Calvary Chapel Termination Has Profound Implications
Lighthouse Trails regrets to report that on May 5th, Paul Smith, brother of Chuck Smith (the founder of the Calvary Chapel movement), was fired from his position in the Calvary Chapel (CCOF) organization during an unscheduled meeting that day. The motion to fire Paul Smith was made by board member Roger Wing and seconded by Chuck Smith's son-in-law, Brian Broderson. Other board members affirmed the motion, and Paul Smith was dismissed.
For some time now Paul Smith, who has been in full-time ministry since 1951, has been putting forth tireless efforts to help keep contemplative and emerging spirituality out of the Calvary Chapel movement. At times, this caused conflict with other Calvary Chapel figures who did not resonate with these efforts. This Lighthouse Trails report is being presented because of recent statements such as the following that give a biased view of Paul Smith's role at Calvary Chapel:
Smith's desire to codify and enforce not only the "Distinctives," but positions on such matters as "The Shack" and secondary doctrinal issues was at odds with other people in leadership and that eventually cost him his job. Smith was working out of a deep desire to see his brothers legacy remain intact and define what was and wasn't "Calvary Chapel." While I think his motives were pure they also brought a sense of restriction and censorship to many in the movement. (from a Reformed Calvinist pastor, formerly a Calvary Chapel pastor, who runs a blog called Phoenix Preacher)
Comments made on that site suggesting that Paul Smith's firing was warranted have prompted this Lighthouse Trails report. This is the story behind the story.
On May 2nd of 2006, Lighthouse Trails was contacted by someone who wishes to remain anonymous who explained that a book written by Chuck Smith Senior contained quotes by and references to contemplative and emerging figures. In our efforts to expose the contemplative/emerging movement, Lighthouse Trails reviewed the book then issued an article titled, "What Happened to the Calvary Chapel Book, When Storms Come?." The article stated that Chuck Smith's book When Storms Come contained quotes by and references to contemplative Catholic mystic Anthony DeMello, for one. DeMello is discussed in Ray Yungen's book, A Time of Departing. De Mello wrote the contemplative classic called Sadhana: A Way to God and in that book he says:
To silence the mind is an extremely difficult task. How hard it is to keep the mind from thinking, thinking, thinking, forever thinking, forever producing thoughts in a never-ending stream. Our Hindu masters in India have a saying: one thorn is removed by another. By this they mean that you will be wise to use one thought to rid yourself of all the other thoughts that crowd into your mind. One thought, one image, one phrase or sentence or word that your mind can be made to fasten on. (A Time of Departing, p. 75).
Prior to this first article, Lighthouse Trails had begun a working relationship with Roger Oakland who had been involved with the Calvary Chapel movement (teaching and evangelizing) for about twenty five years. We were in the early stages of contracting with Roger Oakland for a book on the emerging church.
On May 18th, Chuck Smith emailed Lighthouse Trails and stated:
[I have] prepared a position paper to be distributed to the Calvary Chapel pastors on the subject of the Emergent Church and its many divergent and unscriptural theological positions that trouble me greatly.
Chuck Smith also thanked Lighthouse Trails for sending him a copy of A Time of Departing, which he said he "read with interest," then added "[A Time of Departing] resonates with the concerns that I personally have concerning the direction that many ministries seem to be taking in their endeavor to unify all faiths. I do believe that straight is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and as Jesus said, He is that way, He is the truth, and the life, and no man can come to the Father but by Him."
Three days later, we reported that Calvary Chapel released a Position Paper, denouncing mystical practices (i.e., contemplative prayer) and the emerging church. A second Lighthouse Trails article discussed this move initiated by Chuck Smith Sr:
This weekend, a position paper addressed to pastors was posted on the Calvary Chapel website. The paper indicates that Calvary Chapel is taking a stand against contemplative spirituality and the emerging church and decrees that the title Calvary Chapel not be attached to such movements.
In the Position Paper, Calvary Chapel pastors were told not to use the Calvary Chapel title on their church name if they were going to go in the contemplative/emerging direction. On May 25, 2006, Lighthouse Trails released a follow-up article titled, "Calvary Chapel May Face Challenge in Upholding Position Paper". In the article, we quoted Roger Oakland regarding the Position Paper:
Calvary Chapel is at a critical point in the history of the movement. If clear correction is made, then the movement will go on and become a lighthouse in these last days. If nothing more happens than a written statement, and pastors and churches are permitted to carry the name Calvary Chapel but embrace contemplative, purpose driven, seeker friendly market driven ideas, the movement will break into various segments. There are many Calvary Chapel pastors who are asking for this kind of clear cut direction and want Calvary Chapel to remain what it once was.
