Saturday, November 13, 2004
"Blinding ignorance does mislead us.
O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!"
--- LEONARDO DA VINCI
Read The Da Vinci Code. Seriously. I know everyone has. And so should you. Not only is it a real good cliffhanger and a "pulse-quickening, brain-teasing adventure", but it made me think. Alot.
First, even before i'd started reading it, my mum saw it and commented, "hey, that book's anti-Christ isnt it?" And whilst reading it after dinner at a chicken rice restaurant, one of my mum's church friends came over, saw the book and acted as if i was a member of a cult of something. With a self-righteous air, he muttered, "no.. no.. you shouldnt read it.. it will meddle with your brain.. if your faith isnt strong, you will stray.." Well, Mr Censorship Board really put me off. He probably didnt even know what the book was about, and labelled it as "BAD" straightaway, simply because he heard from someone, somewhere, that it deviated from the teachings of the Church, which is of course, according to him, absolutely right.
No, dont worry readers, i havent been influenced already and converted into a Dan Brown-defending, Church-denouncing fanatic. In fact, and those who've read it will agree, Brown acknowledges in his books the awesome presence of God and its impact all over the world. What is controversial, is his discussion of certain shocking revelations and deductions which have been studied by religious scholars over recent years.
Like whether lost scrolls of the Bible dipicting certain aspects of Christianity had been destroyed by the Church during Constantine's time to entrench the power of the Vatican, thus not providing Christians of the entire truth.
Has the Church been hiding some truths and enforced certain types of behavior so as to promote a certain school of thought which all believers are required to follow?
Were there aspects of Jesus' life which we do not know about?
These are just some of the questions raised for discussion, which are real food for thought, actually. And valid too, considering that its a known truth that the Church practised active censorship and persecution during the Constantine era, and studying what Da Vinci expressed through his paintings.. a different school of thought, as well as other bits of evidence surfaced throughout the book.
Im not saying that i believe whole-heartedly all that Brown says. As the Catholic Digest states, Brown "touches on enough strands of popular speculation and mythology that readers will think of it as more factual than it is". No, i am not swayed by his arguments at all, and my faith still remains as strong as it is. The only difference is that i now have questions which i want to attempt to find the answers to, which will in turn, strengthen my faith further. What he offers is an alternative school of thought, logical and backed up by evidence. It is up to us to decide whichever is the truth, but at least now i have something to debate with my parish priests about, instead of mindlessly agreeing with everything the Church teaches, like sheep.
Indeed, to understand something further, one must question and challenge it, and not follow blindly. Didnt we learn that in school? In the book, Brown offers several perfect areas of focus for which we can debate on, form our own conclusions, and strengthen our beliefs. This is something Mr Censorship will probably never understand. People like him are too wrapped up in their beliefs and mindsets, that a radical challenge, no matter how harmless, will always be perceived as "evil". It certainly makes me wonder how much faith these guys truly have.
Thoughts, anyone?
P.S: Oh, for those who have read the Da Vinci Code already, if anyone wants to read a Catholic's views on Brown's claims of Mary Magdalene, the Priory of Sion, and the Holy Grail, go read the Feb 2004 issue of Catholic Digest. It helps to answer some questions. Or you could ask me. Its too long to type it out here la.
he rocked the party at 9:07 AM |
