The Shack

For my book club a couple of month ago, we read "The Shack" by WM. Paul Young. I took my time reading this work of fiction as the message was so powerful and thought-provoking and honestly stirred something up in me that for a long time I have tried to make sense off. This Christian novel tells the story of a man, Mack, who spends a weekend in an old shack with the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit (the Trinity) after a horrific tragedy impacted his life. The bulk of the book narrates the conversations Mack has with each of the personifications of the Trinity and how the protagonist comes to terms about his daughter's death and his relationship with God. "In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant, The Shack wrestles with the timeless question, "Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?". The answers Mack gets astounded me and not only transformed him but penetrated my heart deeply and  impacted my way of thinking about God, my life and what relationship I want to have with him. (www.amazon.com)

While reading some reviews online, I found out that there are a few people out there that did not like the book due to it's theological implications. However, as I understood it, the book should not be viewed as a "doctrinal treatise" but rather as a parable. It is not written to recite the bible (that's what the bible is for) but to help us understand what the attributes of God described in the Bible mean and how He and the Holy Trinity work. The book definitely altered my thinking of who He is and who I am in His eyes and why it is so easy to forsake Him.

According to the author, the title of the book is a metaphor for "the house you build out of your pain... for the places you get stuck, you get hurt, you get damaged..the thing where shame or hurt is centered." It is written to help one heal and tackle tough situations and confront them before God. But mostly, it delivers a powerful message about forgiveness and why we should seek God.

After reading the book, our book club met up to watch the newly released movie (they did a good job of staying close to the book) and then discussed both. While this book is not written to convert people or teach the Bible, it does discuss very powerful questions about our belief systems and what it means to love, to trust (my word of the year is Trust) in Him and to let go. Reading this book was a very moving experience for me and I highly recommend it. I totally understand that there are many other views about the book, especially among Christians as they cite that it has no biblical groundings, it's heretical, and it's overall message about mercy. But for me it was inspiring and the story told made sense to me and enlightened me how everything fits into God's plan. I was able to get a personal image of God and use that to create a closer relationship with Him. As I mentioned before, it is a work of fiction and everyone can choose what they want to believe in and it is up to each of us how to interpret things. This book just guides us along in the never-ending question of who we are as a human being, what we can contribute to society and what God means to each of us.