It seems that the Christian groups protests again will be increasing as the day for the launch of “The Golden Compass” movie, based on the first book of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Trilogy, gets nearer.
Emails have been circulating, warning Christians to beware of watching the film because it “promotes atheism for kids”.
An example of such email is this:
There will be a new children’s movie out in December called “The Golden Compass”. The movie has been described as “atheism for kids”and is based on the first book of a trilogy entitled “His Dark Materials” that was written by Phillip Pullman. Pullman is a militant atheist and secular humanist who despises C. S. Lewis and the “Chronicles of Narnia”. His motivation for writing this trilogy was specifically to counteract Lewis’ symbolisms of Christ that are portrayed in the Narnia series.
Clearly, Pullman’s main objective is to bash Christianity and promote atheism. Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview that “my books are about killing God.” He has even stated that he wants to “kill God in the minds of children”. It has been said of Pullman that he is “the writer the atheists would be praying for, if atheists prayed.”
While “The Golden Compass” movie itself may seem mild and innocent, the books are a much different story. In the trilogy, a young streetwise girl becomes enmeshed in an epic struggle to ultimately defeat the oppressive forces of a senile God. Another character, an ex-nun, describes Christiaity as “a very powerful and convincing mistake.” In the final book, characters representing Adam and Eve eventually kill God, who at times is called YAHWEH. Each book in the trilogy gets progressively worse regarding Pullman’s hatred of Jesus Christ.
“The Golden Compass” is set to premier on December 7, during the Christmas season (and staring Nicole Kidman), and will probably be heavily advertised.
Promoters hope that unsuspecting parents will take their children to see the movie, that they will enjoy the movie, and that the children will want the books for Christmas.
Please consider a boycott of the movie and the books. Also, pass this information along to everyone you know (including church leaders). This will help to educate parents, so that they will know the agenda of the movie. I am sending this to those of you who have kids or friends with kids, grandkids or have influence with kids. So many things today are darkness concealed in what appears to be innocent.
Don’t let kids see “The Golden Compass”!
This is reminiscent of the days when Christian groups also protested the publication of two controversial books, the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling and Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. Groups protested the Harry Potter books because, according to them, the books makes witchcraft enticing to children. Da Vinci Code earned the ire of the religious groups because of its “heretical” suggestions that Jesus had been married to Mary Magdalene and had a family, whose bloodline still exists today and that this information was being hidden by the early Church leaders because it will discourage the worship of Jesus as a divine being.
I do not understand why the groups have to protest the publication of such books, even to the point of burning it, or the showing of the Golden Compass movie when all they’ve got to do is to engage the public (or their constituents) in a dialogue and convince them that what the books and the movies are implying are not true. I do not even understand why they have to have that much hatred on the books and the authors when they do not claim to be speaking the sole “truth”. Goodness, these are fictional stories!
I do understand the concern for children because they are still at the stage when their minds are “malleable”. After all, if the Church has always been afraid of any perceived “threats” to their “infallible” doctrines (infallible until the Pope decides to change it and then the rest of the group will start to forget it has ever been different), how much more when it’s the “innocence” of their kids that are at stake? Have we not almost always shielded children’s minds from trying to know too much and ask for mere unquestioning obedience? Have we not, from the day they were born, chose what they should believe in for them?
But then, that’s just the whole point of the trilogy: let the children go and search for knowledge and let them have doubts if they will.
Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Trilogy isn’t only about “killing God”. Though he may have been quoted (or misquoted) for saying that, a more important purpose of the book is always ignored, with protesters favoring to highlight a strong, easily misunderstood, easily manipulated statement to push an agenda.
The books are not merely about killing a “God” as we know in this world. Rather, Pullman is more intent on killing what “God” stands for in his book: oppression of free will. He wants to celebrate the quest for knowledge and the use of reason, two values which organized religion have tried to suppress for all time it has existed. And these are two values that we must instill in our malleable children. It is better to have a child who continually ask questions than a child who’s conditioned to take in, without doubt, everything that is fed to him.
It would be futile to compress all discussions about the trilogy in just one post as there are numerous fundamental and philosophical ideas explored in this literary work.
