Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Shame on the Catholic Church in India
In India, every major religious community has to necessarily lose its marbles from time to time. The leaders of the Christian community are proving they are no exception to this rule by calling for a ban on the movie version of "The Da Vinci Code." What is it about FICTION that these people don't understand? Get a life, people. The DVC is just a story, just like the Bible is a collection of second-hand stories and parables. And if you don't like it, don't watch it.
Of course, instead of standing up to this sort of religious bullying and upholding the constitution which guarantees freedom of speech and expression, the Indian government has instead decided to screen the movie to the Catholic church to see if they approve of it before deciding on a general release. Since when did the church supplant the censor board in terms of what should or should not be screened? When did the church become the arbiter of what Vikram Public can or cannot watch? When will someone in the Indian government develop a pair of gonads to stand up for what is right instead of what is expedient, which in turn of course encourages more religious bullies to call for banning this and banning that.
Shame on you, so-called leaders of the Indian church. I was raised as a Christian in India and I feel utterly embarassed that these people are claiming to speak on behalf of all Indian Christians. No, they are not!
UPDATE: Seems like some sense has prevailed and the movie is being released without any cuts to please the religious bullies. Now, if only the same sense would prevail the next time the Shiv Sena or some random Muslim outfit calls for the ban of this movie or that. In the meanwhile, Rotten Tomatoes has the movie with a freshness rating of 21%, which is a much, much better reason to not watch the movie.
Of course, instead of standing up to this sort of religious bullying and upholding the constitution which guarantees freedom of speech and expression, the Indian government has instead decided to screen the movie to the Catholic church to see if they approve of it before deciding on a general release. Since when did the church supplant the censor board in terms of what should or should not be screened? When did the church become the arbiter of what Vikram Public can or cannot watch? When will someone in the Indian government develop a pair of gonads to stand up for what is right instead of what is expedient, which in turn of course encourages more religious bullies to call for banning this and banning that.
Shame on you, so-called leaders of the Indian church. I was raised as a Christian in India and I feel utterly embarassed that these people are claiming to speak on behalf of all Indian Christians. No, they are not!
UPDATE: Seems like some sense has prevailed and the movie is being released without any cuts to please the religious bullies. Now, if only the same sense would prevail the next time the Shiv Sena or some random Muslim outfit calls for the ban of this movie or that. In the meanwhile, Rotten Tomatoes has the movie with a freshness rating of 21%, which is a much, much better reason to not watch the movie.
