MALAYSIA - One of Malaysia’s leading Church organisations has spoken out about its concerns over The Da Vinci Code movie, and that it could distort Christian teachings. However, it also said that Christians should make up their own minds whether to watch it or not.
The announcement though, has come in stark contrast to Christian groups in India and Thailand that have urged their governments to ban the film from hitting the cinemas. A coalition of Thai Christian Church groups has expressed their worries that the film could greatly mislead those that know little about Christianity and Jesus.
The worldwide release of the movie adaptation of Dan Brown’s best-selling novel is scheduled for Thursday, but has sparked protests calling for boycotts and protests in many countries across the world.
The Roman Catholic Church, in particular, has fought against the movie strenuously; criticising the book as offensive and telling Christians everywhere not to attend showings.
Bishop Lim Cheng Ean, president of the Council of Churches of Malaysia, said they were concerned the movie would “repeat the historical inaccuracies" of the novel, but at the same time stressed that it shouldn't shake the faith of believers.
Lim reported, “As far as calling for protests or boycotts is concerned, that is not necessary. If Christians know their own faith, they will be strong enough. We can leave it to their discretion as to whether they would rather watch the movie or not. That is their free choice,” report AP.
However, Manote Changmook of the Thailand Protestant Churches Committee expressed his opinion that Thais with little knowledge of Christianity will be misled and confused by the movie, especially given the fact that 90 percent of Thailand’s 65-million population are Buddhist, with just one percent Christian.
Manote said, “If this movie is screened in Thailand, it will cause misunderstanding among Thai people who don't know about Christianity. We're worried that young Thai Christians will come and say to us, 'So does this mean Jesus wasn't God? Jesus had a wife?'”
Many controversial issues have been stirred up by The Da Vinci Code, with one of the most prominent suggesting that Jesus married Mary Magdalene, and had a child with her.
Dolphy D'Souza, spokesman of Bombay Catholic Sabha, which has 40,000 registered members said, “We will picket in front of cinema halls that show the film. We are very hurt and very angry.”
Stirring up more debate, The Da Vinci Code has been translated in Malayalam, the language spoken by the people of Kerala, India.
The depiction of Jesus in fiction has been a constant irritant for the church in Kerala, but this time the Catholic Church, unlike on earlier occasions, has said it is not likely to demand a ban on the book.
“The book has been in circulation around the world. The Church will only reiterate that it is a mere work of fiction,” affirmed Fr. Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI).
