaged creatively, with the Holy Spirit saying things like, "Paradigms power perception and perceptions power emotions."
This is not to say that it is all bad. There are many worthwhile lessons about living in the present, the power of forgiveness, and being freed from legalism. There are also several humorous and delightful moments, but overall I felt that the author bit off more than he could chew. A weekend in direct conversation with the Trinity? Hanging out with God for chapter after chapter? For the best of authors, this would be too much of a challenge to pull off convincingly. There is a reason Aslan says very little in the Chronicles of Narnia -- we would not be convinced by him if he chatted his way through the stories. But this is exactly what we get in "The Shack": God the chatterbox.
Now to the content of the chat with God. I just said that there are many valuable lessons in it, but when it comes to the main theme -- why an all-powerful God who loves us still lords over a chaotic planet filled with unspeakable pain -- the answer did not "astound" me as it did the main character Mack.
What astounded me was that the answer seems to appeal to so many millions of believers. If I did not know about the immense popularity of the book, I'd say that it would appeal neither to strong biblicists who are wary of anything that is not directly mentioned in the Bible, nor to more open-minded Christians who, for example, follow scientific developments and therefore have many questions that the writers of the Bible did not share.
The core of the answer is exactly what we find through a more literal reading of the Bible:
1. The world was absolutely perfect, but a few thousand years ago, Adam and Eve used their God-given freedom for ill and therefore brought all (yes, ALL--Mack is told not to underestimate the power given to humans) the suffering into this world.
2. God respects our freedom too much to prevent all the negative consequences of Adam's choice, but He does turn this earth into a training ground for eternity. "It's only preparation" we read in "The Shack."
3. As for questions of why individual tragedies are or are not prevented by God, the picture is too big for us to understand. What we see as chaos, God sees as fractal, and He is in the process of redemption. All will be well one day. After death.
But how does No. 1 help unless you are a six-day creationist? Even Evangelical Christians who believe in Intelligent Design think that tsunamis, earthquakes, disease, pain, and mutual annihilation preceded human life by several million years. The only way "The Shack" addresses this is to say that, well, Genesis 1-11 is not a myth but did literally happen. I'm not sure open-minded Christians will throw their science overboard as easily as that.
And No. 2 and 3 only help if you have virtually no doubt that the Christian claims are indeed true and that one day, when you're dead, it'll all make sense. But where is the God of the living? What do you do if you're not entirely sure of it? In that case, the reality of suffering weighs more than the unsure comfort that "it is all preparation" and the present suffering will be redeemed.
But not only the open-minded Christian should have a hard time relating to "The Shack," but also the biblicists. The simple-minded doctrines are packaged in a picture of the Trinity that doesn't exactly dominate the Bible. Many biblical depictions of various aspects of God are left out, and what remains is a modern, very (North) American buddy who loves to hang out with us and crack jokes. Culturally relevant? Yes. And I personally even see the value of tailoring the Christian message to a modern audience, especially in a work of fiction. The Christian God did, after all, become a human being, so why not once more step down on the level of people today? But I doubt that it will please the biblicist.
So who are all the millions that find the book not only deeply touching but also completely convincing? The logical part of me says that it must all be six-day creationists who are nevertheless no biblicists.
But maybe most people simply appreciate the book's portrayal of love, forgiveness, and healed relationships. And that, I find appealing, too -- not to mention important to apply in my personal life. Three stars for that.
- Jacob Schriftman, Author of The Crack Beneath the Worlds
Book Review: "Buzz book" or blasphemy?
Summary: 1 Stars
I give this book one star only because there is nothing lower. I agree that it is a "buzz book", but it's only for those who know nothing of Scripture and/or care little about Scriptural accuracy. It's a warm and fuzzy story for those who want a comfortable relationship with God without coming to grips with His absolute rightiousness and His inability to look upon sin. It is only under the covering of the blood of Jesus Christ that "any person will see God" (Heb. 12:14). Paul Young would like the reader to feel good without dealing with the necessity of personal salvation in Jesus Christ. Clearly, the author is an proponent of universalism, so he conveniently fails to bring this requirement into his story. It would apear that in response to God's pronouncement in Genesis that we have been created in "Our" (meaning, of course, the triune God) image, the author has decided to return the favor. The author's "God" ("Papa") speaks, and hence creates new Scripture, coming not from God's mouth but from the author's imagination. As far as I'm concerned, this is blasphemy, pure and simple, and has the potential to mislead many unknowledgeable seekers of the way to God.Book Review: "Christian doctrine is HARD!"
Summary: 2 Stars
Remember the controversial talking Barbie doll that said "Math class is HARD!"? I believe many of the people who flock eagerly to books like The Shack could be thought of as "21st Century Mainline Christian Church Member Dolls", whose catch-phrase might be "Christian doctrine is HARD!".
Yes, it is hard. It requires the commitment to read Scripture; to engage in Bible studies with other Christians; to become familiar with the teachings of the historic confessional documents. For many, that's just too much work. Far better to read a slender volume of fiction and attempt to glean from it deep truths that can be easily grasped in the context of an entertaining story.
Never mind that the "truths" may be in conflict with Christian orthodoxy. The key is that one is freed from the need to read the Bible, go to church and church school, etc. Christian doctrine is hard! But The Shack is easy. Your choice.
Book Review: "Did I hear God call me an idiot?"
Summary: 1 Stars
I have learned to be leery when a book is gifted to me with a broad beaming smile and the coo, "This book changed my life - and I want you to read it." I handle it delicately - knowing it is likely to blow up in my face. A few such books have had amazing impacts ["Life of Pi" for example]. However, too often (SHACK being one of them), the book is derivative and deliberate in its efforts. SHACK sets off in this manner. The narrator/author demures that he will be a silent witness - but steers the narrative constantly to cinematic details that the main character is not observing ["Unnoticed by Mack, the room lightened..."] Willie is an overbearing Uncle Remus. The revelation of God as a sassy trio of women smacks of "Steel Magnolias". That's right, honey. The unfolding of book's messages and ultimate miracles and the teasing out of the books "secrets" which really are pretty basic and very obvious and were mostly anticipated and decoded by page 25 just compounds the books issues. Re-editing and a better comprehension of base concepts [how do you get Pandora's Box wrong?] - a severe reduction of overwrought similes/metaphors ["a significant lump had already formed, emerging like a humpbacked whale breaching the wild waves of his thinning hair." - Egads!]. Back to the cinematic drivel: there's even a page of "push" at the rear of the book to send the numbers in publication high enough to get a film producer to pick this one up for production. Well, who saw that one coming? So - our Mack is right when warning the reader that the story "wasn't primarily written for you." The message that might easily be overlooked: a pearl is both a layered gem and lacquered excrement.Book Review: "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked." Galatians 6:7
Summary: 1 Stars
I am a follower of the one, true and living Jesus Christ of the Bible. This book is completely full of fallacy as the author "imagines" the truths about God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. If you want to know Jesus, the Savior, then read the Bible. This book will lie to you deceiving you all the way down the path of destruction. Hmmmmm? Sounds like the serpent at work here to steal, kill, and destroy. All you Christians...read it and discern against the Word of God then let's proclaim to the world the truth about the dangers of this book. Amen