Da Vinci Code controversy

 

Quite a relevant link

 

Vatican >> priest >> no sex >> premature ejaculation under their robes and thinking about their fictional gods

 

Elementary my Dear Watson

 

 I'm inclined to agree!

 

But for the record, I enjoyed the book and will be enjoying the movie shortly.

 

As the resident minister (LOL), it might surprise you to find that I agree with the majority: tempest in a teapot.  Indeed, I will go further and state that any "Christian" who gets "bent out of shape" every time an alternative/controversial view of any aspect of Christianity comes along - The Da Vinci Code, The Last Temptation of Christ, The Life of Brian, Dogma, Mary, etc. - shows a weakness of faith.  (Indeed, one could argue that such a reaction lacks humility, forgiveness and patience - three of the most important tenets of Jesus' ministry.)  Those with strong faith can "take a joke," or simply "accept," and not get their back up in such cases.

 

That said, there are two caveats.  First, there is a difference between being satiric or irreverent and being insulting and profane.  As the site rules suggest, "profanity" - the conscious, deliberate, spiteful or malicious denigration of another person's faith or strongest-held belief system - is inappropriate and wrong; there is no excuse for it, and any reaction it does provoke is understandable.

 

Second, the real "problem" with "faction" like The Da Vinci Code is that it sets up a sort of "historical revisionism" that can be dangerous for those with little knowledge.  As we all know, perception can be more powerful than reality, and when something is as pervasively popular as The Da Vinci Code, the danger of such "perception"' is increased.  Just as 17% of the American public still believes that there was a direct link between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda (despite that claim having been totally and thoroughly debunked even in the most right-wing publications) simply as a result of the constant repetition and reiteration of that claim (despite any solid evidence to support it), popular books/films like The Da Vinci Code are likely to leave the impression/perception that many of the fictional elements are fact.  [As an aside, the spiritual "danger" of books like The Da Vinci Code to those who are "new" to the faith are even greater.  However, that is a separate subject.]

 

This does not mean that debates about the history of Christianity are bad: indeed, such debates tend to strengthen the "foundational" truths (and yes, there are foundational truths) of the orthodox "Judeo-Christian construct," even if some of what we "know" about that history is incorrect.  However, the replacing of those foundational truths and/or widely-accepted scholarly beliefs/truths with "faction" that has little or no evidentiary surpport is not a good thing.

 

Peace.