OK, I’ve heard enough. I guess I’m going to have to weigh in
on this issue before I bust. The Da Vinci Code movie opens today in theaters
across the country amid controversy coming from the religious both Catholic and
Protestant.
The controversy surrounding the book is nothing new…it’s
become the topic d’jour since it was first released in 2003. Of course all this
religious angst has made Dan Brown, the author, a very rich man. At last count
the book has sold more than 35 million copies in 44 different languages.
It’s a work of FICTION. If I remember correctly from my 8th grade
Library Science class…fiction is literature that is NOT TRUE. This is a story
based on many facts from history and from the Bible but I don’t think Mr. Brown
ever intended the reader to take it all as gospel (forgive me).
turner. Honestly, it did cause me to ask myself some spiritual questions and
helped me better define what I believed and why I believed it. But it never
shook my foundational beliefs in who Jesus was and more importantly who He is
in my life today.
against Dan Brown and his subject matter why don’t Christians spend some of
that energy to create their own movie telling the truth about things from their
perspective? And I’m not talking about a “Breaking the Da Vinci Code!” movie
that tells Christians how they should think about this.
like. Scream and shout about the offensiveness of it (and thereby keeping it in
the news and making even more money for the producers and authors), organize a
march, picket the theater, denounce it from the pulpit and prove to the world
just how irrelevant and out of touch we can be.
new story? Mel Gibson did it with “The Passion of the Christ.” Every Tribe
Entertainment did it with their film “The End of the Spear”. They told a compelling
story with a strong Christian message in a professional creative way for a
broad, even secular audience and made it commercially viable at the same time.
Of course these films were not free from controversy either…from the Christians
I might add.
creative force in the universe. Why can’t we create beautiful, meaningful art
that impacts our culture and changes hearts and minds of the influencers
instead of being relegated to the irrelevant or seen as prudish blowhards with
no sense of humor and even less creative talent?
yes and amen.
I read the book as well… and it’s pretty sad how i have to explain why i read it to some people. my faith did not waiver in any way… it didn’t cause me to doubt or “stumble”… that’s probably because i know the TRUTH and it’s embedded in me. let me tell you what the book DID make me think about: how i am a child of the ever-living, all-powerful God of the universe and what that means. it reminded me that i am TRULY a CHILD OF GOD! sometimes everyone needs to be reminded of what that MEANS. i did not want to be another stupid person who argued against something that i had not even read- so i read it. and i’m glad i did. Christians should spend more time effecting the culture for GOOD… like you said about Mel Gibson… and i think most christians would agree with that statement… but the bottom-line is that they just don’t get it… there are only so many Mel Gibsons out there who will actually get off their pedestal and go do something that changes the world. now the question is… are you one of these pedestal jumpers or pedestal lovers? are you willing to take the heat and read a controversial book of FICTION so that you can talk about it with people who might get confused over what’s fact vs. fiction and help them understand what it MEANS to be a true child of GOD
or are you one of those people who runs from that opportunity to run with the masses who say it’s going to confuse people and should be avoided at all cost lest someone get lost in the lies and lose their salvation. who’s going to lead people out of the lies if we don’t? how can you ever expect to help someone find God when you’re not willing to go to where they are and bring them out of it? Yes, we need more “beautiful, meaningful art that impacts our culture and changes hearts and minds of the influencers” and we need more pedestal jumpers who are willing to take the leap and go out into all the world and share the gospel in these ways. GEEZ- way to get me all worked up! ready, set, break! i’m done.
I couldn’t agree more! Way to go Mike.