The Shack was recommended to me from the pulpit. The deacon warned the congregation that the first sixty pages were tough to read, but that there was good stuff to follow. He was right. Especially for you with young children, the first sixty pages tell a frightening story that seems all too believable in the context of recent news stories. This tragedy is, however, the crux of the book's premise: that God can create good out of what seems bad. Or, as one of my previous pastors put it: "There is nothing that God can't redeem."

This is an ages-old question: theodicy. It has been the source of many creative outputs from writers and theologians for hundreds of years. Essentially, this book summarizes for a modern audience the major Christian viewpoints regarding God's seeming acceptance of incredible evils in our life on earth. This is not a polished meaty theological treatise; it is a popular retelling of the ancient conundrum with a modern-day, somewhat New Age flavor. It's not a book for the young; they usually haven't experienced enough tragedy in their lives yet. And it invokes a deus ex machina (in triplicate) to restore the faith of the protagonist, which may negate its value for many. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it. The story made me cry, the writing amused, but the theology stimulated me to employ my highlighter frequently. Now I may go back and consult some of the original sources.

Tags: Theodicy, Christian