Muslims join Christians in Da Vinci Code film furore
-01/06/06
Muslims in Malawi have a
Muslims join Christians in Da Vinci Code film furore
-01/06/06
Muslims in Malawi have added their voices to calls by churches for the banning of The Da Vinci Code movie, saying that it is offensive to Jesus who is revered in Islam as a prophet of Allah, write Frank Jomo and Fredrick Nzwili for Ecumenical News International.
However, Fr Stanislaus Magombo of the Roman Catholic Secretariat in Lilongwe said there was nothing wrong in allowing people to see the film. “It is a movie,” said Magombo. “I don’t think it can have any impact on people’s beliefs.”
“The movie, in representing the view that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene, has insulted and blasphemed a belief by not only the Christian faith but also the Muslim community,” declared Imran Shareef, general secretary of the Muslim Association of Malawi.
Shareef described Jesus as a “revered prophet of Allah” and said the belief that Jesus was free from sin was central to the faith of Muslims. He urged all religious groups to “openly condemn this act of blasphemy”.
Meanwhile in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, the Kenya Church, a loose gathering of more than 40 Protestant and Pentecostal denominations, compared the makers of the film to Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus for 30 silver coins. “This film is another betrayal of Jesus Christ by the producers and theatre owners for a few pieces of silver,” the group said in a media statement.
Theatres in Kenya have reported huge demand for tickets for the movie, based on the blockbuster novel by Dan Brown which depicts a Vatican conspiracy that suppressed a supposed marriage of Jesus to Mary Magdalene.
“The Da Vinci Code” has not yet been shown in Malawi but some churches there have also urged the government to ban the movie.
“The film is blasphemous and is contradicting the Christian faith,” Church of Central Africa Presbyterian general secretary Daniel Gunya told The Nation newspaper on 27 May 2006. “Just like the Muslims reacted to the cartoons of Prophet Muhammad, we would not sit down and take no action.”
Ekklesia adds: For a more relaxed and open-minded Catholic Church authority, the controversial Da Vinci Code novel ñ now in its movie version ñ is nothing but an entertaining thriller, according to recent media reports.
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said recently that in spite of local calls for a ban he saw nothing wrong with either reading the novel or seeing its movie version.
He declared that he had read the book and found no offensive material to the Church. ìIt was a novel, a fiction, a thriller,î he said, admitting that he was entertained, and read the book in just a few hours.
With acknowledgements to ENI. Ecumenical News International is jointly sponsored by the World Council of Churches, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and the Conference of European Churches.
[Also on Ekklesia: Manila bans Da Vinci Code but archbishop dismisses the fuss; Does Da Vinci re-code Christendom? Film critic Vic Thiessen prefers hope to hype; Secularist and Christian voices highlight threats to free speech 25/05/06; Poll suggests Da Vinci code undermines trust in Catholic church; Churches accused of Da Vinci ‘double standards’; Da Vinci Code Fact or Fiction: A critique; Archbishop of Canterbury says Gospel isnít cover-up for the powerful; First black Jesus movie screens at Cannes Film Festival]
Muslims join Christians in Da Vinci Code film furore
-01/06/06
Muslims in Malawi have added their voices to calls by churches for the banning of The Da Vinci Code movie, saying that it is offensive to Jesus who is revered in Islam as a prophet of Allah, write Frank Jomo and Fredrick Nzwili for Ecumenical News International.
However, Fr Stanislaus Magombo of the Roman Catholic Secretariat in Lilongwe said there was nothing wrong in allowing people to see the film. “It is a movie,” said Magombo. “I don’t think it can have any impact on people’s beliefs.”
“The movie, in representing the view that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene, has insulted and blasphemed a belief by not only the Christian faith but also the Muslim community,” declared Imran Shareef, general secretary of the Muslim Association of Malawi.
Shareef described Jesus as a “revered prophet of Allah” and said the belief that Jesus was free from sin was central to the faith of Muslims. He urged all religious groups to “openly condemn this act of blasphemy”.
Meanwhile in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, the Kenya Church, a loose gathering of more than 40 Protestant and Pentecostal denominations, compared the makers of the film to Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus for 30 silver coins. “This film is another betrayal of Jesus Christ by the producers and theatre owners for a few pieces of silver,” the group said in a media statement.
Theatres in Kenya have reported huge demand for tickets for the movie, based on the blockbuster novel by Dan Brown which depicts a Vatican conspiracy that suppressed a supposed marriage of Jesus to Mary Magdalene.
“The Da Vinci Code” has not yet been shown in Malawi but some churches there have also urged the government to ban the movie.
“The film is blasphemous and is contradicting the Christian faith,” Church of Central Africa Presbyterian general secretary Daniel Gunya told The Nation newspaper on 27 May 2006. “Just like the Muslims reacted to the cartoons of Prophet Muhammad, we would not sit down and take no action.”
Ekklesia adds: For a more relaxed and open-minded Catholic Church authority, the controversial Da Vinci Code novel ñ now in its movie version ñ is nothing but an entertaining thriller, according to recent media reports.
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said recently that in spite of local calls for a ban he saw nothing wrong with either reading the novel or seeing its movie version.
He declared that he had read the book and found no offensive material to the Church. ìIt was a novel, a fiction, a thriller,î he said, admitting that he was entertained, and read the book in just a few hours.
With acknowledgements to ENI. Ecumenical News International is jointly sponsored by the World Council of Churches, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and the Conference of European Churches.
[Also on Ekklesia: Manila bans Da Vinci Code but archbishop dismisses the fuss; Does Da Vinci re-code Christendom? Film critic Vic Thiessen prefers hope to hype; Secularist and Christian voices highlight threats to free speech 25/05/06; Poll suggests Da Vinci code undermines trust in Catholic church; Churches accused of Da Vinci ‘double standards’; Da Vinci Code Fact or Fiction: A critique; Archbishop of Canterbury says Gospel isnít cover-up for the powerful; First black Jesus movie screens at Cannes Film Festival]