Consider boycott of ‘Da Vinci Code’ film, Vatican official..

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grabehirs
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Consider boycott of ‘Da Vinci Code’ film, Vatican official..

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Consider boycott of ‘Da Vinci Code’ film, Vatican official tells Catholics
By Cindy Wooden
5/1/2006
Catholic News Service (http://www.catholicnews.com)

ROME – Catholics should consider boycotting the film "The Da Vinci Code" as one way to let the world know the story offends and defames the church, said Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

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If the kind of "slander, offenses and errors" contained in Dan Brown's best-selling book and the film based on it had been written about "the Quran or the Shoah (the Holocaust), they rightly would have provoked a worldwide uprising," the archbishop told Catholic communications directors.

The archbishop spoke April 28 at a Rome conference for church communications personnel sponsored by the Opus Dei-run University of the Holy Cross.

Archbishop Amato said he was in the United States in 1988 during Christian protests over the film "The Last Temptation of Christ," based on a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis. The film portrayed Jesus being tempted by imagining a sexual relationship with Mary Magdalene, but rejecting the temptation.

Christians not only attacked the "historically false" episodes in the film, but also organized "a well-deserved economic boycott" of theaters showing the movie, he said.

Speaking about "The Da Vinci Code," Archbishop Amato said, "Christians should be more sensitive to rejecting lies and gratuitous defamation."

In responding to questions at the end of his talk, Archbishop Amato declined to issue a clear call for all Catholics to boycott the film.

However, during his speech, he did tell the communications directors, "I hope you all boycott that film."

Archbishop Amato's speech at the conference focused on communicating the Catholic Church's teaching in the modern media-dominated world.

He said that in addition to being surrounded by cultures hostile to the church and to any defense of objective moral truths the church had to face the fact that many of its own members lack a basic understanding of their faith.

"One must consider the extreme cultural poverty of a good portion of the Christian faithful who often do not know how to give the reasons for their hope," he said. "There is no other way to explain the strange success of an obstinately anti-Christian novel like 'The Da Vinci Code,' which is full of slander, offenses and historical and theological errors about Jesus, the Gospels and the church."

Archbishop Amato said that while the church often is treated superficially or even unfairly by the media it must find ways to communicate in the modern world.

The church has an obligation "to interpret the word of God with fidelity and to communicate it to the faithful with authority," he said.

Archbishop Amato said the church must have its own media and well-trained journalists in order to present its teaching accurately and fully.

Too often, he said, the secular media demonstrate a "refined technique of falsification and reduction" of a Vatican document's contents, by highlighting only a few, polemical passages.

The archbishop said church communications efforts surrounding such documents must "be authoritative, immediate, correct, convincing and positive, otherwise documents written with great care and widely shared by pastors and by the faithful can be completely overrun by well-prepared press agencies."

Archbishop Amato said the Catholic press cannot settle for a news agenda set by the secular press, but he insisted they not ignore issues raised by the secular media that could confuse Catholics or give a wrong impression about church teaching.

The archbishop said that when Catholic newspapers address controversial topics they must make clear the official teaching of the church.

"For example, if they host opinions contrary to priestly celibacy in the Latin church, in the same issue they must give the convincing reasons that exist for this tradition," he said. "Do not leave difficulties without a response, otherwise it will seem the magisterial indication is an opinion one can share or not."


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farm82557
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Unread post by farm82557 »

Grabehirs, kumusta kaw Ning, the best way is to ignore it. I agree with the strategy here of being quiet by the catholics. But sometimes it is difficult . The other day, we went to New York city, while looking for parking to get some bites in a nearby deli we were approached for illegal standing in front of the Opus Dei church along Lexington ave. Talk about small world .

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Unread post by kampanaryo_spy »

grabs,

no, i won't boycott da vinci code, and so, sue me! hahahahaha balitaw joke da.

even before the da vinci code became highly controversial, ann corpus has already sent me a copy of it----in hardbound! but it gathered dust in my drawer because i didn't have time then to read. not until ruel de vera of inquirer reviewed it glowingly two years ago that i picked it up and finished it in record time.

i won't boycott da vinci code because i treated it as pure fiction. nothing but! personally i found it not as a travesty of my faith but an excellent lesson in culture and the arts, and of course, cryptic symbols. any faith should be beyond the pale of pulp fiction.

now, if only they tapped alec baldwin or george clooney to play michael langdon and not tom hanks. but that's another story. hahaha
"Most claims of originality are testimony to ignorance and most claims of magic are testimony to hubris." -James March-

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Unread post by BONSAL »

Dan Brown is Not a biblical nor a scholar of history and as such tends to treat legends much less critically than an objective academician would do.