So, for those who chose to give this movie/trilogy a chance and listen to what it is trying to voice out, then maybe I’ll just see you in the movie theaters on December 7 or just wait for you to post about it after reading the books.
For those who chose to close their minds to the alternative views this movie/trilogy is offering out of fear that it may corrupt them and their beliefs, then go protest why you judge this film/trilogy unfit for the human mind. Protest that because you find it offensive, then other people, even those who don’t find it such, should not watch it too and so ban the film. Protest that your faith do not allow you to entertain doubts because it degrades you as less of a believer. Protest that those are lies and say that you know what the truth is.
And while doing all of the above, I’ll leave you an advice to ponder:
“Shake off all fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of God because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear.”
- Thomas Jefferson
Postscript:
A little spoiler - I’d like to disagree with what the email said about God being killed in the end. In the last book of the trilogy, the Amber Spyglass, Lyra and Will, while looking for their daemons, found cliff ghasts (mountain ghosts) attacking God in his glass case, as he’s being spirited away by angels to a safer place because the war of Kingdom of Heaven vs. Republic of Heaven had begun. Lyra and Will attacked the cliff ghasts and released God from his glass case, of which he looked at them kindly and dissolved into the wind.
My take on this part of the story is that God, himself, one of the first angels that has been created out of Dust, did not want any part in this war nor would he want the leadership to oppress and manipulate humankind. And when Lyra and Will released him, I imagine that he had been thankful to the two. In my opinion, God, liar though he is for proclaiming that he created all the angels that had been created after him, represents the spirit of the living and by dissolving in the wind, the particles of which he was composed goes back to which he came from: Dust.
November 22nd, 2007 at 19:55
They are the biggest arguments against religious tolerance.
benj’s last blog post..Resuscitation
November 23rd, 2007 at 1:30
I agree with you– better doubt than blind obedience. It’s annoying how people just agree without understanding what they agreed with. Sometimes, I want to tell them, “we’re not just animals, we’re RATIONAL animals!!!”
It’s funny how, in my experience, I learned to value individual freedom, the quest for knowledge, and the use of reason through organized religion. Before I took my faith seriously, I was a fairly decent person but one drifting, not steering, in the sea of “good” ideologies.
As a Catholic who actually reads up on doctrinal issues, I honestly think that a lot of protesters are simply overreacting. Although their actions can encourage blind obedience, they, too, have used their reason to arrive at such (extreme) positions. They are questioning the purposes and implications of the books/movie instead of blindly accepting what is presented before them. It’s their own rebellion against passiveness. In that sense, like you, I am left to tolerate their own free choice as long as they don’t go beyond the boundary of my freedom.
The fight against the oppression of free will is a common theme in episodes of life and the arts that reflect it. It’s not only a vendetta for those who consider themselves liberal, even the conservatives take on this battle. I recall how my professor once noted a student’s argumentative paper on gender issues. He stated his own reasons for taking a “conservative” stand. She tried to talk to her student about being open to other genders, and at the end of their debate he finally said, “Ma’am, ano po ba talaga gusto niyo isulat?” Then the prof stopped and realized that she was guilty of oppression by trying to imposing her own views on the other.
As you wrote, “Pullman is more intent on killing what “God” stands for in his book” This portrayal of God is different from my God who is exactly the opposite, advocate and source of free will. If the film is taken from a series that is against the oppression of free will, then I suppose it’s worth watching.
Sorry for the uber long comment!
Frances’s last blog post..Ateneo takes back the spot of 2nd highest ranked Philippine university
November 23rd, 2007 at 7:03
How great the World would be if the Christians were a bit smarter
Tammy’s last blog post..Getting tantric
November 23rd, 2007 at 11:33
I agree. I’m currently reading the 3rd book and just this morning, i came across a Pinoy blog about “the boycott”. Of course, i couldn’t resist giving my opinion about the books; (suprise) that comment wasn’t published. It was not nasty or anything, just a very balanced and objective comment.
People really believe all that trash in the Internet. Wow.
November 23rd, 2007 at 18:20
to benj:
Sometimes I’m beginning to think that maybe Christopher Hitchens is right in saying that religion poisons everything.
