Depths of the Soul in The Shack
William P Young Rejects Naval Gazing
On Wednesday, July 2008 a post, in the blog Herescope, connected the God, Elousia, in The Shack to the archetypal Black Madonna that is found around the globe. The post references an article by Matthew Fox: The Return of the Black Madonna: A Sign of Our Times or How the Black Madonna Is Shaking Us Up for the Twenty-First Century.
In his article, Fox describes the Madonna as being an archetype and seems to invite her followers to spend time naval gazing. William P. Young’s black, female, Godhead in The Shack does invite believers into the darkness, however, she rebukes the idea of naval gazing.
A Challenge to Naval Gazing
When Fox discusses this challenge it sounds similar to his challenge calling followers of the Black Madonna into darkness, however, there is a slight shift in focus. Whereas the first challenge seems to focus primarily on walking into darkness, this challenge seems to be more interested in indulging in the dark depths of pain and making it a permanent dwelling place rather than moving on. Granted grief must be dealt with and not rushed. In Scripture, Jesus grieves for the pain of those around Him. He grieves deeply and thoroughly and then He heals and restores. However, for Fox, both personal and corporate pain and grief are to be indulged indefinitely. He suggests that in these depths awe, wonder, delight, and joy will be found.
Fox says that the Black Madonna calls us to live “spiritually and radically on this planet and not superficially and unthinkingly and oblivious to the grace that has begotten us in so many ways.” Fox’s challenge is one that Christians can appreciate as being very similar to the radical grace and lifestyle that Christ calls us too. However he goes on to suggest that the Black Madonna calls us to the dark depths of the psyche which are “surely dark and to the depths of the sky that have also been rediscovered for all their darkness. Black holes abound in space as well as in the mysterious breadth of our souls. We need to explore them. They too are fecund. They have much to teach us.”
Young Spreads Light
Young’s response to the deepest darkness in life, the darkness that both individuals and society repress, is that light must be shed on it. He has Jesus say “The darkness hides the true size of fears and lies and regrets…The truth is they are more shadow than reality, so they seem bigger in the dark. When the light shines into the places they live inside you, you start to see them for what they are.” (175)
When Mack and Jesus continue their conversation. Mack wonders why humans spend so much time resisting Jesus. Jesus responds “It’s all part of the timing of grace, Mack…If the universe contained only one human being, the timing would be rather simple. But add just one more…Each choice ripples out through time and relationships, bouncing off of other choices.” (178) Simply stated, Jesus tells Mack that humans must trust God’s timing.
In this instance, Young turns away from the darkness suggested by the Black Madonna and heeds Christ’s command “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12 Rather than inviting Mack to walk into the darkness where his monsters live, Jesus says to shine the light on them and they will flee.
Young, William P. The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity. Windblown Media. 2007
Read more about William P. Young and The Shack at Suite101.
Cover of the Book The Shack
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