Brown Bag Book Club
The Brown Bag Book Club meets every third Saturday to discuss a chosen book. Our meetings are held 12 - 2 PM in the Activity Room of the Lodi Public Library. Feel free to bring a "brown bag" lunch.
Please Contact Us for more information.
Our
Next Meeting
Our next meeting is December 5, and we will be discussing The Shack, by William Paul Young.
Download the Flyer and Discussion Questions, or view them below.
Discussion Questions
1. Were you drawn in by the plot of The Shack?
2. Why do you think Mack's encounter with God took place at the shack? If God were to invite you somewhere, where would it be? (In other words, where is the center of your doubt and pain)?
3. Do you think suffering makes people closer to God or causes them to distance themselves from Him? What has been the pattern in your life?
4. Were you satisfied with God's answers to Mack about suffering? Do you struggle with believing God is good in light of all the tragedy in the world?
5. How is Young's description of God different from your concept of God? What parts of his description did you like and what parts didn't you like?
6. Did The Shack change any of your opinions about God or Christianity?
7. What were some of the things The Shack teaches about God, faith and life that you disagreed with?
8. Would you recommend The Shack to a friend?
9. Rate The Shack on a scale of 1 to 5.
10. How did reading this book affect your faith? Does it change, challenge, strengthen your image of God? Why is God portrayed as a woman, what reasons does God give Mack?
11. Does God answer convincingly the reason for the trinity?
12. Does the idea of God a character in the book, or God's first-person voice, bother you...or does it work within the context of The Shack's story?
13. Why did God let Missy die? Do you think The Shack answers convincingly the central question of theodicy, the existence of evil—or why, if there is a God, bad things happen to good people?
14. What does The Shack say about forgiveness—toward the self or toward those who have wronged you?
15. Young has been criticized for advocating lawlessness (p. 122) ...or universalism (p. 225)? Do you think that is a fair or unfair criticism?
16. Many readers find the first 4 chapters of The Shack almost too painful to read. Could they have been written in a way that would be less painful—without changing the book's message?
17. Does the book's ultimate message satisfy you? Is it possible to let go of control and certainty in life? Is it possible to live only in the present?
Future Discussions
Here's an upcoming look at what the Brown Bag Book Club will be discussing. Click any book cover for the flyer and Discussion Questions.
January 9, 2010
A Thousand Splendid Suns, |
January 30, 2010
The Uncommon Reader, |
Book Bytes
Read book reviews from the staff of the Lodi Public Library.