The Shack

This book is such a deep story of a man's spiritual journey. I found that at times I had to put it down just to digest all that I had read. It really makes you delve into yourself to see where you stand spiritually.

This is such a deep spiritual book that I think is a MUST read. It's amazing, and thought provoking. It made me feel as if I was walking the path of the main character. It's a slice of Heaven on earth!

It scares me to read loose interpretations of the Bible when we, as lay people, aren't really sure that's what was meant at all. It would have been better to simply refer to the Holy Trinity as God, Jesus and The Holy Spirit instead of attaching ridiculous personas to them. I gave it 2 stars because at least it did have me thinking about actual Scripture and the basis of forming loving relationships.

I do not agree with a lot of the author's interpretation of the Bible. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

Best, theodicy why do bad things happen to good people? The Old Testament book of Job spends most of its pages debating the question. In The Shack the opening chapters read like a murder mystery, a detective novel. Crime is one of those bad things that happen. This beginning provides the framework for the author’s conversations with God about theodicy. Important, the nature of the Trinity The Shack calls forth a healthy questioning of our presuppositions about God. The author persistently builds the Biblical and historic understanding of the Trinity over the more shallow expressions of the modern world. This is achieved in a very incarnational picture of God. Even the Holy Spirit has humanlike shape. This approach reflects modernity in which faith is all about the relationship of the individual with God the Trinity. Problem, the church the author writes from the current cultural preference for spirituality over religion. The fictional Jesus tells Mac that he, Jesus, doesn’t do institutions he only does relationships. Personally, as a part of the institution, I think Jesus does do it. This weakness from a church standpoint does not impair the value of the book for theodicy and Trinity.

I know, I know. Everyone loves this book. No fewer than forty-three people asked me "Have you read The Shack yet?" Invariably, they responded to my negative response with something along the lines of "You have to! It changed my life! I was full of questions, and life stunk, and then I read the book,......more

It is hard to not get carried away and be too effusive about this book. When one has spent time with someone or something, it is natural to feel a close connection to that thing and, I think, lose objectivity. Obviously I didn't try too hard to be calm and subdued in my praise because one can see th......more

Note: After several friends challenged me to read the book again (I assume they wanted me to upgrade The Shack to five stars), I indeed read it a second time. As a result, I downgraded it another star. There are things I noticed the second time I didn't the first. Added to my review below are several......more

5 stars? Ya, I know it's crazy because I guess this is a super-controversial book... but I am rating it this way because of it's impact - not because of it's sound theology. The view of the trinity in this book is one I had never considered. And, although it challenged a LOT of my fundamentalist upb......more

Having had no understanding of this books content before opening it, I must admit it rocked my little world a bit. It is incredibly well written and engaging from the start. I don’t want to say too much as I think this book is meant to be experienced with as little influence as possible. I will say......more