Movie: The Golden Compass
By oneaustin • Nov 15th, 2007 • Category: Movies, News
The upcoming movie, “The Golden Compass” is making waves in the Christian community. Emails are circulating with information about the author and his atheist beliefs. The email states that the book’s author “hates Narnia” and in the end of the trilogy, the “children kill God so they can do as they please”. These statements appear to be factual. The author of some of the emails is asking for an organized boycott of the movie. Just remember that in Hollywood, even bad publicity is good publicity. Staging a grand boycott may boost its publicity. Most importantly, be informed and make a conscious decision if this movie is safe for your family or not.
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I’m not sure I understand what would make this movie unsafe for your family. I haven’t seen it, nor have I read the books, but it sounds to me like a case of symbolic misreading:
“children kill God so they can do as they please”
Maybe it’s just me, but this could be interpreted as something much more powerful: teaching people to remove the false image of God which they hold in their hearts, the image of God as a cruel master who won’t let you do what you want out of jealousy and spite. That *image* of God in fact must be destroyed, because it is inaccurate and childish.
Removing that image in your heart *does* allow you to “do as you please” because as the True God streams into your heart, you realize you do have Free Will, and that this is one of God’s primary gifts. What you do with that Free Will is the important part, of course.
Boycotting movies which explore symbolic notions certainly doesn’t seem to me to be a valuable use of Free Will, not when that same energy could be directed towards positive/constructive endeavors.
Christianity Today’s review of “the Compass”: http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/reviews/2007/goldencompass.html
and their advice on responding to it: http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/commentaries/fearnotthecompass.html