Wednesday Book Review

I am going to start reviewing a book every Wednesday. I read so much, therefore there is never a shortage of things to review. I feel very strongly however, that I have to start with a book that I really do not like very much, but feel compelled to give my opinion. I have to say, that I don't feel like I have adequate proofs for my opinion, mostly just discernment kicking in. I will edit and even admit to being WRONG if I find sufficient proof in favor of this book. In fact, since it is all the rage among many Christians right now, I hope I am wrong, but I truly don't think so, otherwise I would not write this post.

I picked up a copy of The Shack several months ago at my local Christian Book Store. I had never heard of it, but they had stacks of it by the register. I asked the cashier about it and he said that he had not read it, but many of the employees had loved it. Being the reader I am, I picked it up. I read it, and I felt a check in my spirit many, many times during the course of the book - but, I read it through to the end. Then, I began to ask people if they had heard of it. Everyone said no. All of a sudden, in the past few weeks, I see this book advertised everywhere - every message board I participate in is buzzing about it, many people have asked me what I think of it, and I see quotes popping up on my friends' facebooks from this book. I got the book out again, and began to read it through a little more slowly, thinking as I read a little bit deeper....I am still very troubled in my spirit about this book.

First of all, the book was written by an amateur writer. That is ok, I am also an amateur writer and the author never tried to deceive anyone into thinking he was a professional. However, first of all, I believe that it is wrong to write a book that puts direct quotes into the mouth of God that you did not find in Scripture and this book is full of what God supposedly said. I realize that this is a work of fiction, but many, many people are taking this book as almost gospel - as evidenced by the discussions I have read on many message boards. Mr. Young obviously feels comfortable putting words into God's mouth and at the very least, he should have had the book reviewed and edited by experienced writers, not to mention Christian theologians. I was very disappointed to see the endorsements for this book by people like Michael W Smith and Eugene Peterson - one even comparing it to Pilgrim's Progress. This book is NOT Pilgrim's Progress, of that, at least, I am VERY sure!

Anyway, as I said, I don't feel totally comfortable with my proofs against this book, and I will readily admit I am wrong if something proves that I am, however, with so many people engrossed in this book right now, I just feel the need to exhort from Scripture, anyone who is reading my blog.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 says this, and I think it is very applicable to this book. "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."

People today are proving in more ways than one that they are willing to be led by whoever says what they want to hear. This should not surprise us, the Bible predicts it - it even says in Mark 13:22 that "false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect." A false Christ is anyone who speaks against the Word of God. This book has enough semblance of truth in it and it is a heart wrenching story, I do not deny that. All of that is more reason to be wary of it. Many, many false religions have some semblance of truth in them. This is because satan never created anything! God is the only one who can create. Satan simply takes the good things that God created and twists them into something evil. He is not original at all.

Let me give you some of the direct quotes that make me very uncomfortable and I will give you the Scripture that I believe proves them false. In the book, the main characher is Mack, and "God" appears to him as a fat, black woman - someone you just want to snuggle up with. I picture Mammy from Gone with the Wind. Sorry, but that is what I picture. Here is the quote when he meets her. "Mackenzie, I am neither male nor female even though both genders are derived from my nature. If I choose to appear to you as a man or a woman, it's because I love you. For me to appear to you as a woman and suggest that you call me Papa is simply to mix metaphors, to help you keep from falling so easily back into your religious conditioning." She leaned forward as if to share a secret. "To reveal myself to you as a very large, white grandfather figure with flowing beard, like Gandalf, would simply reinforce your religious stereotypes, and this weekend is not about reinforcing your religious stereotypes." ---- A little further down it says this, "He believed, in his head at least, that God was a Spirit, neither male nor female, but in spite of that, he was embarrassed to admit to himself that all his visuals for God were very white and very male."

Ok, let me dissect just this portion for you, because the truth is, that a little bit of corruption, corrupts. So, if the theology of this one passage is as false as I believe it is, and as twisted around the truth in a deceptive way, as I believe it is - then, that in itself is enough reason to throw out the whole book!

Here is the first line - "I am neither male nor female, though both genders are derived from my nature." Now, I am no theologian, and I am not very original either, therefore, my proofs will mostly be quotes from other sources - the Bible being the most important. I will agree that both genders are derived from the nature of God. He created us, male and female, in His image. Therefore, the true, undefiled nature of a man and a woman make up all the attributes of God. However, I will not agree that He is neither male nor female - He is a spirit, as we will get to, but He refers to Himself throughout Scripture as our "Heavenly Father" and with the pronoun "He." Here are just a few verses. You can use biblegateway.com and search the rest.

Ephesians 1:3, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ"


Isaiah 46:4 "Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you"

When I used Dictionary.com to be sure that I still know the definition of father, here is what I found - "a male parent." Male, being the operative word!

Moving on....."Papa" then goes on to say that to appear looking like Gandalf would reinforce religious stereotypes. I could write a book in itself about the religious stereotypes of our day and I agree with the author that they are not of God. I agree that many people imagine God with a white flowing beard and standing on top of a mountain holding a staff. I don't know why - but that may more accurately describe Moses receiving the Ten Commandments. However, even Moses, was likely not white as we think of white - though his beard may have been white with age by that point. I do agree that we, especially those of us raised in the South always picture Jesus as a light skinned man with a neat brown beard. Likely, he looked more like Osama Bin Laden. However, we would not want to think of that, would we?

Finally, in the last section I quoted, Mackenzie says that he believes that God is a spirit, but he always pictures him male and white. The Westminster Confession says that "God is a Spirit, infinite and eternal, he has not a body like men." John 4:24 says, "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

So, we know that it is true that God is a spirit, but we have already proven from other Scripture that He calls Himself our Heavenly Father and refers to Himself as a male. As for the color of His skin, we assume because of the area of the country in which Jesus was born and lived, that He probably looked like the other people in that country - which would be what we picture as Middle Eastern. We assume this because Isaiah 53 tells us that He had "no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him." To me this says that if he stood out from everyone else, the Bible would have indicated that He looked somehow different. Instead, it says that He had no physical thing to make us desire Him.

I know this is long, so I am going to stop here. I hope that I have made you curious to read this book with open eyes and a discerning heart, if you choose to read it at all. That is just one section of the book, VERY early on....there are many, many more such references and theological inaccuracies. The really scary part is, they are mixed in with truth and placed inside of a very moving, emotional story that leaves you feeling drained and gasping. There are things in there that if we were honest with God and with ourselves, that we wish were true, but those of us who know Him and love His Word and trust that He is good - know are not. I write this not to bash someone personally, Mr. Young needs our prayers and he has obviously been hurt by the organized church as I do not deny that many, many people have. I could go on and on about my opinion of organized church, but we live in a world full of corruption and we must be aware. We must not get sucked down a road full of danger, because of a moving story. Be alert and be careful!