IHM Book discussion: The Shack by Wm. Paul Young

[stifft]

I was referred to this book by several people in my parish. One part of the book I found to be enlightening was on pages 208-209. Mack is speaking to God about what His expectations and responsibilities of us are. God says He never places expectations on us...he knows the outcome. Why would he have an expectation that He already knows the outcome of? Expectations often lead to fear of failure, disappointment. God states that his preferred term would be the idea of a constant and living "expectancy" of a relationship with Him. He is always there for us and we have the ability to make the choice of how and when to respond to Him. He wants to be the center of our lives, living in us, so that everything in our lives is connected with Him. On page 206, God also talks about being more about verbs than nouns.."I am" . Verbs indicate being, action, living...as in Christ..something growing. Nouns are just things...the teaching is that we should focus on the action...we should walk the talk...be loving, responding, repenting, growing, helping, etc. Check out the web page for more info on this book... http://theshackbook.com
Has anyone read this book? What do you think about it?

[James Harris]

That doesn't sound too bad however this book is not the most orthodox.

A Catholic Review of The Shack

[stifft]

(07-09-2009 08:30 AM)James Harris Wrote:  That doesn't sound too bad however this book is not the most orthodox.

A Catholic Review of The Shack

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I will admit that I had a hard time getting into the story...
1. The main character, Mack, has his youngest daughter abducted during a family camping trip....he feels to blame...and he blames God for letting it happen. 2. He gets a "message" from God and returns alone to the area where it occurred. This is where the story becomes very unorthodox- he meets the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in unbelievably human forms...a little too human for me. It isn't until the pages I cited that the reader, and Mack, start to get the picture of a God who is truly loving and giving without any expectations. Perhaps it could give the reader looking for excuses an easy way out...No expectations! Thanks for responding...

(07-09-2009 08:30 AM)James Harris Wrote:  That doesn't sound too bad however this book is not the most orthodox.

A Catholic Review of The Shack

[RosaMystica]

Fr. Barron does a great review of THE SHACK on youtube, where he points out both the positives and negatives of the book from a Catholic perspective. Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3-I7AEmKlo

[shanelee42]

Hi, if you like The Shack or even if you didn't, I'd like to recommend a new book called Forgiving Ararat by Gita Nazareth as it has a wonderful Christian message. It's about a lady lawyer who dies and goes to a sort of Limbo where she's told she must defend souls in the Final Judgment. While she's exploring this amazing afterlife she's in, she struggles to solve the mystery of her own murder. This is a murder mystery/supernatural thriller but also has elements of historical and religious exploration. I'm a publicist and fan of the book and would love to read your comments here should you choose to read the book. Thanks!