We received the book The Shack by William P. Young as a gift. My husband and I both read it. I have heard and read MANY conflicting views and opinions about this book. I read fairly quickly through this book, and some of the things people are pointing out I need to go back and read for myself because some I think has been taken out of context.
It's hard to sum up this book in a few sentences. Basically the main character, Mack, faces a terrible family tragedy in the beginning of the story. He meets with God at the shack, which really changes his views and life.
Yes, I enjoyed the story. A couple points stood out to me.
One is the area of judging others. Do we all judge others? I would say yes at some level we do. Are we really qualified to judge? Is this our job? No. But don't we do it anyway? This has left me with much to think about in my own life.
Another point that I'll remember from this book is relationship. Several times in the book it was mentioned that God doesn't want rituals. How much of what we do is a ritual? We really can have so much more when we seek to have a true relationship with Him. Also, it speaks of the relationships we have with others and made me think about my varying levels of interactions with other people.
This is one of those books that I'm not totally sure about. It had many, many good points that made me stop and think. I'm not sure that every single item in the book lines up with the Truth of the Bible though, so that is where the reader must be careful. For people to take it as Truth would be wrong. It needs to be read as fiction. We need to have our foundation as the Bible. Period.
~~~~~~~~
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." Hebrews 4:12, 13
7 comments:
I loved this book, too. So much to walk away and think about. Although, I do agree that you must go into it realizing it is fiction. That doesn't mean it shouldn't be meaningful and thought provoking, though.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Have a great weekend!
I am glad you said that it needs to be read as fiction and that the Bible is our foundation. That is a great point!
My concern is that people who are not grounded in God's Word may not realize this and they might take the book as their foundation.
I've read this book also. I know so many Christians are very vocal in their negative comments about it. It certainly isn't a book about Biblical principles and good theology; it's fiction. I think the problem may come in when a person isn't mature in their understanding of the Bible.
I know many people who come from abusive upbringings and have a hard time seeing God as a loving father. I've read that this author experienced abuse while growing up. I also read that he wrote this book for his family and not intending it to be a best selling book.
Since so many people were talking about it, including many of my non Christian friends, I wanted to read it. This way I could answer their questions and then point them to the book with the true answers ...the Bible.
I read this book a few months ago too. My reaction to it was much the same as yours. It was certainly interesting.
Charlotte
I have read this book more than once. Some parts resonated deeply within me, leaving me much food for thought. Other parts had me saying, "Remember, it's just fiction." I'm secure enough in my own faith and know enough of the Bible to take the meat and leave the rest but it's not one I would recommend to new Christians, ya know? It was a great read, though! I enjoyed your review and wanted to say thanks for your recent comments on my blog. They are precious to me.
Nice review.
I appreciate your review. I wish that more people were grounded in the word so that they could see the problems with fiction (not just this one but others too).
I think it's important to remember that all interpretation of scripture, whether it be CS Lewis, Max Lucado, or whomever, is still man's interpretation and if we are not reading the Word we may be misled.
A friend of mine and I are doing an information fast in February- nothing but the Word. No TV, no news websites, etc. We'll see how it goes.
Post a Comment