On June 3, 2006, in our article titled, "Calvary Chapel May Set Precedent at This Week's Pastors Conference", we reported that Chuck Smith Jr, then pastor of Calvary Chapel Capo Beach, was officially no longer part of the Calvary Chapel movement because of his contemplative/emerging affinities. It appeared that Calvary Chapel was going to stand strong on their commitment to maintain biblical integrity, even though this was a very painful situation for family members. At that time, Paul Smith expressed his deep sadness at his nephew's decision to embrace contemplative/emerging spirituality. Our article also stated:
Calvary Chapel may be the first large ministry that has been directly influenced to actually denounce the false teachings of these movements. If Calvary Chapel stands firm on defending the gospel message and rejecting these heretical doctrines, it may be setting a precedent for other Christian ministries to do likewise. With organizations such as Purpose Driven, Zondervan, NavPress publishers, Willow Creek and Renovare all promoting contemplative spirituality and with many other ministries appearing to head that way, it is becoming less and less popular to do what Calvary Chapel has done. But it is a time in history when compromising the integrity of the gospel could actually help to unfold the greatest spiritual deception Christianity has ever seen.
Then on June 16, 2006, we issued a short notice titled "Calvary Chapel Rejects Purpose Driven and Emerging Spirituality". In an unexpected move, Calvary Chapel came out publicly against the Purpose Driven movement. Our posting stated:
This week a notice was placed on the Calvary Chapel Distribution website recalling Chuck Smith Sr's book, When Storms Come (which had been tampered with). The notice (no longer online) also stated: "The teaching and positions of Rick Warren have come into conflict with us at Calvary Chapel. Pastor Chuck has directed us to discontinue this product effective immediately."
Shortly thereafter, Calvary Distribution (the resource arm of Calvary Chapel) removed all Purpose Driven materials from their resource database. In the meantime, Roger Oakland was beginning to receive increased criticism for his stand against Purpose Driven and the emerging church. In a July 2006 article, he explained some of his concerns in an article titled, "Calvary Chapel and Purpose Driven". He told what he believed to be the main reasons why Calvary Chapel and Purpose Driven do not resonate with each other:
Why did Calvary Distribution remove Rick Warren's Purpose Driven books and related materials from their distribution? I believe these four reasons I have discussed are reasonable and a valid answer to that question:
Differences in Eschatology
Differences with regard to the Emerging Church
Differences with regard to contemplative prayer and mysticism
Differences with regard to church growth principles and beliefs.
Christianity has always been made up of strong leaders who take different positions. In this case, we see two well-known contemporary leaders going in two different directions. I also know that many Calvary Chapel pastors approved the decision and applauded Calvary Distribution when the Rick Warren materials were no longer being distributed.
Because there are some Calvary pastors who strongly disagree with this decision, it is very possible that in the future there will be a split of the Calvary Chapel movement. The pressures on young pastors today to conform to the current trends for the sake of having a successful big church are ever increasing.
Over the next several months, Roger Oakland wrote Faith Undone: the emerging church--a new reformation or an end-time deception. The book was released in the summer of 2007 and documents many irrefutable connections between some of today's most popular and influential proclaiming-Christian leaders: Rick Warren, Brian McLaren, Bob Buford, Peter Drucker, Richard Foster, Bill Hybels, Leith Anderson, and others. It also reveals the financial backing that was behind the birth of the current emerging church movement, showing that the movement wasn't just the "discontent grumblings of young people looking for answers" (back cover) but entailed a far more structured effort to bring about a new mystical spirituality that would ultimately reject the very core of the Bible's main tenets. Because the book connected dots between the emerging church and highly regarded leaders, needless to say it rocked the boat.
Over the next few months after Faith Undone was released, Roger Oakland spoke in different locations around the world, warning believers about the new spirituality that had entered the Christian church. Then two days after he posted an article called Icabod, Roger was promptly removed from Calvary Chapel's radio network/station, KWVE. In our article "Roger Oakland Removed from Calvary Chapel Radio", we stated:
Lighthouse Trails contacted KWVE on November 19th [2007] to confirm the removal [of Roger Oakland] and to find out the reason this took place. Richard McIntosh, KWVE station manager, confirmed the removal and told Lighthouse Trails that while he knew the reason, he would not comment.
During this time period, Roger Oakland and Lighthouse Trails were receiving angry and threatening phone calls and emails by unidentified persons. Nevertheless, we knew we must stay the course.
While the long-time relationship between Roger Oakland and Calvary Chapel became highly strained, in a meeting between Roger Oakland and Chuck Smith, Pastor Smith affirmed his support of Roger Oakland and his ministry. It should be noted too that on a number of occasions, Chuck Smith has expressed his support for the work at Lighthouse Trails. And to our knowledge, he has never reneged on his original statements to keep contemplative/emerging/Purpose Driven out of the Calvary Chapel movement. In fact, Chuck Smith invited former New Age follower-turned-Christian Warren Smith to speak at the 2008 Calvary Chapel Senior Pastors Conference in Murrieta, California. Warren Smith delivered a powerful exhortation to pastors on June 5th, 2008, encouraging Calvary Chapel pastors to stand during these times of great spiritual deception that the Bible warns will take place in the last days.1 A large number of the 800 pastors in attendance gave Warren Smith a standing ovation, indicating that many Calvary Chapel pastors resonate with Warren Smith's message, which is the same message as Roger Oakland, Ray Yungen, and Lighthouse Trails.
