The Shack

I actually finished this book a few weeks ago but haven't had the time to put my two cents in about it. I'm always curious of a book that boasts of Christian principles, creates controversy, and is a fiction work by an author. I understand the controversy, but I still think everyone should pick this book up and read it. To quote my mother: "Any book that bring me closer to the Lord is worth my time to read it." The big stick in the mud that is getting people's panties in a wad is the fact that the Trinity is presented in human form to a broken individual in the book. And God is a black woman. Now I don't see God in my mind as that, but the author clearly lets you know both in the preface and throughout the book that this was how Mac, the main character, could relate to God. So if you can put that aside, I think anyone who has gone through a tragic event in their life (sound familiar, Hurricane evacuees?) should read this book. End of story. I cried, I couldn't put it down, I felt like I knew more of the mystery of our Lord. I'll leave you with a quote from "black woman God" to Mac, explaining his confusion on why He was a black woman:

"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. To reveal myself to you as a very large, white grandfather figure with flowing beard, like Gandalf, would simply reinforce our religious stereotypes, and this weekend is not about reinforcing your religious stereotypes."

So put your Gandalf preconceptions aside and go read this book....