Q: Is the book, The Shack, Christian? What does it teach about God? Should I read it?
This is easily the question which I
have been asked more often than any other during the past year. This popularity to which this book has soared
seems to be surpassed only by the size of the controversy surrounding it. The
Shack was authored by William Paul Young as a way for him to pass on his
understanding of spiritual things to his children. At the urging of a few friends, he
self-published the book in 2007, and has since sold several million copies.
The events of the book are that Mack,
the main character experiences a tragic event in his life, following which he
is invited and travels to the “shack” which was the scene of the crime, where
he meets God, who is portrayed as a large African-American woman (intended to
represent God the Father), a young Middle-eastern man (intended to represent
Jesus), and a young Asian girl (intended to represent the Holy Spirit).
Because of the news I had already
heard about the book, I knew this unorthodox portrayal of God was coming before
I started to read, but I was willing to look further to see what the author had
to say before giving up on the book entirely.
Now, before going further, I must say
that the evaluation which follows is necessarily very brief, and therefore
incomplete. Readers who desire a more
thorough look at The Shack may find
my in-depth evaluation at http://www.LutheranReformission.com.
To begin, there are some details
which The Shack initially gets
correct as it attempts to describe God and reconcile the idea of a caring God
with the suffering and tragedy which afflict the world. Early on, the book does acknowledge that
there is one God in three persons, as well as acknowledging the fact that Jesus
is both fully God and fully human. These
facts are in agreement with the Bible and historic Christian teachings. There are also many isolated quotes from the
book, which seem to be refreshingly Christian in a time where much of Christian
literature could more properly be called self-help than theology.
However, as the book begins to deepen
its description of God, it factually denies the teachings it first
affirmed. Instead of the Trinity
described in the Bible, The Shack
actually teaches a concept called Modalism or Sabellianism, which has been rejected by
Christians as false for more than 1700 years.
It also gets Jesus wrong in regard to both his identity and mission, and
it undermines the truthfulness and authority of the Bible.
In addition to Jesus and the Trinity,
there are also serious discrepancies between The Shack and the Bible in their views of government, authority,
creation, God’s law, divine revelation, knowledge of God, sin, grace, vocation,
and the Church.
The Shack is
often sold as Christian literature, but is its view of God Christian? According to its vision of the Trinity and
Jesus, it is not. Is its author a
Christian? Perhaps, but if so, he is a
seriously misguided one. Should you read
it? That depends…
For the mature Christian
who is strongly rooted in the Bible’s teachings, reading this book with the
careful understanding that it is not an accurate portrayal of the true God will
not do any harm. In fact, since so many people
are reading it already, I would urge mature Christians to be knowledgeable
enough about this book that they can help guide others around its pitfalls. On the other hand, for those who are young,
new to Christianity, or not already well-grounded in the teachings of the Bible,
this book should would not be a wise thing to read, because it will only serve to obscure, rather than reveal, the
real truth about God.
The shack is an interesting read, and
it does have the potential to make the reader feel good. Many have even found great comfort in its
message. Unfortunately, it is a
misleading comfort because The Shack
depicts a different god than that of the Bible and historic Christianity and
leads readers away from the true comfort which flows from the death and
resurrection of Jesus.