But as with most denominations and Christian organizations, there are indications that contemplative/emergent/Purpose Driven is continuing to influence the Calvary Chapel movement contrary to the efforts and statements of Chuck Smith in 2006. For instance, Calvary Chapel speaker Gayle Erwin has come out strong in support of the New Age sympathizing book, The Shack. Erwin's endorsement for William Paul Young's New York Times best-seller sits on The Shack website, and says:
Riveting, with twists that defy your expectations while teaching powerful theological lessons without patronizing. I was crying by page 100. You cannot read it without your heart becoming involved. [emphasis added]
Even though a statement was issued by Calvary Chapel denouncing The Shack, which is reported in our article "New Age Similarities, Popularity Continues, and Calvary Chapel Gives Official Statement" , Gayle Erwin continues speaking at Calvary Chapel churches today.
In the summer of 2008, Lighthouse Trails issued a controversial article titled, "Greg Laurie Connects Purpose Driven to a Move of God - Gives Financial Support". Laurie, one of the most popular Calvary Chapel pastors had given financial support to Rick Warren's New York crusade, and at the same time, called the Purpose Driven movement a move of God. This was disheartening for those who hoped that Calvary Chapel was truly going to stand strong against the heretical teachings of the day. Later, Greg Laurie's ministry issued a statement denying that they had financially supported the crusade, but Lighthouse Trails spoke with crusade organizers who had not only placed the information on their website but confirmed it to us over the phone. In September 2008, we issued a follow-up report: Warren, Blanchard, Hybels, Laurie, Buford - Launching New York Leadership Center.
Concerns over the direction that the Calvary Chapel movement may go after Chuck Smith is no longer heading the organization have continued to grow. And now with Paul Smith, who strongly advocated and supported his brother's hopes of having a NON-contemplative/emerging/Purpose Driven movement, those concerns are mounting. Just two weeks ago, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa (home church of Chuck Smith Sr.) hosted a Pure Worship Conference, which included worship leaders from the nearby Rock Harbor church. Rock Harbor has shown signs that it is being significantly influenced by the emerging church, including having had their youth group study New Age sympathizer Rob Bell's book, Velvet Elvis , for three weeks. A few months ago, Rock Harbor held a meeting due to concerns by congregants as to whether they were going emergent or not. Approximately 700 people showed up!
A second event is scheduled between Rock Harbor and Calvary Chapel at the end of May, Movement 2009. The conference will take place at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and will feature Rock Harbor's teaching pastor Mike Erre and worship team. Mike Erre is the author of a new book, Death by Church: Rescuing Jesus from His Followers; Recapturing God's Hope for His People. The book is filled with kingdom-now theology and numerous favorable references to and quotes by people like Brian McLaren, Dallas Willard, and other contemplative, emerging figures. Based on this book alone, it is accurate to say that Erre has all the earmarks of an emerging church pastor. In Erre's 2008 book, Why Guys Need God, he quotes and references a number of contemplative mystic-proponents: Richard Rohr, Larry Crabb, Pete Scazzero, Rob Bell, and others. It is very clear by Erre's remarks about Richard Rohr (whom he references over a half a dozen times in the book) that he esteems him highly. And yet Rohr's spirituality would be in the same camp as someone like Matthew Fox (author of The Coming of the Cosmic Christ) who believes in pantheism and panentheism. Rohr wrote the foreword to a 2007 book called How Big is Your God? by Jesuit priest (from India) Paul Coutinho. In Coutinho's book, he describes an interspiritual community where people of all religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity) worship the same God. How ironic that Paul Smith's firing is sandwiched between two Rock Harbor events at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. Members at that church should be very, very concerned.
Recently we reported on Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa's high school in which a teacher there asked his class to read, review, and study How to Stay Christian in College written by Protestant-turned-Catholic J. Budziszewski . The book has references in the back of some editions to mystic emergent Tony Jones, and Budziszewski himself is a proponent of contemplative prayer practices. Our article "Concerned Family Asks Legitimate Questions of Christian Leaders" illustrates what many families are going through in trying to protect their children and teens from spiritual deception. Christian parents must realize that the souls of their youth are at stake.
Paul Smith came on board to Calvary Chapel about four years ago to help with what could possibly be a sinking ship. Paul believed that the only answer for the movement was to hold to the basic tenets of biblical Christianity. As he learned of the various emerging/contemplative/Purpose Driven influences pouring into Calvary Chapel, he often spoke up but was also often received with resistance--until last Tuesday, when an impromptu meeting in the middle of the day brought his efforts to a halt.
When we spoke with Paul Smith this week, he was packing his things, preparing to leave Calvary Chapel. At approximately 80 years old, his mind sharp and his focus straightforward, Paul isn't sure where he will go from here. He isn't sure of the future of Calvary Chapel anymore either. But he is sure of this - the One whom He seeks to serve is faithful and will in these last days draw a line in the sand and ask every true believer to step on the side of biblical truth. Paul sent us an email a few days after his dismissal. We asked him if we could post part of it, and he agreed:
I have enjoyed serving our Calvary Chapel pastors through Calvary Chapel Outreach Fellowship. Calvary Chapel is a wonderful and surprising work of God. It has been used by God to hold fast to simply teaching the Word of God, book-by-book and verse-by-verse, the whole counsel of God.... It is my prayer that we hold fast to the sufficiency of the Word of God and the sufficiency of the Holy Spirit to guide this blessed ministry of God. My heart's desire is to follow the way of my Lord Jesus Christ. I like what the prophet Isaiah and David have to say about the true Judge who would come and dwell among us and His method and His heart in righteous judgment.
