Shack Revisited

In my review of Paul Young's best-selling book "The Shack," I encouraged folks not to read that book as a work of theology, but as religious fiction. That said, I did admit that there was a theological perspective behind the book that should be properly discerned. Unfortunately, many reviewers discerned theological understanding from the book that were never intended by the author. Paul Young has been accused of such things as Universalism, Pantheism, and Open Theism, all of which are inaccurate representations of his theology.So, what is the theology behind "The Shack?"In his newest book "The Shack Revisited" theologian C. Baxter Kruger offers us a clear and beautifully written Trinitarian understanding of the theology behind "The Shack." Offering his stamp of approval in the forward to Baxter's book, Paul Young reveals the picture of God he intended to be conveyed. In my opinion, if you are going to read any review that seeks to declare what any particular author meant in a work of religious fiction, always select the one that actually comes with the original author's endorsement.Here is what Young writes in the forward to Kruger's book: "To all those who took the time to read and study "The Shack," to those who bought several copies or a case or more and gave them away and emailed me your wonderful stories, I want to say, "Thank you, and please read The Shack Revisited." If you want to understand better the perspectives and theology that frame "The Shack," this book is for you. Baxter has taken on the incredible task of exploring the nature and character of the God who met me in my own shack. A Mississippi theologian who cut his intellectual teeth in Aberdeen, Scotland with the Torrance brothers, Baxter is a unique cross of intellectual brilliance and creative genius... He is a master of making difficult things understandable for the rest of us. If you found hope and encouragement through "The Shack," this book will help you take more steps in knowing the love of Papa, Sarayu, and Jesus." --Wm. Paul Young, Foreword, The Shack RevisitedWhen you read Kruger's book, you will not find an affirmation of the rationalistic, post-enlightenment theology of contemporary evangelicals. Nor will you find an endorsement of Friedrich Schleiermacher's "Speeches on Religion to it's Cultured Despisers." Instead, Baxter's theology (and that behind Paul Young's book) harkens back to the early church patristic fathers, with special emphasis on Irenaeus, Basil the Great, Gregory or Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus (commonly known among church historians as The Cappadocian Fathers). The Cappadocian Fathers advanced the development of early Christian theology, with special emphasis on the doctrine of the Trinity.A student of T.F. Torrance and James Torrance, Baxter Kruger's passion is to help the church recover what he calls "The Trinitarian Vision."Often books about theology can come across and dry and boring. Baxter Kruger is gifted, however, at presenting theological ideas is passionate and simple ways that are easy for anyone to understand. I found myself moved to both tears of joy and intense theological reflection, often on the same page. This is a scholarly work that will inspire the lay-reader and arm chair theologian. Illustrations, biblical exposition, and church history are woven together with reflections from Young's book "The Shack" in such a way that the beauty of the Holy Trinity as the relational God is more clearly seen. For the Western Church, which has often succumb to rationalistic ideas that turned God into a philosophical "omni-being," this is refreshing. Kruger is attempting, in the words of his teacher T.F. Torrance, to "evangelize the foundations of western thought."Baxter points through the Scriptures to the picture of God that gave shape to the gospel proclamation of Jesus' early disciples. It is a picture of the love relationship between Jesus and the One he called Papa - a love that called the world into being at creation. And it is a vision of how Jesus came to fulfill the plan of God to include all humanity in that divine-relationship.For those who read "The Shack" and wondered if Paul Young's picture of God could really be that warm and wonderful, Baxter Kruger delves into theology, church history, and scripture to reveal that God is not only as wonderful as Paul Young declares - but even better than that book imagines.