In the first place his book is fictional and woven around many legends especially in southern France and his personnal interpretation of data which the overwhelming majority of non-Catholic biblical and historical scholars have labeled as preposterous and absurd.

Even the authors of earlier books about Jesus and Mary Magdalene, whom Dan Brown based many of his conclusions, do not agree with him. The legends are there, but there has never been any factual proof about their veracity. They are plain legends.

Sad to say, practically all academics judge that many of Brown's critical claims about Jesus and Mary Magdalene and their descendants are based on "chismis" .......

amo sa gayud... the more controversy.... the more his book and the movie will sell... and that is the bottom line.
Last edited by BONSAL on Thu May 11, 2006 12:37 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Unread post by kampanaryo_spy »

i like Angels and Demons better.
"Most claims of originality are testimony to ignorance and most claims of magic are testimony to hubris." -James March-

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Unread post by farm82557 »

I agree K spy. Angels and Demons is up there. I love the use of Bernini's works for the scene. Deception Point and Digital Fortress? Kumusta na Dong, sige post kay makalipay gayud.

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Unread post by Alibangbang »

First of all, I think we should be responsible to separate FACTS from FICTION. :) Dan Brown writes fiction not reference books.

Page 5 into “Angels and Demons” I got hooked. It was compelling, intense, very imaginative, part thriller and part mystery.

Then came, The Da Vinci Code. Brown carry forward same protagonist, the young very handsome (K-Spyesh look) :) Harvard University Professor of Religious Iconology, Robert Langdon. This time Brown’s imagination takes us to Paris not Switzerland (Angels and Demons) where Vetra’s eyeball was dug off its socket- - - - but, the Louvre where the curator has sacrificed his life to protect the Priory’s most sacred trust.

With Angels and Demons, Brown paired Langdon with Vettoria Vetra. Together their mystery adventure uncovered Vatican’s can-blow-your-mind secrets. Imagine the Pope’s close personal assistant, was actually his son, born from a virgin nun? :shock:

With The Da Vinci Code, Brown paired Langdon with Sophie Neveu, the unassuming lady who ended up to be the “code” (or was it a pendant she was wearing that holds the code that would identify the wearer to be the code??) I mean, direct descendant of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. She (Sophie) thankfully escape the car rigged to crush into a fiery ball that killed her immediate family. Thus leaving her the only direct descendant.

And somewhere was a "hancho" from Opus Dei. Can’t recall right now what role he played, but it made the story even more intriguing. :lol:

I enjoyed both books more so the Angels and Demons. And can safely say that I have strong enough foundation for my faith that not once did I doubt God's love for us. . . .He sent our Lord Jesus Christ from heaven, to die on the cross for our sins so we may have everlasting life.

Yes, I will watch the movie just to see how true it is to the book. But that’s entertainment folks. . . most of it is hogwash anyway . . . . :lol:

Mind you, I’ve read first print (hardbound) of these books . . . so that was long time ago..…my memory is not as clear as it use to (senior moment) :( ….so any discrepancy to my recollection… I will stand corrected. :)

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Unread post by kampanaryo_spy »

BRAVO, ABB, BRAVO!!!!!! basta for me, DVC is just pure yarn, not an article of (un)faith.

farm,

haven't read digital fortress (yet!!) but my bibliophile friends say it's also good.

strange, but angels and demons came before DVC. but it didn't create much ripples, until DVC resurrected it.....

bagan "fully-booked" kita haw mag eyeball kita tulo ni abb. i just hope you're also a cineaste like me and abb, para managbilar kitan kukabildo pagdating ng panahon, laong pa.
"Most claims of originality are testimony to ignorance and most claims of magic are testimony to hubris." -James March-

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Unread post by farm82557 »

K Spy, I just got home from the city, billboards all over the place. Da Vinci Code greeting you at the door of B&N at 40% off. I can see Mona Lisa no longer smiling, but laughing that we can actually see her teeth to the delight of Dan Brown and Ron Howard.

The "Harvard Scharvard" talent and perseverance of Dan Brown has another victim. Instead of the religious machination, it's the goernment this time with what it is supposed to do or not to do. The NSA in particular the existence and non-existence of it. Currently, it's the headline because President Bush is abusing it. The book is more fun if you like numbers and science.