Isa 11:1-5: And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD ; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD : and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.
This situation with Calvary Chapel is not isolated. Nearly every evangelical denomination and organization of any size in North America is going in this same direction to one degree or another. One key factor in why this is happening so rapidly is that Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries are heavily saturated with contemplative/emerging spirituality. Biola University, for instance, where many Calvary Chapel pastors have attended and graduated, is deeply involved in this "new spirituality."
The spirituality of the desert fathers has gotten a grip on the current theological thought and practice like no one could have predicted just a few years ago, thanks largely in part to the emerging church and the work of Rick Warren and Bill Hybels. Remember, mysticism is what gives the emerging church its momentum. Holistic doctor and author Dr. Rick Levy revealed that in 2008 17 million Americans were practicing meditation (eastern-style). That number is up from 10 million in 2003. At that rate, in another five years it will probably be somewhere between 20 and 25 million. There is no doubt that this surge of mysticism will have a profound effect on virtually every North American family. This statistic is sobering when you consider what Richard Kirby observed:
The meditation of advanced occultists is identical with the prayer of advanced mystics; it is no accident that both traditions use the same word for the highest reaches of their respective activities:contemplation. (Mission of Mysticism, p.7)
Our prayer at Lighthouse Trails is that everyone involved in this issue would take that statement seriously. Mysticism (i.e., the occult) is overtaking all segments of society, and this means that the world is falling under the spell of sorceries (magical arts) that according to the book of Revelation will deceive all nations (Revelation 18:23).
We close with this:In Alan Jones' book, Reimagining Christianity, he talks about a mystical spirituality in which not only all the world's religions will be united but all humanity will be united whether religious or not. On the back cover of Jones' book, Brian McLaren claims that this view "stimulates" and "encourages" him "deeply" and that Christianity is moving away from "dogma" (doctrine) toward "authentic spirituality" (mysticism).
With the termination of Paul Smith and the embracing of and teaming up with an emerging church, is this "authentic spirituality" the direction that Calvary Chapel is going to go? The answer to that question is becoming clearer all the time.
In His grace,
Editors at Lighthouse Trails Research
May 15, 2009
May 14, 2009
A.W. Tozer: The Word and the Testimony
The Word and the Testimony
“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies … 2 Pet. 2:1
Whatever it may be in our Christian experience that originates outside of Scriptures should, for that very reason, be suspect until it can be shown to be in accord with them.
If it should be found to be contrary to the Word of revealed truth no true Christian will accept it as being from God. However high the emotional content, no experience can be proved to be genuine unless we can find chapter and verse authority for it in Scriptures. “To the word and to the testimony” must always be the last and final proof.
Whatever is new or singular should also be viewed with caution until it can furnish scriptural proof of its validity. Thoughout the twentieth century quite a number of unscriptural notions have gained acceptance among Christians by claiming that they were among truths that were to be revealed in the last days.
The truth is that the Bible does not teach that there will be new light and advanced spiritual experiences in the latter days; it teaches the exact opposite! Nothing in Daniel or the New Testament epistles can be tortured into advocating the idea that we of the end of the Christian era shall enjoy light that was not known at its beginning.
Beware of any man who claims to be wiser than the apostles or holier than the martyrs of the Early Church. The best way to deal with him is to rise and leave his presence!”
A W Towzer
“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies … 2 Pet. 2:1
Whatever it may be in our Christian experience that originates outside of Scriptures should, for that very reason, be suspect until it can be shown to be in accord with them.
If it should be found to be contrary to the Word of revealed truth no true Christian will accept it as being from God. However high the emotional content, no experience can be proved to be genuine unless we can find chapter and verse authority for it in Scriptures. “To the word and to the testimony” must always be the last and final proof.
Whatever is new or singular should also be viewed with caution until it can furnish scriptural proof of its validity. Thoughout the twentieth century quite a number of unscriptural notions have gained acceptance among Christians by claiming that they were among truths that were to be revealed in the last days.
The truth is that the Bible does not teach that there will be new light and advanced spiritual experiences in the latter days; it teaches the exact opposite! Nothing in Daniel or the New Testament epistles can be tortured into advocating the idea that we of the end of the Christian era shall enjoy light that was not known at its beginning.
Beware of any man who claims to be wiser than the apostles or holier than the martyrs of the Early Church. The best way to deal with him is to rise and leave his presence!”
A W Towzer
May 13, 2009
The Shack - Father-goddess Rising
More on 'The Shack'...
Many are crediting The Shack, the novel by William P. Young, with revolutionizing their faith. With themes of overcoming loss, working through anger, and restored relationship between man and God, Young's novel has excited many within the Body of Christ.
Young has appeared on CBN, and has garnered fans across the country. The Shack, continues to sell briskly. Yet, in the midst of such enthusiasm, does The Shack, glorify Jesus Christ--or contradict the Bible with a false image of the Lord our God?
The novel's main character, Mack Philips, has lost his daughter. She has been murdered, her bloodied dress found in an isolated shack. Four years later Mack receives an invitation from God to spend time with the Trinity in the very shack where the dress was found.
