Christian leaders in Asia fear the debut today of the movie The Da Vinci Code, based on the premise that Jesus married and fathered children, may sour the image of their religion in the region, where Christianity is overshadowed by Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.
Christians in India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand have either protested against the film or expressed concern.
India is temporarily putting the film's release on hold after a flood of complaints. Groups in Thailand persuaded local censors to release an edited version of the film, but the censors later reversed their position. Australian Christians have gone on the offensive, launching ads that challenge the movie's plot in movie theaters. Hong Kong's Catholic church has organized forums to "clarify the facts."
PHOTO: AFP
Christians around the world have criticized The Da Vinci Code, the largely faithful adaptation of the best-selling novel by the same name by Dan Brown.
One of the premises of the movie is that Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene and fathered children and that his descendants are still alive.
It's considered blasphemy by many Christians, but those in Asia are especially worried, fearful that the movie may spread misinformation about their religion, which is a minority faith in many countries in the region.
"If Jesus Christ had a child and a wife, then Christianity would be destroyed," said Thongchai Pradabchananurat, of the Thailand Protestant Churches Coordinating Committee.
After lobbying by Christian groups, Thailand's censorship board agreed to snip the last 10 minutes of the film, but the movie's maker, Columbia Pictures, appealed successfully yesterday.
In India, Joseph Dias, head of the Catholic Secular Forum, is on a hunger strike in downtown Bombay to protest the movie's planned release in his country, where most of the 1 billion population is Hindu.
After receiving more than 200 complaints, India's Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi said he is going to see the movie for himself, which may delay its scheduled release in the country tomorrow by a day or two.
Authorities in India, Singapore and South Korea have rejected calls to ban the film, saying audiences understand it is fictional.
Philippine movie censor Marissa Laguardia said it was important to preserve free speech in her country.
"Thirty-six countries have already reviewed this film and they have not banned it. So are we just out of the Stone Age?" Laguardia said.
Malaysian Bishop Lim Cheng Ean said the strength of Christian faith alone will counter the movie.
Meanwhile, critics at the Cannes film festival panned the film yesterday, describing it variously as a "dud," "unwieldy" and "plodding."
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
Two US House of Representatives committees yesterday condemned China’s attempt to orchestrate a crash involving Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) car when she visited the Czech Republic last year as vice president-elect. Czech local media in March last year reported that a Chinese diplomat had run a red light while following Hsiao’s car from the airport, and Czech intelligence last week told local media that Chinese diplomats and agents had also planned to stage a demonstrative car collision. Hsiao on Saturday shared a Reuters news report on the incident through her account on social media platform X and wrote: “I
SHIFT PRIORITIES: The US should first help Taiwan respond to actions China is already taking, instead of focusing too heavily on deterring a large-scale invasion, an expert said US Air Force leaders on Thursday voiced concerns about the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) missile capabilities and its development of a “kill web,” and said that the US Department of Defense’s budget request for next year prioritizes bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region due to the increasing threat posed by China. US experts said that a full-scale Chinese invasion of Taiwan is risky and unlikely, with Beijing more likely to pursue coercive tactics such as political warfare or blockades to achieve its goals. Senior air force and US Space Force leaders, including US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and
Czech officials have confirmed that Chinese agents surveilled Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) during her visit to Prague in March 2024 and planned a collision with her car as part of an “unprecedented” provocation by Beijing in Europe. Czech Military Intelligence learned that their Chinese counterparts attempted to create conditions to carry out a demonstrative incident involving Hsiao, which “did not go beyond the preparation stage,” agency director Petr Bartovsky told Czech Radio in a report yesterday. In addition, a Chinese diplomat ran a red light to maintain surveillance of the Taiwanese
RSS