ipl-logo

The Shack Idolatry

390 Words2 Pages

“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

Show More
Related

Allusions In Pleasantville

870 Words | 4 Pages

Director of the postmodernist film 'Pleasantville ' (1998), Gary Ross, incorporates the idea of change through the use of intertextuality with a wide range of historical and biblical references along with literature and artwork. He uses allusions from the references to demonstrate the idea that utopias work well only in theory and that life cannot be scripted. The postmodernist film reflects the way society is constantly changing; beginning as a stereotypical perfect, passionless life in the 1950 's and ending as a society with flaws, imperfections and knowledge. Ross shows this by repeating the techniques of intertextuality, along with allusions, parody, pastiche and cinematography to convey the idea of change. Ross plays with the idea of religion in his attempts to show the changes occurring in 'Pleasantville ' throughout the film.

Read More

Imagery In The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe

1017 Words | 5 Pages

Klarra Lee English 9H Paul Hughes November 19, 2017 World War Two, the Bible, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, written by C. S. Lewis, is about the adventures of four children in a world called Narnia, which is a place inside a wardrobe. In Narnia, the children meet a lion, named Aslan, and fight the White Witch, who calls herself the Queen of Narnia. The context of World War Two and the representation of the biblical imagery in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, is closely connected to each other. The background of the book and the time period in which the book was written, are both during the time period of World War Two.

Read More

Religion In Albert Raboteau's Slave Religion

792 Words | 4 Pages

In Albert Raboteau’s Slave Religion, I expected to read a book dripping with rant-filled commentary. Judging the book solely on its cover, I would not normally pick up –or even read– a book that did not jump out at me from the design on the cover, and this book did not jump out. However, Raboteau’s depiction of the life of the slave did jump out at me. In elementary and high school, teachers briefly touch on the topic of slavery and its role in America, but religion is never touched on with slavery –at least my teachers never taught them together. So finally getting to learn the two side by side, it was fascinating to see how Africans created a version of their own religion of Christianity.

Read More

Lester Ballard In Cormac Mccarthy's Child Of God

1187 Words | 5 Pages

Cormac McCarthy’s novel ,Child of God, is the tale of a violent, dispossessed man living on the outskirts of society. Set in 1960s rural Tennessee, the novel focuses on the life of Lester Ballard, a murdering necrophiliac who seemingly only follows his own rules. Ballard is represented as a despicable, unhuman character, who apparently is, “A child of God much like yourself perhaps” (4). While Ballard repeatedly commits evil acts, one cannot help but find a soft spot for this man who was unloved as child and seems to be a product of his cruel environment. On the surface, Ballard’s actions make him seem alien to “us” (society) but to delve deeper, one discovers a true understanding of Lester Ballard.

Read More

Atticus As A Christ Like Figure Analysis

296 Words | 2 Pages

The author discusses how to spot a Christ-like figure in works of literature and what their importance is. The author then gives lists of Christ-like characteristics and examples of Christ-like figures in literature. The author also points out that by using a Christ-like figure in a work of literature, there is a more hopeful message embedded in the story. For example, Atticus from To Kill a Mockingbird is a Christ-like figure. Atticus is judged for helping a black man in a city that is infected with segregation and racism.

Read More

Self Sacrifice In To Kill A Mockingbird

711 Words | 3 Pages

How does one live a life as a Christian that honors and glorifies God? The answer is by reflecting Christ’s image by acting as He would in every situation. Because of what Jesus has done for sinners on the cross, they desire to live by His example in order to give Him glory. However, living a Christ-like life can only happen through the work of the Holy Spirit, who comes in to sinner’s hearts when they first put their trust in Jesus and the cross, growing them and making them more like Jesus. Many characters in books, stories, and movies have Christ-like qualities and characteristics, an example of this being Harper Lee’s masterpiece.