Nowhere in the Bible do Father, Son, and Holy Spirit simultaneously assume physical forms on earth. The Shack, however, portrays Jesus as a carpenter, the Holy Spirit as an Asian woman, and God the Father as a large black woman named ... Papa.
Much like AA's "higher power," The Shack's, deity comes to Mack in a form he is willing to accept. While the novel's feminization of the Lord is as trendy as it is Babylonian, the reader rapidly becomes used to descriptions of God as "she" and "her." At one point the book's version of Jesus praises the fictional Father-goddess, exclaiming, "Isn't she great?"
Malachi 3:6 states, "For I, the Lord, do not change." God is Spirit. In the entire Bible there is not one single reference to Father, Son, or Holy Spirit--or to any of His angels--as female. It is probably not wise, then, to go beyond what has been presented in Scripture.
Unfortunately, this seems a frequent occurrence in The Shack.The Father-goddess character tells Mack she appears in female form "to help keep you from falling back so easily into your religious conditioning." The author and his publishing team apparently assume Christians believe the Lord is an old white man with a beard, and have produced the book in part to help straighten us out.
There is an apparent dismissal of the importance of Scripture, which is reflected in slippery theology found throughout the novel. Young writes, "Nobody wanted God in a box, just in a book. Especially an expensive one bound in leather with gilt edges, or was that guilt edges?" Guilt edges?
The Father-goddess of The Shack, it seems, is never about guilt or punishment. She benignly informs Mack, "I don't need to punish people for sin. Sin is its own punishment, devouring people from the inside. It's not my purpose to punish it; it's my joy to cure it."
That sounds wonderful. And, yes, sin enslaves. However, the novel's deity contradicts the Bible. Jesus will "be dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction..." (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9)
Although most sermons these days skirt the issue, Christians receive punishment during our time on earth. "For those whom the Lord loves he disciplines, and he scourges every son whom he receives. It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?" (Hebrews12:6-7)
But, this is not the message of the Father-goddess, simply because this is not the God of Scripture. An excellent writer, Young plays to emotion and touches on legitimate hurts and concerns. The author excels at imbuing his deity with attributes of love, forgiveness, and mercy, and this is what many people have responded to.
Increasingly in novels and movies the Lord is blithely used as one of the characters, and given words from the mouth of man. In this sense, the author of The Shack, is simply following the culture.
But something else is going on here.
Universal Reconciliation (UR) is the belief that Jesus' sacrifice allows Christians and non-Christians to spend eternity with God. In other words, in UR theology, everybody goes to heaven, not just followers of Jesus. Some in this camp even believe this includes the devil and his demons.
Publisher Wayne Jacobsen acknowledges that UR was included in earlier versions of The Shack. Jacobsen explains:
While some of that was in earlier versions because of the author's partiality at the time to some aspects of what people call UR, I made it clear at the outset that I didn't embrace UR and didn't want to be part of a project that promoted it.
So why did Jacobsen proceed to join forces with Young? He writes:
To me that was the beauty of the collaboration ... the author would say that some of that dialogue significantly affected his views. ... Holding him to the conclusions he may have embraced years earlier would be unfair to the ongoing process of God in his life and theology.
Perhaps, but this allegedly former theology even now seems to explain some of the content of the book.
The Bible clearly teaches the only way to God the Father is through Jesus, who loved us enough to die for us. Early in The Shack, Mack's daughter asks if the Great Spirit, the Native American god, is another name for the Father of Jesus. Mack tells her ... yes. He may as well have told her that Allah (or any other false patriarchal god) is also the Father of Jesus.
Of course, if everybody is going to heaven because of UR, what does it matter? God, Great Spirit, Allah, what's the difference?
His daughter asks the question because Mack tells the story of an Indian princess who willingly died so her people could be delivered of an illness. According to an Indian prophecy, it could be ended only through her sacrifice. The author states, "After praying and giving herself to the Great Spirit, she fulfilled the prophecy by jumping without hesitation to her death on the rocks below."
When his daughter calls the Great Spirit "mean" for making both Jesus and the princess die, Mack never clarifies that Jesus' Father is not the Great Spirit, or that God the Father has nothing to do with this pagan legend.
Does the author still have UR leanings? In his article, 'The Beauty of Ambiguity,' it is not his character Mack, but Young himself, who speaks to the Father-goddess. He denies being a universalist, and proclaims "faith in Jesus is the only way into your embrace."
She asks, "I take it that it wouldn't bother you if I decided to save every human being that ever lived?"
"Nope. I actually hope you've figured a way to do just that," he replies.
Wait a minute. If Young is still hoping God somehow ends up saving everybody, well, that is Universal Reconciliation. And hoping UR might happen directly contradicts Jesus Christ:
Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. (Matthew7:13-14)
Although Young then proceeds to voice acceptance of the reality of hell, he complains to his fictional Father-goddess:
...why couldn't you have made things clear? People go to the Bible and find all these ways to disagree with each other ... Everybody seems to want to acquire their little piece of doctrinal territory ... Some find support for Universal Reconciliation; some find proofs for eternal torment in hell...
