Calaidescope World

Da Vinci Debated

So I re-read Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code over the weekend in preparation for the film (I needed to "review"). Now, here's an email message that has been making the rounds -

WHAT ARE YOU DOING around the day the Da Vinci Code movie opens. A movie based on a book that wears its heresy and blasphemy as a badge of honor.

What can we as Christians do in response to the release of this movie? Here are the usual suspects:

A) We can ignore the movie. ........

The problem with this option: The box office is a ballot box. Theonly people whose votes are counted are those who buy tickets. Andthe ballot box closes on the Sunday of opening weekend. If you stay home, you have lost your chance to make your vote heard. You have thrown your vote away, and from Hollywood's point of view, you don'tcount. By staying home, you do nothing to shape the decision-making process regarding what movies will make it to the big screen.

B) We can protest. ........

The problem with this option: It doesn't work. Any publicity is good publicity. Protests not only fuel the box office, they make all Christians look like idiots. And again, protests and boycotts do nothing to help shape the decisions being made right now about what movies Hollywood will make in the next few years. (Or they convince Hollywood to make *more* movies that will provoke Christians to protest, which will drive the box office up.)

But .....
On May 19th, you should go to the movies. Just go to another movie. Save the date now. May 19th, or May 20th. No later than Sunday, May 21st -- that's the day the ballot box closes. You'll get a vote, the only vote Hollywood recognizes: The power of cold hard cash laid down on a box office window on opening weekend.

Use your vote. Don't throw it away. Vote for a movie other thanDVC. If enough people do it, the powers that be will notice. They won't have a choice.

The major studio movie scheduled for release against DVC is the DreamWorks animated feature Over the Hedge. The trailers look fun,and you can take your kids. And your friends. And their friends. In fact, let's all go see it.

Let's rock the box office in a way no one expects -- without protests, without boycotts, without arguments, without rancor. Let'sshow up at the box office ballot box and cast our votes. And buy some popcorn, too.

May 19th. Mark your calendars now: Over the Hedge's openingweekend. Buy a ticket.And spread the word. Forward this e-mail to all the Christians inyour address book. ( First, remove all headers please) Post it on your blogs. Talk about it to your churches.

And let's all go to the movies.


Now here's the reply of one of my friends to the above message -

Who is this MORON? The entire concept of a MOVIE is that is is fictional. The mere fact that you GO to a movie denotes your acknowledgement that you are viewing a FICTIONAL work. Not going only solidifies the claim that the film rocks the foundations of whatever Christian faith you uphold, therefore you do not want to see it. Hay naku...

Took the words right out of my mouth, dear.

But let me put it this way (beware, spoilers ahoy!) - I respect others' decision not to read the book or see the movie, but I only wish that more of them were better informed before they decided to denounce it (it's the uninformed "don't read/watch it!" part that irks me). Granted, it is truly shocking for those of weak or little Faith. But guidance and encouragement to keep the Faith is more important at this point than anything else. Tend to the flock, I say, don't fence in the sheep.

As my boss would say, "For heaven's sake...", it's a work of FICTION. And why stop the movie without pulling the book off the shelf? Book sales should have been stopped first. But, man, it's a really good book! It's up there with the Harry Potter series in terms of pacing and story twists. It's good fiction!

Also, the Priory of Scion is a hoax. The cryptex was a figment of Dan Brown's imagination. The Opus Dei was redeemed at the end of the book. In fact, the Opus Dei are not even speaking out against the book or the movie. They are using the book (and soon, the movie) to encourage discussions about their organisation and to bring others to learn more about the Way, thus "converting" more believers in St. Jose Maria Escriva's vision (very smart! Seriously, it's a good move!).

I'm not a member of the Opus Dei, but their approach to The Da Vinci Code is what all the other Christians should be doing. And really, does it matter how the historical Jesus lived? Will that seriously change how we profess our Faith? Isn't it more important for Christians to believe and follow (as best we can) Jesus' simple way of life and His 2 rules? If you don't know what those 2 simple rules are, well....


UPDATE 16 May 2006
Over the weekend, I read that the CBCP is taking this opportunity to discuss "issues" raised by The Da Vinci Code. Hallelujah! Guidelines will be issued to priests for discussion during sermons and prayer meetings. The next two Sundays will be very interesting.

Also, there was a very good editorial by Federico D. Pascual, Jr. in his column Postscript in today's issue of The Philippine Star.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200605162604.htm

Pascual so aptly wrote that many Catholics are a bit at a loss as to how to best defend the Church. As I once said to some friends (one of whom almost stopped being my friend. It's a long, funny story), the best defenders of the Faith are those who do not fear to tread the waters of the enemy and think like the enemy (thanks, Sun Tzu!). I got into a lot of trouble encouraging these same friends to read Conversations with God if only to understand where "the gentiles" were coming from. Information is a weapon we should not be afraid to wield. There are shows on the National Geographic Channel and the Discovery Channel that explain so much. There are books available everywhere that teach us how to fight the Good Fight. Why are so many Catholics not taking advantage of these?

However, as Neil Gaiman wrote in his journal yesterday, most of the Da Vince debates are ridiculous. Yes, silly me, indeed. I enjoy good fiction and joining debates. I hope the film lives up to the book. We all know where my family and I will be on the 19th. Sinners! Hahaha!

posted by Calai @ 12:08 PM