Da Vinci Code Revisited

This is a follow-up to my previous Da Vinci Code post. Thanks to Wayne and Maureen for their comment. I wish more people would leave comments.


The biggest complaint people make about religious (and I don't just mean Christian) people is that they're far too concerned with everyone ELSE's beliefs.
My response is this: People will believe what they're going to believe. Some people believe in God. Some people believe there is no god. Some people believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. And Some people believe what's in the Da Vinci Code. What's the big deal?

Christianity--all religion in fact--is a matter of faith. Sometimes even faith in the face of contradictory evidence. And that's ok. If there were proof, after all, it wouldn't be religion; it would be science. The fact that the Da Vinci Code presents some arguments that happen to contradict part of mainstream Christian thought shouldn't be bothersome, particularly since the Bible manages to contradict itself on plenty of occasions!

Let's assume it's true that 17% of Canadians and 13% of Americans do believe the contens of the Da Vinci Code. (I have no idea whether those stats are true or not) Is that a reason to write books "debunking" a novel? There are 1.3 BILLION Muslims in the world. 900 MILLION Hindus. And 1.1 BILLION who don't consider themselves religious in the first place. Aren't those better groups to target with books than readers of popular fiction? Especially considering the fact that you can believe the Da Vinci Code crap and still be a Christian. Doesn't "Debunking Islam" make more sense, from a Christian point of view at least?

"Half of this country voted for a man for President who is doing is best to flush our planet down the toilet. Most Americans actually believe that terrorism is a bigger threat to our society than global warming. Last year alone, 3 million people died from AIDS and there were nearly 5 million people newly-infected. There were 3 million homeless men, women, and children in America last year. How can I make a difference in the world? I know! I'll debunk a best-selling novel!"

What are the Christians who write these books afraid of, exactly? I assume that, as Christians, they already believe 1) that they're going to heaven, 2) that the Messiah will return, and 3) that God will win the final war against evil. What does it say about a religion if its strongest believers feel the need to waste their time letting everyone know that, "hey, you know that work of fiction you read? Well, it's not true." What's going through their minds, exactly? "Yeah, I know that I'm saved, and that Jesus Christ is the ultimate power in the universe, but what if this Dan Brown guy and his novel ruin all of that?"