My sister and I have both just finished this book, following a singularly horrible family tragedy. The book is beautifully written, emotionally cathartic, and spiritually BIG, even if every detail in it does not match up with any of the theological beliefs held by ANY of the blue-million different denominations/religious groups in the world, each of whom believes THEIR way is the one/only/true way.

What this book did for my sister was particularly profound, because it gave her hope, both in THIS tragedy, but also in the 20-year-previous death of our mother. Young’s words that God had never left Missy as she was dying so horribly, so tragically….the WAY he wrote this, the LOVE from God helping her through it all….that gave my sister peace that all the words of all the (truly) well-meaning preachers/laity could not impart all these years. NONE of them could point her to God’s love and comfort in a manner convincingly enough even with Scripture (which we both deem as Holy). Young’s words DID. Interestingly, it is this revelation — from a source that does not PRETEND to be “authority” — it is this revelation that has put my sister back IN church, where she can finally face and “relationship” with a God that she no longer fails to understand.

Yes, the Bible IS God’s Word…..but man continues to limit God any time he tries to say that God can’t or doesn’t or WON’T speak to us in other ways/forms. God can do anything. I, for one, have never doubted that. And He has given ME a great gift with this book as I’ve watched the words in it open my sister’s heart back up after two decades. If He can raise up stones as children to Abraham if He so chooses (words in the Bible)–something that, since He chose not to do it, it would seem was included in the Bible to remind us that He can do whatever He pleases, even if we don’t understand it/agree with it/or think it’s too unusual to do–then He can most assuredly open our hearts with any words He chooses.

Your point that God rejected Jesus at crucifiction is well stated. He did reject him, but He never left him. I don’t think this will plant the seeds of wrong theology, as I have spoken to many readers of this book at lenght and not one of them said: “Wow! God and The Holy Spirit were crucified along WITH Jesus!” We first see them as a large black woman and an Asian woman…. If one is basing theology on a metaphor laiden, auto accident induced coma, fictional dream of a parable, God help us all.

Good thing God didn’t come out as a Pirate with a parrot on his shoulder. I’m sure there then would be arguments as to whether the parrot belongs in Christian theology in our future?

Peace.