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The Shack Idolatry

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“The Shack,” the movie based on William Paul Young’s supposedly “Christian” novel and opened in theaters recently, is drawing flak from conservative critics for allegedly promoting idolatry and an unrealistic image of God.
In “The Shack,” God is portrayed as an African-American woman and the Holy Spirit is represented by an Asian woman called “Sarayu.” For some Christian leaders, the way the Holy Trinity is portrayed actually promotes the message of universalism and rejects the true form of Christianity. World Net Daily details.
In an interview with the Christian News Network, Blessed Hope Chapel pastor Joe Schimmel said the depiction of the Holy Trinity in “The Shack” is comparable to idolatry.
“Young’s pretentious caricature of God as a heavy set, cushy, non-judgmental, …show more content…

He said the main problem lies in the movie’s “visual representation of God,” which he points out as something that goes against God’s command not to engage in idolatry written in Exodus 20:4-6. For him, portraying the Holy Trinity as human is tantamount to blasphemy.
“The Reconnect” radio program host Carmen Fowler LaBerge’s opinion on “The Shack” aligns with that of Challies’. When asked about what makes the novel different from other works of fiction such as C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” that have biblical themes, she explained to The Christian Post that nowhere in the book is the Trinity physically represented. Aslan is seen in Lewis’ there to represent the Christ figure, but the novel does not explicitly labels the lion as Jesus.
“The Shack” presents the story of Mack Phillips (Sam Worthington) who questions his faith after a family tragedy. He later finds a letter telling him to go to an abandoned shack where he meets three strangers --- the characters that represent the Trinity --- who help him understand the purpose of his

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