Protesting Protests - Why Boycotting the Golden Compass is Silly

Some folks in my area are protesting "The Golden Compass." Of all the crap out there, why is the Christian community so worked up about this movie and not others?

For example, no one is protesting "Hitman", a movie released a few weeks ago about an orphan who is raised and trained by the Church as an assassin who deals out divine judgment with guns, explosives, and lethal martial arts.

In general, I think boycotts are mostly useless and result in further mocking of believers by non-believers. It does not change the hearts and minds of non-believers to live in Christ, but rather supports the stereotype (however erroneous it may be) that Christians are backward, paranoid, controlling, haters of fun. I plan on using Sunday schools, small group studies, children and youth groups, and the pulpit to address these issues to the congregation to which I minister. That's where I feel the Spirit leading me.

The last time the Church got together to protest a movie "The Da Vinci Code" we did the industry a grand service by providing free publicity. Despite being based off of a poorly written suspense novel and made into an uninspiring and critically denounced move, it broke box office records that summer. Generally, people run toward hype, not away from it.

Now, I know that several people who have read the Bible and have not become Christians. I know some folks who have been Christians, have read the Bible, and have left the faith. I'm not quite sure why some are so concerned that by reading a fiction novel that it will make people become (or remain) atheists. I'm not sure why the fantasy story of a disillusioned Englishman is being elevated to the same level of influence (if not higher) as texts written by men inspired of the Holy Spirit.

C. S. Lewis while addressing his friend J. R. R. Tolken in the preface of his book, "The Screwtape Letters" quotes two notable saints of the Church. He cites Martin Luther: "The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn." He also refers to Thomas More: "The devill . . the prowde spirite . . cannot endure to be mocked." I think that should be our tactic—mock the devil. I think the Church can lend the illusion of legitimacy to something that we protest—we give it power it didn't have before. However, if we make a joke of it, we have left it impotent.

For example, in Pullman's "His Dark Materials", two children kill God. I'm more aghast at the notion that someone thinks that the immortal God can be killed. That simply doesn't make sense, is an insult to rational thought, and is not an argument worth engaging in. Anyway, as I recall, humans tried that whole "killing God" business about 2000 years ago. It didn't take.

In light of all this, I've done some reading, some research, and some thinking about all this. If it interests you, below is my detailed analysis of the issues surrounding the movie "The Golden Compass" and the book on which it is based.

To begin with, I'm an avid fan of fantasy and science fiction literature. I've read all the Harry Potter books by J. K. Rowling, "The Chronicles of Narnia" books by C. S. Lewis, "The Lord of the Rings" books by J. R. R. Tolken, and I'm working through "His Dark Materials" books by Philip Pullman, having completed the first book, "The Golden Compass" and read through the first third of "The Subtle Knife."

Living true to my home state of Missouri's motto "Show Me," I've done a lot of looking into the controversies of these various fiction collections, including reading the work myself. First I will explain the similarities of the former writers and their work. In doing so, I hope to be able to contrast Pullman's atheistic "His Dark Materials" trilogy with the other three popular Christian-themed allegorical fantasy collections.

There are many similarities between the authors of the first three collections, beginning with how they use their initials instead of their first and middle names and are from the British isles. On a more serious and ecclesial note, all three are members of the church, though from different traditions. C. S. Lewis was born into the Church of Ireland, became atheist/agnostic for a while in his adult life, then came back to the church via the Church of England. J. R. R. Tolken was raised in the Baptist tradition and then converted to Roman Catholicism as an adult. J. K. Rowling is a member of the Church of Scotland (which arose out of the Scottish Reformation lead by John Knox; the Church of Scotland's American contemporary is the Presbyterian Church).

Their books all have settings within worlds which are somewhat like our reality. However, they differ in the fact that they are populated with talking animals (both those we are familiar with as well as fantastic creatures); wizards, warlocks, witches, and other such humans who are capable of using magic; regions which have unique properties that are influenced by magic or have supernatural influence on those who are in their vicinities; and special items that posses supernatural powers in themselves or can impute them upon their users.

