Catholic Vapors Over "Angels and Demons"

In a case of all to common crocodile tears the Vatican and its usual sycophants such as William Donohue at the Catholic League are having vapors and squealing "anti-Catholic bigotry" over the release of the movie Angels and Demons based on Dan Brown's book of the same name. First, any rational person - which obviously excludes Donohue - would know that the piece is a work of FICTION and connect the dots and realize the movie is merely a fictional thriller. Moreover, if the Roman Catholic Church is truly worried about its image in the world, it could (1) impose punishment on those in the Church hierarchy who enabled and/or covered up the world wide sexual abuse of minors and (2) issue a formal and sincere apology for all of the horrible things the Church has done down through history, including the massacre of non-Christians, the Inquisition just for starters. Sadly, we all know that such action will never occur and that the Church savors playing the victim as it victimizes others. Thus, I suspect most people will recognize the Church's current whining for the disingenuous bull shit that it is. Here are some highlights from the Telegraph:

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The Rt Rev Malcolm McMahon, the Bishop of Nottingham, warned that the film could stir up anti-Catholic sentiment."This is so outlandish, it's total rubbish," said Bishop McMahon, who is one of the Church's most senior bishops. "It's mischievous to stir up this kind of anti-Catholic sentiment. It's a gratuitous knocking of the Church and I can't see any reason for it."

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Ron Howard, the director of Angels & Demons - expected to become the first blockbuster film of the summer when it is released this month - has fired back that Catholics will enjoy the movie, which is based on a previous novel by The Da Vinci Code's author, Dan Brown. His comments will intensify a feud between some prominent Catholic leaders and the Da Vinci Code team over claims that the film smears the Church.

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The bishop, who chairs the Church's Department of Evangelisation and Catechesis, said that Catholics were "getting tired" of the sensational stories and plotlines contained in Brown's novels and subsequent film adaptations. "I don't think that Catholics will be interested in seeing this as it's so far removed from the truth," he added.

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Brown's book includes a number of other episodes guaranteed to upset the faithful - including a Pope conceiving a child via artificial insemination, thereby circumventing celibacy rules. Sony Pictures has declined to say whether those incidents make it to the movie. Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights in the US, accused Howard and Brown of "smearing the Catholic church with fabulously bogus tales".

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The Vatican, which was predictably offended by the Da Vinci Code plot that involved Jesus fathering a child with Mary Magdalene, did not allow Howard to film in its churches or property. "Normally we read the script," a Vatican spokesman said. "But this time it was not necessary - the name Dan Brown was enough." There has also been high-level discussion within the Holy See about whether to urge a boycott of the film, according to Italian media reports. It took that step with The Da Vinci Code, but the film enjoyed staggering box office takings of $758 million and some Vatican insiders fear their high-profile opposition backfired.

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But Sony Pictures is not backing away from the controversy and will stage the film's world premier on the Vatican's doorstep in Rome on May 4, 10 days before it opens in British cinemas. "We do not believe the film is anti-Catholic, and we don't believe the nearly 40 million people worldwide who purchased the novel were confused by the fact that this is a fictional mystery thriller," said Steve Elzer, the studio's senior vice-president.

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Personally, I am tired of the Vatican's lies, hypocrisy and dissemination of anti-gay garbage based on 13th century ignorance. The boyfriend and I both read the book and loved it and we are eagerly awaiting the film's opening locally.