I have not read "The DaVinci Code." I do not intend to watch the movie. I have seen the trailers and was not impressed. And what is MUCH more, I have seen, heard, and been inundated with news from the church about how BAD the Da Vinci code is. I read articles about churches condemning the film and calling for boycotts. And I hear Christian leaders across the globe decrying the film as evil, and perhaps "the greatest threat to Christianity in many years."
Let me offer a contrary view. The Church is making FAR too much of this book/movie.
First, the Da Vinci Code is a fiction book. That is where it is located in the bookstores and libraries. The author makes no bones that it is all made up. "But!" Many say, "He claims in the foreward that all of the facts in the book are true!" OK. Maybe I am one of the few paying attention, but so do many other authors. It is a common literary conceit used to make a novel seem more compelling to claim that some or all of the facts are true. If you paid close attention, JURASSIC PARK (a book about cloning dinosaurs) said the same thing. Few will be fooled into thinking that much at all in this book or movie is true. And ever fewer will be those who were not already predisposed to assume the worst of Christianity by temperment or experience.
Second, what all-consuming great deception does this fiction book hold? (And this is where I need those who actually have read the book to correct me if I am wrong.) My understanding is that the two major revelations are (1) that Jesus had children with Mary Magdalene and (2) the Catholic Church has a secret police dedicated to hiding this secret. While I grant these are both falsehoods easily disproven from history, scripture, and basic logic, what great harm to the average person does either really do? The non-Christian public holds many views which are contrary to scripture, history, and basic logic. Many believe that Christ was only a "good man" who was not God but merely a great thinker. C.S. Lewis reminds us this is contrary to scripture (Christ claimed to be God), history (all histories of the period indicate he said this), and basic logic (Can one truly be both sane and moral, AND claim to be God?). Yet, these beliefs are no barrier to the Holy Spirit when He chooses to begin to work in a heart and life. Indeed, there are very few truths which must be grasped prior to becoming a Christian: (1) You are a sinner and can not save yourself, (2) Jesus Christ died as the perfect sacrifice for all men, to save all men from their sin, (3) Christ rose again, proving that He had conquered death, and (4) you must believe in your heart and confess with your mouth in order to be saved. Neither of these falsehoods in any way would contradict these truths. And they are easily dealt with, when one comes questioning to a Christian with a basic knowledge of history, scripture, and logic.
Third, the Church is allowing itself to become part of the marketing machine. Now, I am not typical in the number of hours I watch TV each week, but I have seen more material on the DaVinci code in church, on Christian radio, and in news articles about the Christian reactions than I have seen on TV, in the movie theater, or in print. I do not think I am being conspiracy-minded myself to wonder if in fact this is the flip-side of the PASSION OF THE CHRIST phenomenon. For Mel Gibson's film, the movie was marketted directly to the church, increasing product awareness and driving Christians to the theaters. This time, the movie is being marketted as a threat to the churches, who are warning their congregations against it, increasing product awareness, and driving curious Christians and non-Christians to the theaters. If this film is a success in its first few weeks, the churches will be no small part in its success.
In conclusion, we Christians need to calm down and take a step back. We are overreacting to a cultural phenomenon, and giving to too much credit merely because it has a religious subtext. The more we panic about this, the more attention we draw to this film and the more likely we are to drive people into the theaters. We should be ready to answer questions, certainly, but much more is simply overreacting.
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