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FORGET THE MOVIE, READ THE BOOK, Published in LDR 03/04/17

Have you seen “The Shack”, or do you intend to see it?  I would encourage you not to go, but not for the reason you might think.  I would strongly advise you to read the book instead.  I found the book to be so fascinating and thought-provoking that I fear the movie will not live up to it and you would not get the full benefit of what the author is trying to say.  Also, you will enjoy the story  more if you have to use your imagination.  I understand from others that movie makers feel they have to “fill in the gaps” and elaborate on things that take away from the real message of the story.

I rarely read fiction and I don’t go to movies.  So how did I get caught up in reading such a controversial book as “The Shack”?  I am a very conservative, born-again, Bible-believing Christian, not exactly the type of person who would read, much less enjoy, the type of novel Wm. Young has written.

Well, you might say it was due to medical advice.  Since I enjoy controversy, and I like stretching my mind, I bought the book after seeing it discussed on a website populated with several hundred ministers of my church group.  I wanted to see what all the disagreement was about.

So I bought it, but I was soon confronted with the darkness at the beginning of the story - the abduction and murder of the young daughter of the protagonist, Mackenzie (Mack) Allen Phillips, and I laid it aside.   I can’t handle stories of that nature. I find them too disturbing.

Several weeks later I was in the office of my long time friend and medical doctor, and he casually asked me if I had read the book.  He told me his Sunday School class was using it as a discussion guide and suggested I read it.  I told him I had bought it, but couldn’t handle the subject matter.  He advised me to go beyond the part about the abduction and murder, and start reading from there.  That was some of the best medical advice he has given me in over 30 years!

I became immersed in the story.  It was  a literal page-turner for me. After I finished it, I bought the Kindle edition and the CD because I wanted the portability of taking the book with me to read favorite passages over and over, or to listen in the car.

This book is not a doctrinal treatise.  It was never intended to be.  The author was born in Canada, a child of missionary parents, and  grew up in the Netherlands New Guinea.  He often wrote poems and essays as gifts to his six children, and “The Shack” was written for that purpose.   But it got out of the family into the hands of a friend who thought it was good enough to be published and after several years it wound up on the New York Times’ Best Seller list.  The movie was scheduled for release on March 3, 2017.

The book is not always doctrinally sound in my judgment, but again it was not written as a theological textbook.  It is a fictional novel, and reflects the personal beliefs of the author on some minor details, which will differ from denomination to denomination, but the general theme of the book is one of mainstream Christianity.

According to Young, it was written to address the questions all of us deal with from time to time about the big “why’s” of life - death, tragedy, suffering.   It encompasses the issues of God’s unconditional love for His children, and forgiveness and reconciliation, and spiritual peace.  It does a good job addressing all of this in the big picture using the Biblical concept of the Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  It is just the details that has made it so controversial among  various church leaders and teachers.  You will have to read the book to understand why I say this.

I consider myself to be a mature Christian, well versed in Biblical concepts, and I have always been able to use a large variety of resource materials because I know what I believe and why I believe it,  and I’m able to learn from the good and ignore the bad.  

But if the movie follows the general theme of the book, it could be confusing for people who are struggling  with their beliefs and have questions and  doubts.  So Christian parents might want to be ready to discuss these things with their children if they see the movie, because I can assure you there will be many questions.

With those caveats, I will tell you it is one of the best books I have ever read, but it is not for everybody.  I am re-reading it again this week, and I have found that it is even better this time around because I can more fully appreciate the profundity of the discussions among the characters of the book.

‘’The Shack” is available in our public library and probably at Walmart and other bookstores here in town.  So take my advice and forget about the movie.  Settle down in a comfortable chair with a cup of coffee and enjoy turning the pages.  It might be something you haven’t done in a long time.

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