Young continues with his list. Issues run the gamut from Calvinism to eschatology and, having inserted Universal Reconciliation into the mix, his fictional Father-goddess never corrects him. No surprise there. Is this perhaps an attempt to at least infer valid consideration of UR by including it amongst a hodge-podge of doctrinal concerns?
Incredibly, Young's Father-goddess clarifies (?) that she made much of the Bible ambiguous on purpose! That the author, or any person, would dare present doctrinal confusion as the intended plan of God--and via a fictional character at that--is chilling. But, that's the way it is these days.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:3)
It's going to get worse. Goddess worship, false christs, and many other heresies will continue to rise. Movies, novels, and TV will become increasingly blasphemous.
Readers of this novel would do well to examine Biblical teaching about the Trinity, sin, repentance, communication with the dead, and much else.
Many in the Body of Christ have run to get a copy of The Shack. Far better, brothers and sisters, to just run.
John Lanagan
Free-lance writer
Many are crediting The Shack, the novel by William P. Young, with revolutionizing their faith. With themes of overcoming loss, working through anger, and restored relationship between man and God, Young's novel has excited many within the Body of Christ.
Young has appeared on CBN, and has garnered fans across the country. The Shack, continues to sell briskly. Yet, in the midst of such enthusiasm, does The Shack, glorify Jesus Christ--or contradict the Bible with a false image of the Lord our God?
The novel's main character, Mack Philips, has lost his daughter. She has been murdered, her bloodied dress found in an isolated shack. Four years later Mack receives an invitation from God to spend time with the Trinity in the very shack where the dress was found.
Nowhere in the Bible do Father, Son, and Holy Spirit simultaneously assume physical forms on earth. The Shack, however, portrays Jesus as a carpenter, the Holy Spirit as an Asian woman, and God the Father as a large black woman named ... Papa.
Much like AA's "higher power," The Shack's, deity comes to Mack in a form he is willing to accept. While the novel's feminization of the Lord is as trendy as it is Babylonian, the reader rapidly becomes used to descriptions of God as "she" and "her." At one point the book's version of Jesus praises the fictional Father-goddess, exclaiming, "Isn't she great?"
Malachi 3:6 states, "For I, the Lord, do not change." God is Spirit. In the entire Bible there is not one single reference to Father, Son, or Holy Spirit--or to any of His angels--as female. It is probably not wise, then, to go beyond what has been presented in Scripture.
Unfortunately, this seems a frequent occurrence in The Shack.The Father-goddess character tells Mack she appears in female form "to help keep you from falling back so easily into your religious conditioning." The author and his publishing team apparently assume Christians believe the Lord is an old white man with a beard, and have produced the book in part to help straighten us out.
There is an apparent dismissal of the importance of Scripture, which is reflected in slippery theology found throughout the novel. Young writes, "Nobody wanted God in a box, just in a book. Especially an expensive one bound in leather with gilt edges, or was that guilt edges?" Guilt edges?
The Father-goddess of The Shack, it seems, is never about guilt or punishment. She benignly informs Mack, "I don't need to punish people for sin. Sin is its own punishment, devouring people from the inside. It's not my purpose to punish it; it's my joy to cure it."
That sounds wonderful. And, yes, sin enslaves. However, the novel's deity contradicts the Bible. Jesus will "be dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction..." (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9)
Although most sermons these days skirt the issue, Christians receive punishment during our time on earth. "For those whom the Lord loves he disciplines, and he scourges every son whom he receives. It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?" (Hebrews12:6-7)
But, this is not the message of the Father-goddess, simply because this is not the God of Scripture. An excellent writer, Young plays to emotion and touches on legitimate hurts and concerns. The author excels at imbuing his deity with attributes of love, forgiveness, and mercy, and this is what many people have responded to.
Increasingly in novels and movies the Lord is blithely used as one of the characters, and given words from the mouth of man. In this sense, the author of The Shack, is simply following the culture.
But something else is going on here.
Universal Reconciliation (UR) is the belief that Jesus' sacrifice allows Christians and non-Christians to spend eternity with God. In other words, in UR theology, everybody goes to heaven, not just followers of Jesus. Some in this camp even believe this includes the devil and his demons.
Publisher Wayne Jacobsen acknowledges that UR was included in earlier versions of The Shack. Jacobsen explains:
While some of that was in earlier versions because of the author's partiality at the time to some aspects of what people call UR, I made it clear at the outset that I didn't embrace UR and didn't want to be part of a project that promoted it.
So why did Jacobsen proceed to join forces with Young? He writes:
To me that was the beauty of the collaboration ... the author would say that some of that dialogue significantly affected his views. ... Holding him to the conclusions he may have embraced years earlier would be unfair to the ongoing process of God in his life and theology.
Perhaps, but this allegedly former theology even now seems to explain some of the content of the book.
The Bible clearly teaches the only way to God the Father is through Jesus, who loved us enough to die for us. Early in The Shack, Mack's daughter asks if the Great Spirit, the Native American god, is another name for the Father of Jesus. Mack tells her ... yes. He may as well have told her that Allah (or any other false patriarchal god) is also the Father of Jesus.
