DaVinci Code - Who Cares?

I read The DaVinci Code very shortly after it was published. Even while reading it, I thought it would be a great movie. For any book to take hold of you as it did, suspense building on every turn of the page, was destined for the big screen.

Well, about 60 million copies of the book have been sold, and the movie is soon to be released. It will be huge. Ignoring the cry of far-right Christians to boycott the movie, just the fact that 60 million people bought the book - passing it along to unknown millions more - ensures the movie will be a smash. And while I will not be going to see the movie, I think that's OK.

As a Christian, I'm not so much upset by the book - as a work of fiction. I'm more upset with organizations like NBC News, who interviews everyone directly or indirectly associated with the film, - director Ron Howard, producer Brian Grazer, author Michael Baigent (of Holy Blood, Holy Grail fame) - but does so with softball questions, fawning appreciation for the movie, and doesn't really investigate the accuracy of the book or movie. Or the National Geographic Society, a humanist organization that presents a television production (The Gospel of Judas) under the guise of a new discovery, when in reality it was simply a.)a grab for money (timed to coincide with the upcoming release of the movie), and b.)an attempt to discredit Christianity.

But, more than that, I'm upset with my fellow Christians. Most that are threatening to boycott the movie don't even know where the book is fictional, what the uproar is about, where the sources quoted come from and when they were written, etc. They hear the word "gospel" and think that anything called a gospel must be true. After all, they trust the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - why wouldn't the gospels of Mary, Judas, Thomas and others be equally valid? They've spent no time investigating the historicity of those documents, don't realize that they were written hundreds of years after the credited authors were dead, etc.

At the core, they're upset that their beliefs are being questioned, which is silly. There was an article on the FoxNews website that touched on just this. Father Jonathan Morris said, "Dan Brown is capable of passing fiction for fact because Christians don't know their faith what and why they believe. That's not Mr. Brown's fault." ( http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,194665,00.html )

I couldn't agree more. I'm relatively new to my faith. As such, I am often asked to address another person's question, or defend my beliefs. Often, I'm at a loss for an answer. To me, this is no big deal. I simply spend some time investigating and researching the issue, and formulate an answer based on the evidence. The process helps me strengthen my beliefs. It helps me better prepare the reason I have faith - that Jesus willingly died so that my many transgressions would be forgiven and I'd be able to live with him eternally (see 1 Peter 3:15 - http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20peter%203&version=31 )

Dan Brown has done a great service for Christianity, if Christians simply pause, get past their emotional reactions and prepare to share their reason for the faith they have.

Curious to know your thoughts...