Read More

Read Literature Like A Professor

1553 Words | 7 Pages

Jesus is a figure that many authors use in their novels. By using characters that resemble him, they author is able to relate to the reader in context of hope and redemption, as well as to expand one’s thoughts on what exactly the concept of sacrifice entails. Obviously, there are many other ideologies in the world and Christianity, though popular, sometimes follows with some kind of negative connotation that would lead authors not to use Christ as a guide to a character. Foster addresses this conflict, saying, “we live in Christian culture… Culture is so influenced by its dominant religious systems that whether a writer adheres to the beliefs of not, the values and principles of those religions will inevitably inform the literary work” (Foster 124-125).

Read More

Compare And Contrast Essay On The Shack

628 Words | 3 Pages

The letter Going back Social anxiety Compare the movie with the book Figures Bibliography Abstract The Shack is about faith and have faith to believe in God and it have lesson and deal with social anxiety. I will explain the social anxiety part of the book I will compare it to the movies and shows similar and differences between the book and the movie.

Read More

The Change Of Gender Roles In Serena By Ron Rash

1045 Words | 5 Pages

Ron Rash shows us this character McIntyre who is the most religious character in the book. McIntyre thinks a little more of the Bible than most people he say McIntyre said “ The only signs you need to follow is in the Bible” (Rash 62). He is not wrong but he takes things to extreme.

Read More

Religion In William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying

2627 Words | 11 Pages

However, somewhat ironically, the character who is perhaps the most standout Christ figure in the novel is Jewel, who in his only chapter questions the existence of God. Although Jewel doesn’t seem like the ideal Christ figure because of the way he speaks and the actions he takes, William Faulkner

Read More

The Shack Book Report

1846 Words | 8 Pages

Reading The Shack affected me both spiritually and morally. It was challenging to read some of the ideas this book had, spiritually. Although, I related it to many different events that I have faced in my own life. I have related Mack to my own father and his strength towards our family. Also, I have related it to losing my grandfather, who played a huge role in my life growing up.

Read More

The Idolatry In Martin Luther's Catechism

1101 Words | 5 Pages

Fundamentally, idolatry is the worship of an image or object or the excessive devotion towards a person or item. From a religious perspective, idolatry is the worship of images and representations other than the true God. Idolatry is a practice whose scope is often misunderstood, prompting the efforts by different people to demystify the practice both in the past and in the world today. Martin Luther, for instance, explores his understanding of the practice in his Large Catechism, a text meant to guide Lutheran clergymen in their service. This essay discusses idolatry, with specific emphasis on Luther’s ideas and presentation of the same and its prevalence in the modern world.

Read More

Christianity In Frankenstein Essay

588 Words | 3 Pages

          The  religious references and  biblical allusion cannot be ignored throughout the novel. Even though, Shelly is a atheist, she was able to make a deep connection with a religious and nonreligious view. This concept is controversial because there are many opinions that oppose Shelly's view and there are really few people that see the same view as Shelly. In the novel, the concept of Christianity was connected with a nonreligious creation.

Read More

The Luck Of Roaring Camp Analysis

489 Words | 2 Pages

The Feminization of Roaring Camp: Bret Harte and the American Woman 's Home, by Axel Nissen, is a criticism of Harte 's work, The Luck of Roaring Camp. The critic argues, the story serves as a parable, or a story with deeper meaning, the symbolism of Tommy Luck as a Christ-like figure, gives him the ability to transform miners into what everyone sees as a Victorian civilization, but this in turn leads the wilderness wipes them out I agree with Nissen because the the stories plot gives Tommy very Christ-like qualities that can make him have the ability to change the miners way of life to what would seem to be better. “... the father was unknown.” God is the father of Christ, but because no one can see God, it would make it seem like he had no father or that he was unknown, and Tommy had the same “problem.” “ The cabin assigned to “Tommy Luck”- or “The Luck,” as he was more frequently called- first showed signs of improvement.

Read More

Christ Figure In The Kite Runner

1202 Words | 5 Pages

A Christ figure is a character who own qualities or experiences and events similar to those of Jesus figure as he is portrayed in the new testament. Hassan in the kite runner develops these traits: • Hassan 's cleft lip resembles the scars that Jesus bore. • Jesus sacrifices himself for us. Hassan in the novel sacrifices himself many times. •Hassan 's forgiveness and good-hearted resembles Jesus '

Read More

More about The Shack Idolatry

Related Topics

Open Document