UBER 1337 Poster Rep: 6  Joined: 01 Oct 2005 Posts: 3,602 OFFLINE | 'Work of the devil' - Christians blast Da Vinci Code
Say controversial film undermines Jesus' divinity
BY ROLAND HENRY Sunday Observer Reporter
Sunday, May 21, 2006
WHILE not quite calling for a boycott of the movie, The Da Vinci Code, local church leaders have sided with the international Christian community, saying the book that spawned the screenplay was a product of the devil and the work of an occultist meant to undermine the divinity of Jesus Christ.
“It’s a kind of insidious way of getting after the Christian church," says Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kingston Reverend Lawrence Burke.
“The forces of secularism would be happy to see the Christian church weakened."
A woman makes a phone call in front of a Da Vinci Code poster, at the site of the movie’s premiere in Beijing Wednesday. China’s gala showing of the movie was set to be the world’s first, beating the official Cannes premiere by an hour in a move that underscores Hollywood’s efforts to woo Chinese viewers. The movie opened in Jamaican cinemas May 20. (Photo: AP)
The movie opened here yesterday with no fanfare.
Author Dan Brown’s 2003 fiction purports that Renaissance painter Leonardo Da Vinci’s art reveals the truth about Christ.
This truth, Brown suggests, entails Jesus' marriage to Mary Magdalene and the perpetuation of a bloodline that still resides in modern-day France. The mystery novel also notes that these 'secrets' were kept hidden by the Catholic church for centuries, but asserts that a secret order, the Priory of Sion, had proof that it had guarded for centuries.
The book takes readers through France and Britain on a quest for the Holy Grail, concluding at the end that the quest for the Grail, which in Christian history has represented the chalice or cup used by Christ at the Last Supper, was really a journey to the 'truth' of Mary Magdalene’s true place in Christian history.
Burke says though the book is fictional, “a lot of people might think the whole thing could be true."
He says, too, “a book like this” could sow seeds of doubt in the minds of believers, “especially those weak in their faith”.
While he tells the Sunday Observer that he is indifferent to the idea of the book being brought to the silver screen, he discourages people from going to see the film, which opened in local cinemas yesterday, an unusual occurrence given that films are normally released on Wednesdays.
“I wouldn’t encourage seeing it," said the Archbishop, “but I have learned in the past that when the church says don’t do, people sometimes do the opposite."
At the same time, he says, if the Catholic church adamantly discourages people from seeing the movie, it will give the impression that the claims possess some kind of truth.
Burke believes the local church needs to be more active as it relates to defending its faith. He draws a comparison between Islam and Christianity, citing the recent incident where offensive caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed were being circulated.
“The Muslims went crazy ... because they said, 'you are making fun of our prophet'," he says, adding that the Christian church in Jamaica often does nothing about offences committed against the faith.
Still, he is unsure what kind of action needs to be taken in this case. “I don’t know ... but I’m just showing the difference between the fervor of the Muslim compared to the fervor of the Christian," he says.
According to the most recent data on practicing religions captured in the 2001 Jamaica population census, Christians number just under 1.7 million of a 2.59 million population.
The Catholic Church, however, is not the only denomination opposed to the alternative thoughts on Jesus Christ.
Nigel Coke, communication director at the West Indies Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, vehemently declares that Brown’s work is a product of the occult.
“The devil knows it’s his last days and he’s trying everything," says Coke. “There is nowhere in the Bible that says anything like that."
Nonetheless, Coke does not discredit the power of films and their ability to influence thought. He maintains, however, that the confusion might only be among those persons “searching for God”.
“Any Adventist who is grounded in our beliefs and those of the Bible will see this as the devil’s attempt to confuse the mind," he tells Sunday Observer. Coke adds that he will not be going to see the film because his denomination does not believe in going to cinemas. He is not, however, opposed to reading the book, as he says, it might offer perspective on other people’s thought patterns.
He adds that the success of Brown’s unfounded claims about the 'holy grail' cannot outweigh the success of the 'holy book'.
“The Bible is the ultimate best-seller, not even Da Vinci Code can beat it," says Coke.
Reverend Adinair Jones does not share the conservative opinions of Burke and Coke, saying that viewing the film might help people to understand what they believe.
Jones is the vice president of the Cinematographic Authority of Jamaica - the body that reviews films before they are projected in cinemas islandwide.
“From a conservative angle (pastors) may not want (church) members to be exposed to those kinds of views," he says, “but then again ... we cannot deny that we are in a world where opposing views contend."
He maintains that Christians have nothing to worry about because “the divinity of Christ can be defended by scripture”. He believes that the answer is not to run away from the claims but to grasp the opportunity to provide greater witness.
“Christians are going to be asked to sharpen their apologetics to what is turning out to be a piercing critique," Jones says. Still, he maintains that choice to see the film comes down to the individual’s faith threshold.
“People would have to be guided in terms of their own vulnerability ... be critical but careful in how you digest the material," he says.
When the Sunday Observer contacted a number of churches, most of the administrative staff were not familiar with the theory which Brown purports, while some knew the gist but have not read the book.
One female worker and member at the Boulevard Baptist Church believes that Brown’s book is “a load of rubbish”. “They are maligning the name of Jesus, 'bout him did married to Mary," the woman said. “Somebody jus' have a bright idea fe make some money."
But as the Da Vinci Code debate rages, several theologians are claiming that alternate theories on the life of Jesus Christ are nothing new.
Perhaps the oldest account of differing views is that of the Koran, the Muslim holy book that depicts Jesus as a mortal prophet devoid of supernatural powers and kingship.
And there are even some Jews who dismiss the western church’s claim of Jesus being the Messiah.
Notwithstanding, there have been a plethora of films and literature over the years that have come to be defined as either sacred or sacrilegious. Among the line of films is the 1988 production The Last Temptation of Christ, which, like Brown’s Da Vinci Code, portrays Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ as lovers.
Several historians have put forward claims of finding authentic documents that offer alternate readings on Jesus' days on earth.
“They’re putting together also the Gospel According to Judas and they’re acting as if the world and the church were not aware that there were other books that purported to be Gospels outside of the four we recognise," says Archbishop Burke.
While he does not discredit the book’s authenticity, Burke adds that, “they were just Gospels that the early church rejected, having only selected four”.
He notes too, that other alternate readings include another book entitled The Gospel According to Thomas.
The Adventist Church’s Coke believes the new texts are unnecessary.
“What we have in the Bible is sufficient to save mankind," he says. “Any other new ideas that might come up only promote double-mindedness. The Bible states that Jesus Christ is Lord and that is all people need to know."
Pastor of the Portmore Church of God, Reverend Courtney Gordon, agrees, and admits that though some sects of the faith have recognised the works as authentic, he is not yet ready to do so.
“I have not yet extended myself to accept the authenticity," says Gordon. The Bible, he says, states that “nothing should be added or subtracted from what already exists”.
“Some people will argue that it was a canon that decided what was placed in the Bible”. This canon, he says, perhaps made the decision to leave out said books because of their stark inconsistencies with the traditional four.
Though he points out that alternate theories are nothing new, he emphasizes that their presence have increased, especially in light of the recent onslaught of made-for-television and documentary features that analyse the controversial findings.
“People need to understand that none of these texts can affect who Jesus Christ is," says Gordon.
in other words, this makes the news, but a basement with 56 abused dead and dieing ferrets doesnt! now that’s comedy! ---
Dogbert said the deepest thing ever.
“It is all a part of the big illusion we perpetuate upon ourselves and which is in turn perpetuated upon us. When we believe we engage the illusion, when we stop believing we shatter the illusion and ourselves in the process because we are part of it." |
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