‘The Shack’ author expects more Christian criticism with sequel, but will take it in stride
Some Christians dismissed author William P. Young’s novel "The Shack" as heresy for its portrayal of the Holy Trinity, and he said he expects more pushback on his sequel.
"The Shack," which was also adapted into a major motion picture in 2017, tells the heartbreaking story of a father, Mack, whose daughter is kidnapped and killed while on a camping trip. In the midst of his grief, Mack discovers a letter in his mailbox from God, who implores him to visit a shack. Once there, he meets a diverse Holy Trinity. Papa is a middle-aged Black woman, Jesus is a Middle Eastern carpenter, and the Holy Spirit is an Asian woman named Sarayu.
Some Christians balked at the unorthodox portrayals, saying Young sorely misrepresented the nature of God. America magazine's David E. Nantais wrote at the time that the book had become "both a fascination and an object of contempt to millions of Christians" because it literally portrayed the Trinity as three persons.
Young's sequel, "Return to the Shack: A Journey into Redemption," is out on bookshelves in October. And he expects Christians to again make some noise because of the subject matter.
"You know, I don't brace for any of it," Young told Fox News Digital. "Yes, it'll probably happen. But yes, if you're going to have something out in public purview, you'll always find people who don't like it. And that's fine with me. I think — and I did get considerable but not overwhelming pushback from my own people — because of my history as a missionary kid, a preacher's kid."
An additional aspect of his new novel that may raise eyebrows is how the child murderer, simply named J, is portrayed. J is now a death row inmate, and Young gives him a more humanized storyline in the sequel, including references to his childhood and abusive father. Young said he decided to go that route because of what he experienced through his own broken relationship with his dad.
In candid interviews since "The Shack" was released, Young has described his father as angry, distant, and strict. His novel helped him repair their relationship and show mercy toward his father.
"He was allowed only to be a failed father," Young told Fox News Digital. "And so I finally released him from my expectations and allowed him to become something greater than a failure to my expectations and greater than being my dad. And that was to finally become a human being. And when that happened, suddenly his story mattered."
Young shared that some of the prisoners in the sequel are modeled after death row inmates he befriended at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, Tennessee, so he felt compelled to view them through a sympathetic lens, too.
"That's just one of the layers that's going on," Young said. "But I think that death row inmates would be one of the most related to as animals, put into category. Like the guys say, 'We're only known for the worst day of our lives.'"
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"We're talking about human beings who've come from very diverse backgrounds and situations and trauma being a very centerpiece, abuse being a centerpiece," he added.
Young says, however, that people should not use that as an excuse for the choices they make. He surmised that some of the Christians who took issue with his first book have "a fear-based religion."
"And there is no fear in love, that's a Scripture out of the New Testament," he said. "So any degree of fear, that's in your sense of the transcendent, in your sense of the higher power, your sense of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Any fear indicates that your theology, your religion is seriously flawed. And because people are afraid, they're going to react out of their fear."
Young sympathized with some of the reaction, however. Over the years, he's admitted to marital infidelity and how that impacted his own walk with God.
"If it hadn't been for that kind of monumental failure — when you get caught you have to either run or face it. I think it's by the grace of God that I faced it," Young told Oregon Live in 2015.
"And I get that, because I've been there and done that," he told Fox News Digital. "You know, I went through enough crap and did enough harm and had to deal with the consequences of that in my own life, that I know who I am now. And I'm not a book, and I'm not a movie. That's not my identity."
"My identity is outside of that," Young continued. "And so, you know, sometimes I think if people are bothered by something, it means something is in them that needs to be addressed and it becomes an invitation. And I'm excited for that to happen in people's lives. If I can walk on the holy ground of their story a little bit, I'm honored."
Young said he "absolutely" believes in miracles, like Mack receiving a letter from God.
"I absolutely believe something like that could happen," he said. "Like I've said, I've never heard God speak audibly, but I believe that God is in union with every single person who's ever been conceived. And God is not mute, but God is not coercive. And if you want to see what the character and nature of God is like, look at Jesus, read the Gospel, read John or one of the Gospels, and you'll see how love lives in this world."
"So I'm one of those who is — I don't like a purpose-driven life — I like a spirit-indwelt, moment-by-moment participatory life," he continued. "And I'm good with that."