The Shack

"The Shack" by Wm Paul Young (2007) features one man's journey from tragedy to the trinity; from apathy to acceptance.  The story of Mackenzie Allen Phillips (apparently no relation to the actress Mackenzie Phillips), as related by his good friend, Willie, begins with not so subtle hints that something tragic will send "Mack" into a depression that is described as "The Great Sadness".  The story itself is not so much about the abduction and murder of Mack's youngest daughter, Missy, but about Mack's spiritual and emotional journey out of "The Great Sadness" that occurs four years after the tragedy.

The tale begins rather abruptly and it doesn't take long for the author to smack the reader with the telling of the tragedy that causes "The Great Sadness".  Still, the introduction of the horrible event early on is intriguing and does give the reader incentive to move past the vague references and awkward sentence structures that plague the first few chapters of the book. 

The forward of the book prefaces how Mack's spiritual growth was cut short in his early teens by an alcoholic father who punished him unmercifully for confessing to a church elder that his father was a mean, vicious drunk who beat his mother.  Remind me never to confess to a church elder because this one went straight to Mack's dad revealing the fact that his son could cause him trouble if he spilled his story to the police.  Mack's dad set out to teach Mack that what happens at home stays at home and ties Mack to a tree for two days of belt beatings and bible readings.  At the impressionable age of thirteen, the lesson inspired him to put rat poison into all of his father's hidden booze bottles and walk away from home forever.

Mack's character development on the subsequent journey from homeless teen to an older, married Mack with a guilty conscience, isn't expressed with enough depth for the reader to fully comprehend that much of Mack's enigma revolves around his lifelong contradiction of being in awe of, and simultaneously, angry with God.

Four years after his daughter's tragic kidnapping and murder, Mack receives an invitation from God ("Papa") to meet at the shack where his daughter's bloody clothes were found.  He accepts the invitation and what follows is what any true Christian would consider an unorthodox and unbelievable weekend at the "Shack" where Mack meets the Trinity of "Papa" (God) in the form of a large African woman, Jesus as a working man dressed in a flannel shirt (kind of the Jewish carpenter type and definitely the most believable character) and the Holy Spirit as a tiny Asian woman named Sarayu.  Each "person" leads Mack through a show and tell program aimed at assisting him through "The Great Sadness" and back onto the path of acceptance in the existence of God and the comfort provided through belief, even in a world of injustice and cruelty. 

Mack's anger with God provokes the journey and his awe of God creates his capability to accept the various depictions of the Trinity.  Of course, in the end Mack learns the best lesson (the one his father couldn't teach him) in acceptance of the unequivocal love of God in the life we live regardless of its hardships, adversity and misfortunes.

The book is easy to read, but difficult to understand as it is in large part, the author's subjective discourse on theology.   However, difficult questions warrant difficult answers and Mr. Young does a good job in offering solace to Mack as he poses questions that many ask to God about the inhumane and unfair acts committed upon the innocent.

For a person who was raised devoid of spiritual faith, the book was a stretch for my reading list, as is most anything to do with a traditional belief in God, but the author's use of unusual characters to represent God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit helped to open my mind to an understanding that a disregard of mainstream religion does not negate one's unique and personal transformation of mind and spirit regarding the acceptance of and satisfaction in, the life we choose to live.

Pros:

• "The Shack" is easy to read
• "The Shack" offers insight into some of life's big questions about God and fairness
• "The Shack" explores the nature of free will

Cons:

• Character development is minimal
• Dialogue is forced
• Sentence structure is awkward

"“There's too much tendency to attribute to God the evils that man does of his own free will.”
     ~Agatha Christie

Rating:
3 of 5 Stars