Of course, if everybody is going to heaven because of UR, what does it matter? God, Great Spirit, Allah, what's the difference?
His daughter asks the question because Mack tells the story of an Indian princess who willingly died so her people could be delivered of an illness. According to an Indian prophecy, it could be ended only through her sacrifice. The author states, "After praying and giving herself to the Great Spirit, she fulfilled the prophecy by jumping without hesitation to her death on the rocks below."
When his daughter calls the Great Spirit "mean" for making both Jesus and the princess die, Mack never clarifies that Jesus' Father is not the Great Spirit, or that God the Father has nothing to do with this pagan legend.
Does the author still have UR leanings? In his article, 'The Beauty of Ambiguity,' it is not his character Mack, but Young himself, who speaks to the Father-goddess. He denies being a universalist, and proclaims "faith in Jesus is the only way into your embrace."
She asks, "I take it that it wouldn't bother you if I decided to save every human being that ever lived?"
"Nope. I actually hope you've figured a way to do just that," he replies.
Wait a minute. If Young is still hoping God somehow ends up saving everybody, well, that is Universal Reconciliation. And hoping UR might happen directly contradicts Jesus Christ:
Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. (Matthew7:13-14)
Although Young then proceeds to voice acceptance of the reality of hell, he complains to his fictional Father-goddess:
...why couldn't you have made things clear? People go to the Bible and find all these ways to disagree with each other ... Everybody seems to want to acquire their little piece of doctrinal territory ... Some find support for Universal Reconciliation; some find proofs for eternal torment in hell...
Young continues with his list. Issues run the gamut from Calvinism to eschatology and, having inserted Universal Reconciliation into the mix, his fictional Father-goddess never corrects him. No surprise there. Is this perhaps an attempt to at least infer valid consideration of UR by including it amongst a hodge-podge of doctrinal concerns?
Incredibly, Young's Father-goddess clarifies (?) that she made much of the Bible ambiguous on purpose! That the author, or any person, would dare present doctrinal confusion as the intended plan of God--and via a fictional character at that--is chilling. But, that's the way it is these days.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:3)
It's going to get worse. Goddess worship, false christs, and many other heresies will continue to rise. Movies, novels, and TV will become increasingly blasphemous.
Readers of this novel would do well to examine Biblical teaching about the Trinity, sin, repentance, communication with the dead, and much else.
Many in the Body of Christ have run to get a copy of The Shack. Far better, brothers and sisters, to just run.
John Lanagan
Free-lance writer
May 6, 2009
The Shack's Wayne Jacobsen Resonates with Contemplative and Emerging Writers
Contemplative Spirituality: A belief system that uses ancient mystical practices to induce altered states of consciousness (the silence) and is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often wrapped in Christian terminology. The premise of contemplative spirituality is pantheistic (God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all). Common terms used for this movement are "spiritual formation," "the silence," "the stillness," "ancient-wisdom," "spiritual disciplines," and many others.
William Paul Young is the official author of The Shack, but Wayne Jacobsen is one of its editors. According to a New York Times article, Jacobsen spent 16 months helping to rewrite the first draft. This would leave the logical conclusion that Jacobsen had some significant influence on the final outcome of the book. And with that in mind, readers need to be aware that Jacobsen is a proponent of emerging and contemplative books and authors. It's an important thing to know because Christian figures are heralding the book, helping it to remain on the New York Times Best Seller list. Those that understand this book--its obvious and its not so obvious messages--know that it's important to issue a warning. And the fact that popular Christian authors like Eugene Petersen and Gayle Erwin (The Jesus Style) endorse the book means that unsuspecting, well-intentioned Christians will buy the book, and if they follow the advice at the end of the book, will buy other copies of the book and give them away to friends.
On Wayne Jacobsen's website, LifeStream, he carries a list of books he calls "Favorite Reading," which he says have "most shaped" his spiritual "journey." Of the twenty some books listed, there is a hodge podge of both contemplative authors and emerging church authors. These include Brennan Manning, Philip Yancey, Larry Crabb, Dallas Willard, Mike Yaconelli, Don Miller, Jim Palmer, and Anne Lamott.
Many of our readers may not be familiar with Jim Palmer and Anne Lamott. Palmer is the author of Divine Nobodies and is listed with Petersen and Erwin on The Shack website as an endorser. Publisher's Weekly says Palmer is an "emerging church leader" ... that "touched a nerve with readers who gravitate toward cutting-edge evangelical writers like Brian McLaren and Donald Miller." On Palmer's blog, under his links section, he has a link to contemplative activist Richard Rohr. Rohr's spirituality would be in the same camp as someone like Matthew Fox (author of The Coming of the Cosmic Christ) who believes in pantheism and panentheism. Rohr wrote the foreword to a 2007 book called How Big is Your God? by Jesuit priest (from India) Paul Coutinho. In Coutinho's book, he describes an interspiritual community where people of all religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity) worship the same God. For Wayne Jacobsen to say that Jim Palmer is one of the authors who "most shaped" his spiritual "journey" is very telling.
Anne Lamott is best known for her book, Traveling Mercies, and she resonates with Oprah's New Age meditation author, Elizabeth Gilbert (Lamott's endorsement of the book sits on the back cover of Eat, Pray, Love.