As the title itself suggests The Shack Revisited is not an ordinary theological tome filled with outlines and proof-texts. Kruger's approach is so engaging that one is hardly aware he or she is reading real theology. But it is real theology, Trinitarian theology written in conversation with The Shack. As such it breathes a readily accessible but deep conceptual engagement and wrestling with the identity of God as Trinity and his relationship to his fallen creation. Kruger has a commanding grasp of historical Trinitarian orthodoxy as espoused by the early Church including such luminaries as Irenaeus, Athanasius, Gregory of Nazianzus, Basil the Great of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, Cyril of Alexandria on through to Richard of St Victor, Calvin and Luther as well as leading contemporary Trinitarian theologians including his own mentors J. B. Torrance and Thomas F. Torrance. While he is comfortable in this heady company, he has a heart and vision for theology to be accessible to those without any theological training.This is the tradition in which Kruger stands as he presents his Trinitarian vision in The Shack Revisited. The Shack provides the ideal conversation partner to open our eyes to the richness and magnificence of a Trinitarian vision rooted deeply in historic Christian orthodoxy.While the reality that God is Trinity is the most basic theological assertion of Christianity, most of us haven't got a clue as to what it means, so we just leave it alone because it is "mystery." While we as twenty-first century Western Christians continue to verbally assert that God is in fact Trinity, we live our Christian lives as mere "monotheists." This perspective flies in the face of historic Christianity. The ancient church viewed the understanding of God as Trinity as the lynchpin of the faith as well as the key which unlocked the importance of all other Christian understanding. Moreover, it was the reality of God as Trinity that gave access to true (while limited) knowledge of who He is in Himself. In short, the reality of God as triune was the sine qua non of ancient Christianity and the lens through which to view all other Christian doctrine.Kruger presents us with a Trinitarian vision of magnificent beauty and power, a vision of the Trinity that is intense, personal, intimate, patient and loving, a vision which is deeply rooted in both Scripture and the Trinitarian understanding of the early church. It is a vision of God in his love, power, judgment and grace, a vision of the Father, Son and Spirit whose thoughts are higher than human thoughts and whose foolishness is wiser than the wisdom of humanity, a vision that is utterly counter-intuitive to the way we as fallen humans think.Beauty is not often associated with theology--but if indeed our Trinitarian God is the source of beauty it follows that our theology should reflect His beauty. If it does not, there is something desperately wrong. Here Kruger does not disappoint. The word I would use is "breathtaking."The Shack Revisited, like The Shack is aimed at the heart as opposed to the head; at personal transformation and healing as opposed to abstract speculation; at growth in intimacy as adopted sons and daughters as opposed to a teeth-gritting "grin and bear" slave mentality of victimhood that passively accepts whatever tragedy that occurs because "God is sovereign and it is not my place to question."Profusely illustrated by real life events that come out of his decades of practical ministry, this is a theology that touches the heart, not just the head, a theology that is grounded in the self-giving love and passion of the Father, Son and Spirit. This is a theological vision that embraces the biblical concept that salvation is far more than legal forgiveness. Rather it includes existential healing of the soul resulting in a loving vibrant relationship with the Father, Son and Spirit in response to the love of the trinity for us as those who are blind, wounded and broken. This is a theology that embraces life and relationship as opposed to "the disastrous incompetence of religion to heal our broken souls."The Shack Revisited is a must read! And a book to be read again and again.

Forgiveness is the core message of all spiritual paths. To reach this level of forgiveness described in the book, we need help. We can call many different names, depending on the religion, but at the end is only possible through the love of God, for all his sons, including the ones that cause unspeakable harm to others.To criticize any part of the message of this beautiful book, is to focus on the form instead of the essence!For me who believe that all spiritual masters never created a religion, but instead were a light in the word to be followed, leading us to God, this book is a piece of art!

C. Baxter Kruger is a theologian and I place him in the company of C.S. Lewis in this regard.Even with the need to fully concentrate on Kruger's writing, I found that I did not fully grasp what he was attempting to communicate to less learned Christian believers like me. I was encouraged in my faith by Kruger's conclusions on the salvation offered to all of humanity without reservation by the Trinity.

Loved every single page. Absolutely heart wrenching as a parent though. Beware of triggers for child kidnapping, suicidal thoughts and abuse.

I bought this not expecting too much,,, but was I surprised. Baxter opens up some thoughts and insights that were somewhat of a surprise to me, and I've been reading Christian-type books (and the Bible) for 40 years. If you read The Shack, 'Revisited' is an absolute gem not to be ignored. It will help develop a better appreciation of our Great God and His amazing grace and love for each of us. I am going to be re-reading this book regularly for many years to come. Thank you Baxter Kruger !!!!

book matched up with reviews, good read

I wasn't sure what to expect when buying this book. But I enjoyed "The Shack" and it put a band aid on my own personal "great sadness" for about ten years. I suppose that ideally I had hoped that this book might offer a permanent healing. But far from it. The best bits are the foreword and the prologue, and the foreword is written by W. Paul Young!There isn't as much of "The Shack" in this book as I had hoped, and with the exceptions of a couple of chapters it is very, very dry. The author has a PH.D and so a lot of the theology went way over my head. This book simply didn't speak to me in the way that "The Shack" did. I did finish it, but found it uninspiring, at times downright boring. It lacks the inspiration behind "The Shack", which is a shame, as I had high hopes and high expectations.

I bought this book after reading The Shack. I was disappointed. As an Orthodox Christian I found the explanation of the theology written in The Shack not in keeping with traditional Christian teaching. A shame, as it could of been a good book. This is what happens when 'theologians' are disconnected from the life and Tradition of the early Christian Church.