Cardinal blasts 'Da Vinci Code'

According to this article - A top Catholic cardinal has blasted "The Da Vinci Code" as a "gross and absurd" distortion of history and also said that Catholic bookstores should take the bestseller off of their shelves because it is full of "cheap lies."

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who is the archbishop of the northern Italian city of Genoa and a close friend of Pope John Paul, went on to say "(the Da Vinci Code) aims to discredit the Church and its history through gross and absurd manipulations, this seems like a throwback to the old anti-clerical pamphlets of the 1800s," he said. "You can find that book everywhere and the risk is that many people who read it believe that those fairy tales are real, I think I have the responsibility to clear things up to unmask the cheap lies contained in books like that."

Cardinal Bertone's comments are significant because until the Pope named him archbishop of Genoa in 2003 he was the number two man at the Vatican's most powerful department - the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Bertone is the archbishop of the northern Italian city of Genoa and a close friend of Pope John Paul.

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I'm not going to post any *spoilers* just in case some of you have not read the book yet, but let's just say that the Cardinal's main beef has to do with a few of the main plot lines of the story as well as the way that a certain Catholic based group called Opus Dei is portrayed.
If you'd like to know more, I'd suggest you read the book; I think it's an excellent read.
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Here's my reason for posting this story...

1. What kind of fairytale island does this Cardinal live on that he doesn't know the difference between fiction and fact? And (in my opinion) can not determine for himself whether or not he is helping or hurting the Christian faith by encouraging tough questions...should we all be sheep that don't bleet at all? It sounds like the Cardinal has exposed his greatest fear...again, only my opinion.
2. Is the Christian faith SO FRAGILE that it can't take a little healthy dissent and some honestly posed questions - whether posed from a fictional novel or not?
3. On all this whiny nonsense by the Caridnal; isn't it kind of too late to tell people not to read this book? After all, twenty-five million copies of the book have now been printed, in 44 languages, and there is no end in sight for the success of this book. Booksellers expect that "The Da Vinci Code" will remain a best-seller well into 2005 and with a planned film version starring Tom Hanks due out in 2006 should bring in even more readers!
4. What's the point! Doesn't this guy get it? Rant pending...Cardinal Bertone...with all due respect, It's fiction! FICTIONNNNN!!!...it's supposed to be fantastic, outlandish, interesting and controversial - otherwise how could anyone be interested in it?

When asked on his website whether or not Dan Brown was a Chritstian he responded...
"Yes. Interestingly, if you ask three people what it means to be Christian, you will get three different answers. Some feel being baptized is sufficient. Others feel you must accept the Bible as absolute historical fact. Still others require a belief that all those who do not accept Christ as their personal savior are doomed to hell. ...I consider myself a student of many religions. The more I learn, the more questions I have. For me, the spiritual quest will be a life-long work in progress."

And here are a few excerpts from Dan Browns Official website's Common Questions page...

Q. HOW MUCH OF THIS NOVEL IS TRUE?
A. "The Da Vinci Code is a novel and therefore a work of fiction. ..."

Q. IS THIS BOOK ANTI-CHRISTIAN?
A. "No. This book is not anti-anything. It's a novel. ..."

Q. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF CLERICAL SCHOLARS ATTEMPTING TO "DISPROVE" THE DA VINCI CODE?
A. "The dialogue is wonderful. These authors and I obviously disagree, but the debate that is being generated is a positive powerful force. ..."

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WWJD?

I think Jesus would have enjoyed this fine work of fiction and it probably would've been on his Book of the Month Club between the writings of Mahatma Gandhi and the Dalai Lama...

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C'mon Cardinal Bertone, you don't need attention this bad...let it go...it's just a novel, it can't hurt you!