Jacobsen's open affinity with these contemplative and emerging authors may well have influenced the final draft of The Shack. The book refers to God as "the ground of all being" that "dwells in, around, and through all things--ultimately emerging as the real" (p. 112)--this is the ripe fruit of contemplative spirituality. One can find this language and definition of God in the writings of John Shelby Spong and Marcus Borg, and the concept overflows within the contemplative/emerging camp. This description of God does not mean that God upholds everything; it means that God is the essence of all that exists (in other words, He dwells in all humans and all creation). New Age sympathizer, Sue Monk Kidd, would agree with The Shack's definition of God--in her book, First Light, she says God is the graffiti on the building (p. 98), and so would John of the Cross who said God is the mountain, forest, rivers, etc. 4
The Shack's William Young also resonates with Anne Lamott. In the back of the book in the Acknowledgements, Young says he is "grateful" for Lamott.
Lighthouse Trails' concern is that the theology of The Shack is the Christianity of the future, a Christianity that has been defined and proclaimed by those such as Brian McLaren, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, and many many writers who would share these spiritual propensities. For instance, Nouwen stated that:
Prayer is "soul work" because our souls are those sacred centers where all is one, ... It is in the heart of God that we can come to the full realization of the unity of all that is. (ATOD, chapter 3, endnote #41)
This is just another way of saying what Young says in The Shack that God is "the ground of all being" that "dwells in, around, and through all things."
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com
William Paul Young is the official author of The Shack, but Wayne Jacobsen is one of its editors. According to a New York Times article, Jacobsen spent 16 months helping to rewrite the first draft. This would leave the logical conclusion that Jacobsen had some significant influence on the final outcome of the book. And with that in mind, readers need to be aware that Jacobsen is a proponent of emerging and contemplative books and authors. It's an important thing to know because Christian figures are heralding the book, helping it to remain on the New York Times Best Seller list. Those that understand this book--its obvious and its not so obvious messages--know that it's important to issue a warning. And the fact that popular Christian authors like Eugene Petersen and Gayle Erwin (The Jesus Style) endorse the book means that unsuspecting, well-intentioned Christians will buy the book, and if they follow the advice at the end of the book, will buy other copies of the book and give them away to friends.
On Wayne Jacobsen's website, LifeStream, he carries a list of books he calls "Favorite Reading," which he says have "most shaped" his spiritual "journey." Of the twenty some books listed, there is a hodge podge of both contemplative authors and emerging church authors. These include Brennan Manning, Philip Yancey, Larry Crabb, Dallas Willard, Mike Yaconelli, Don Miller, Jim Palmer, and Anne Lamott.
Many of our readers may not be familiar with Jim Palmer and Anne Lamott. Palmer is the author of Divine Nobodies and is listed with Petersen and Erwin on The Shack website as an endorser. Publisher's Weekly says Palmer is an "emerging church leader" ... that "touched a nerve with readers who gravitate toward cutting-edge evangelical writers like Brian McLaren and Donald Miller." On Palmer's blog, under his links section, he has a link to contemplative activist Richard Rohr. Rohr's spirituality would be in the same camp as someone like Matthew Fox (author of The Coming of the Cosmic Christ) who believes in pantheism and panentheism. Rohr wrote the foreword to a 2007 book called How Big is Your God? by Jesuit priest (from India) Paul Coutinho. In Coutinho's book, he describes an interspiritual community where people of all religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity) worship the same God. For Wayne Jacobsen to say that Jim Palmer is one of the authors who "most shaped" his spiritual "journey" is very telling.
Anne Lamott is best known for her book, Traveling Mercies, and she resonates with Oprah's New Age meditation author, Elizabeth Gilbert (Lamott's endorsement of the book sits on the back cover of Eat, Pray, Love.
Jacobsen's open affinity with these contemplative and emerging authors may well have influenced the final draft of The Shack. The book refers to God as "the ground of all being" that "dwells in, around, and through all things--ultimately emerging as the real" (p. 112)--this is the ripe fruit of contemplative spirituality. One can find this language and definition of God in the writings of John Shelby Spong and Marcus Borg, and the concept overflows within the contemplative/emerging camp. This description of God does not mean that God upholds everything; it means that God is the essence of all that exists (in other words, He dwells in all humans and all creation). New Age sympathizer, Sue Monk Kidd, would agree with The Shack's definition of God--in her book, First Light, she says God is the graffiti on the building (p. 98), and so would John of the Cross who said God is the mountain, forest, rivers, etc. 4
The Shack's William Young also resonates with Anne Lamott. In the back of the book in the Acknowledgements, Young says he is "grateful" for Lamott.
Lighthouse Trails' concern is that the theology of The Shack is the Christianity of the future, a Christianity that has been defined and proclaimed by those such as Brian McLaren, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, and many many writers who would share these spiritual propensities. For instance, Nouwen stated that:
Prayer is "soul work" because our souls are those sacred centers where all is one, ... It is in the heart of God that we can come to the full realization of the unity of all that is. (ATOD, chapter 3, endnote #41)
This is just another way of saying what Young says in The Shack that God is "the ground of all being" that "dwells in, around, and through all things."
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com
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