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Unread post by farm82557 »

The second paragraph is about digital fortress. Sorry, I was in a hurry.

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Unread post by Alibangbang »

Farm,

You’re right he (Brown) set this from a totally different arena. Gone are the symbolism, arts and old churches… Enter techno-world….techno-thriller. . . information age terrorism. Farm, I'm first to draw a line between reality and imaginary... but this one is frighteningly real. What's this life imitating art?

K-Spy.

You haven’t dissected this yet so I need to be discreet so not to spoil the pot. But I must say, the way he painted in technicolor the shaded area between our treasured personal freedom vs. NSA is awesome. Story line is cool. There is the ever presence biting my nail effect. Which you know already. :)

K-Spy after you read DF. . I’m sure you’ll feel some kind of déjà vu. Remember what Clancy has written so convincingly about CIA and the FBI? Your boy Brown did masterfully for the secretive NSA.

This story has more twist and turn than Sapaalaska's siakoy even if we'll make it 10 feet long. I actually got lost in it. :lol: :lol: :lol:

If ever we'll get a dog, I'll name it transltr. :wink:

Happy reading

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Unread post by kampanaryo_spy »

abb, farm:

i see the end of the road here. you see, i don't dig techno thriller. (basically sa gud, i'm a ludite.) i tried reading clancy once (the hunt for red october) and i didn't get past the fifth page. same when i tried reading clavell's shogun, though this one is of differenct genre as clancy's. clancy and clavell are more of an eyelid shutter for me. clancy's details so bore me, so painstaking are they that they make me puke. so reminiscent of krantz's technique in her earlier books. remember 'mistral's daughter?' pwersada na exposition that i ended up throwing the book in exasperation.

i don't watch clancy movies too, harrison ford or alec baldwin notwithstanding.
"Most claims of originality are testimony to ignorance and most claims of magic are testimony to hubris." -James March-

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Unread post by Alibangbang »

K-Spy,

hahahaha. . . I don't think you're a luddite at all......remember how you trace me the techno way through my computer IP??? I recall turning purple :oops: when I read your PM. Whereas, Farm did it the old fashion way through farming.... :lol: :lol:

Since then I have nothing but utmost respect for you. :wink: You don't miss a beat. You're one of the smartest, wittiest, not to mention one who's vocabulary is as wide as Mr. Webster himself. Which can only be achieved through extensive reading...

Aduy mahilamit gayod kita kan Grabehirs pagahimo ta inin iya thread na book review . . . Sorry :oops:
Last edited by Alibangbang on Sun May 14, 2006 3:55 am, edited 3 times in total.

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Unread post by farm82557 »

Dear Grabehirs, sorry Ning, mohunong na garo ako pero man ako matintal.

Abb and KSpy, How about John Grisham? I thought legal thriller will dazzle you KSpy and besides he is a good storyteller and the readers are well served. His bestsellers are also blockbusters, pero no Alec and George. Right now, I am turning the pages of The King of Torts but my alltime favorite is the Painted House -picture of rural America in the South like Huckleberry Finn or To Kill a Mockingbird.

Abb, fully restored na yaun bay ni Mark Twain sa Hartford . Silingani sa gayud baya sila ni Harriet Beecher Stowe. Anyway, the girls enjoyed the tour in both houses.

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Unread post by kampanaryo_spy »

abb,

thanks (again) for the kind words. bagan mutual admiration club na ini hahahaha. but it was bon (the uber tech-savvy) who unmasked you. as to reading, well, that's my passion. i am what i am because of reading. naman lagi let's continue our advocacy for going back to basic, which is, to read voraciously!


farm,

i love legal thrillers (pulp fiction and movies) But I don't have much respect for Grisham for reasons i'd rather be silent about. and the slip shows in his later works. sorry farm. but yes, i love (make that LOVE!!!!) his THE PAINTED HOUSE. in fact, i told abb to grab a copy. it left me sad, but it's a cathartic kind of sadness.

as to legal thriller, nothing beats Shieldon's RAGE OF ANGELS. but am sure you've read James Patterson and this italian author that i told abb about na mupatay an mga legal thrillers. i'll choose patterson over grisham: any time, every time!
"Most claims of originality are testimony to ignorance and most claims of magic are testimony to hubris." -James March-

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