November 23rd, 2007 at 18:25
to Frances:
“Although their actions can encourage blind obedience, they, too, have used their reason to arrive at such (extreme) positions. They are questioning the purposes and implications of the books/movie instead of blindly accepting what is presented before them.”
— But I cannot believe that such brand of reason that they used is credible. As for questioning the purposes and implications, it is their right. But to propose actions that reek of arrogance by saying that the film should be banned because it is immoral…it’s too much. Did they think that since it is immoral for them or dangerous for their beliefs that it should be immoral and dangerous for others too? What I’m especially irked is that they go about proclaiming believers should not watch/read about this trilogy because it will hurt their beliefs. If these are people who believe in free will, then they should realize that people should be given the choices so that they may decide for themselves and not to simply pick that choice for them.
November 23rd, 2007 at 18:29
to Tammy:
Honestly, I think the world would be better off without organized religion. At some point I did think that maybe, in moderation, a little bit of religion would be good. However, with the tendency of most religions to organize so that they may be able to control what the world thinks and does and even to the point of proclaiming that they have the truth (haven’t you noticed that in most religions? All of them would claim they are the “true” religion), I’m beginning to doubt.
November 23rd, 2007 at 18:32
to aileen:
I wouldn’t be surprised. Some people would rather have all “yes” statements that agree with what they wrote than have some disagreements. It may be so that they just didn’t want to have arguments in their blogs. It’s his right anyway, which comments to post or not. But it certainly speaks about the attitude that blog owner has towards diverse views. He would have been fully justified not posting the comment if you were nasty. But then you said you weren’t so…I don’t know. Maybe he just didn’t want to argue.
November 24th, 2007 at 14:43
What’s actually pathetic about this is that the people who are quick to condemn these books haven’t even read them. I’ve never been too accepting of people who force their opinions/beliefs down other people’s throats. Don’t they understand the concept of free will?
psychogoddess’s last blog post..Creative Criminals
November 24th, 2007 at 22:18
to psychogoddess:
Yup, it’s all about free will. Most of these groups will claim that they have the freedom to voice out their views but they haven’t realized that the same also applies to other people, not just with them.
November 25th, 2007 at 15:50
Hi!
Nice article on the “Golden Compass” movie. I’m a Christian and I don’t see anything wrong with this movie or the “His Dark Materials” books. And it’s sad to see that some people are actually narrow minded or maybe their faith is just to weak that a movie with a 12 yr old girl and a talking polar bear will be enough to shatter their faith. I hope that people will be open minded and appreciate one of the best literary masterpiece of all time. I can’t wait to catch this movie in the theaters this December. I just hope that the MTRCB won’t give it an “R” rating as they did w/ The Da Vinci Code.
P.S. You can also read this article “Christians Shouldn’t Fear Philip Pullman and His Trilogy” by Donna Freitas of Boston University.
Here’s the link:
http://blog.beliefnet.com/idolchatter/2007/10/responding-to-my-fellow-christ.html
November 28th, 2007 at 11:45
A nice quote from Mr. Philip Pullman himself (from an interview in Canada)
“The thing they should do if they don’t want people to read the book is to say nothing about it. If you want people to read a book, then make a fuss about it, make it controversial. Tell your children they are not to read this book under any circumstances. What is more likely to make them go to the shelf and take it down and read it from there?”
— Philip Pullman, author of The Golden Compass
November 28th, 2007 at 18:04
to Jerome:
Thanks for the comment. Yeah, you’re right. What we need nowadays is a little more (or a lot more) openmindedness. Being too focused in one’s beliefs without regard to others having different views is very dangerous and at the very worst, can lead to extreme decisions to eliminate the other, whether literally or figuratively.
November 28th, 2007 at 18:15
to Jhenna:
Thanks for posting that quote!
And I agree. Clamoring for a boycott of the movie only made it more interesting to those who might not have known about Pullman’s books. It would have been better if they chose to just let their children see the movie or read the books and just engage on an honest discussion about it.
December 2nd, 2007 at 13:51
[...] Better a doubt than blind obedience, I’d say (click on the link to read more of my views about this upcoming movie and the controversies surrounding it). Better a thinking person than an incurious robot. [...]