If you've not read these works, here's my in-a-nutshell synopsis of each:

Beware, here be spoilers...

Chronicles of Narina - An allegorical tale in which Lewis uses the Christ figure of Aslan the Lion to tell the stories of creation, the fall, sin and human nature, the atonement, and finally the eschaton.

Lord of the Rings - An epic story which explores the destroying nature of temptation and sin, which is contrasted (and defeated) by selflessness and self-sacrifice to restore good into creation.

Harry Potter - a collection of stories that continually emphasizes that the corruptible powers of the world are no match the power of love, which is ultimately manifested in the main characters' willingness to give their lives for their friends.

I regard all three of these works comparable in their ability to teach young and old alike the virtues of Christian faith and teaching through accessible, entertaining, and brilliantly written fantasy fiction.

Philip Pullman and "His Dark Materials" series is something quite different. Other than sharing the same geographical origins as the previous writers and being Oxford educated as well as teaching at his alma mater as Lewis and Tolken did, there are no such similarities of faith or morally redeeming qualities in his fantasy trilogy.

I can only speak to the first of the trilogy "The Golden Compass", as it is the only one I have completed reading so far. It is an insidious book. Like the works of Tolken, Lewis, and Rowling, the author's writing style is impeccable and the story and its characters are captivating. There is nothing that would alert its reader of its subversive intent against the Church until the final three chapters (The last three chapters will be the beginning of the second movie, if the first film makes enough money to warrant the continuation of the series.) "The Golden Compass" lures the reader into falling in love with the protagonists such as the 11-year-old Lyra and the armored bear Iorek Byrnison. Only in the last three chapters does the reader discover Pullmans opinion of the Church and Christian faith and theology.

Here is brief synopsis of the major theme of "The Golden Compass". As a Christian or experienced theologian, you must temporarily suspend your belief in what you know to be true to be able to follow this erroneous reasoning. It is written by a man who has his hatred of Christianity grounded in ill-conceived notions of God in Christ and his Holy Church.

In this fantasy world, the souls of all humans are physically manifested as dæmons, who in childhood shift from one animal form to another, only settling at puberty into a form which best represents the dæmon's human counterpart. In the course of the story, an invisible particle called Dust is found by scholars of the Church. It has the property of being attracted by and adhering to adults, but not pre-pubescent children. It is through that Dust is the physical manifestation of original sin (in the later books it is identified as consciousness). The Church is deathly afraid of Dust and labels anyone a heretic who attempts to study it.

Two characters in the book seek to control the dust, Lord Asriel and Ms. Coulter. Ms. Coulter, an agent of the Church, seeks to separate people from their dæmons/souls and thus save them from Dust and knowing sin. Being separated from one's dæmon/soul takes away any vitality of life, will, and creativity making them zombie-like and easy to control. It essentially destroys a person's humanity. Lord Asriel, an enemy of the Church seeks to use Dust to overthrow the Church, Heaven, and ultimately God. Both Lord Asriel and Ms. Coulter kill children by violently separating them from their dæmons/souls to study and manipulate Dust. The main character, an eleven-year-old girl named Lyra, upon discovering what lengths the Church will go to control Dust, determines that the church is evil and Dust (sin) is good.

From what I've read, all theological or ecclesial references have been stripped out of the movie. The movie, by itself, is mostly innocuous. However, my concern is that, like "Lord of the Rings", "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe", and "Harry Potter", children will be drawn to the book version of "The Golden Compass" just as they were by the other movies and the books on which they were based.

My wife and I intend on watching the film when it is released for the same reason I have chosen to read the books. I'd rather make an informed argument rather than one based on hearsay and rumor. God's bigger than all of this nonsense. I'm not afraid of this movie or book. There once was when they were not: New-line Cinemas, Scholastic Books, Philip Pullman, and Satan himself. And there will be a time when they are gone again.