What if our picture of God is more shaped by fear, punishment and control than by Jesus?

In this episode of I sit down with Paul Young, author of "The Shack", "Cross Roads", "Eve" and "Lies We Believe About God", to talk about his theology, his writing, his experiences of trauma and healing, and his forthcoming sequel, "Return to the Shack".

We get into some big questions, and Paul doesn't shy away from controversial answers.

Why does he reject retributive justice? Why does he believe “justice and mercy are two sides of the same coin”? Why does he think an angry God is our default setting? And why does he say that “vengeance doesn't heal anything”?

We also talk about capital punishment, divine judgement and what it means to be truly pro-life, including Paul's provocative argument that support for execution is incompatible with being pro-life. We explore the connection he sees between eternal conscious torment and the death penalty, and why he thinks many evangelicals don't have a God they can actually trust.

Paul also explains his understanding of Christian universalism (apokatastasis)—the redemption of all things—and how human agency fits into a theology in which no human being can ultimately be separated from God. We talk about sin, whether everyone is a child of God, and his conviction that “God has never harmed a human being, ever!”

Paul talks candidly about his experience of childhood abuse, his journey toward healing, the criticism he received over "The Shack", and why he believes “you don't come to healing in isolation.” He reflects on the pressure of being a writer, the temptation toward anxiety and control, and how his writing process developed.

We also discuss his role as a writer—which he describes as being a "translator"—his relationship with the Church Fathers, the strange ways Christians read the Bible, and why we can sometimes take Moses, talking snakes and talking donkeys more literally than we take Jesus.

And finally: what keeps Paul Young curious?

For Paul, one of the greatest defences of his theology isn't an argument: It's "the fruit" of his life.

Timestamps:
00:00 - Introducing Paul Young
02:05 - Was there pressure in writing "Return to the Shack"?
03:50 - Young's creative process and writing journey.
08:25 - Restorative versus retributive justice.
10:07 - Why are Christians obsessed with an angry God?
13:33 - Why do American Christians love the death penalty?
21:03 - How has Wm. Paul Young's theology changed?
25:10 - How does Wm. Paul Young respond to criticism?
30:47 - Paul's journey with Christian universalism and the redemption of all things (apokatastasis).
43:10 - What keeps Wm. Paul Young curious?
46:10 - The biggest defence of Paul Young's theology: his life!

#WmPaulYoung #TheShack #ReturnToTheShack #ChristianUniversalism #ChristianTheology #Theology #Faith #Apokatastasis


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