Finding God in the Shack: Conversations on an Unforgettable Weekend

Randal Rauser
Authentic Books (2009)
ISBN 9781606570326
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (4/09)

Before I begin the review on “Finding God in The Shack,” I admit that I am a huge fan of “The Shack.”  I bought eighteen copies of it and gave them away at Christmastime.  I have been very surprised by the mixed reviews and strong reactions that people have had to the book.  I was very happy to see the author’s response and explanations in this book.  Theologian Randal Rauser takes readers through “The Shack” and outlines the areas that are the most complex and controversial.  I found the book to be very enlightening and easy to understand. 

As I sit down to review this book, I realize that I must have at least thirty post-it note tabs on pages where I highlight excellent points.  I will highlight only a few here and encourage you to pick up a copy of this book for your unanswered questions.  The author first addresses the reason God is being presented as an African American woman named Papa.  In his view, the conceptual idea of who God really is, is so big that it is probably something that humans cannot even begin to understand.  The most important aspect of God being presented like this was to show that God does not want to just communicate with us, but desires to have a relationship with us.  That point is emphasized over and over again throughout the book. 

I also thought that Rauser did an excellent job explaining the Trinity.  It always seems to be such a hard concept, but I found it much easier to understand after reading this. 

One thing that really helped me was keeping a Bible close by to refer to the biblical references that Rauser makes.  You don’t need to because he explains them well, but I found it helpful to look at the full context of what he was quoting. 

The author best summed up “The Shack” in his chapter on “Why this Theologian is especially fond of the Shack” (page 17).  He states “The Shack will not answer all our questions, nor does it aspire to.  But we can be thankful this has started a great conversation.”  And that is really all we can ask for.  Hopefully it will get people thinking about our Creator and asking some important questions.  If you enjoyed “The Shack” or had a lot of questions after reading it, “Finding God in The Shack” is an excellent resource.

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