Finished reading The Shack by William P. Young last night at midnight. Though I'd heard concerns that the book contained such things as God as a woman and terrible tragedy, I found it to be an easy read that challenges the mind. In essence, the story is a religious philosophy loosely veiled through the story of Mack, the middle-aged, hardened protagonist: tragedy strikes (an emotional though not graphic section), Mack hates God, Mack goes on trip to meet God. Through this basic plot structure, the author tackled three key ideas: the Trinity, why bad things happen to good people, and organized religion. Following in the vein of Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller (an influence noted even by the author), the ideas work to break lifelong churchgoers out of their preconvceived notions about God.
Young's representation of the Trinity as an African American woman, a Middle Eastern carpenter, and an Asian woman serve to break people away from the preconceived notions of God. As the character Mack claims, perhaps God doesn't look like Gandalf, white flowing beard and aged, after all. And why not represent the Trinity in this way? If God chooses to manifest himself, doesn't it make sense that God may do so however he deems appropriate since both male and female are made in his image and his children are of all tribes and nations? But Young doesn't throw in this characterization just for kicks--it serves a specific purpose in the development of Mack's thinking (and potentially ours right along with him).
Even the discussion of suffering proves insightful, if hard to swallow. God gave man freedom. If man is truly free to make his own choices, then man is also free to suffer the consequences of those choices. Unfortunately, those choices often affect others, hence suffering multiplies. Ironically, while God does not will suffering, he is able to use it for good. Though touched on several times in the novel, I, at times, like Mack, have a hard time wrapping my head around it.
And, similar to (though a little softer than) Miller's book, organized religion takes a beating in favor of relationship. This, however, seems to serve as a strong reminder of Christianity's core values rather than a ridicule of the religion as a whole.
So, is it worth the read? Certainly. I think the ideas can even be vital in evalutaing individual and community faith. Can something like this really happen? Well, it is said, with God, all things are possible. Perhaps it is time for us to reconsider the possibility of divine intervention in daily life.
