Erroneous on Both Counts

After a week and a half since its release, Ramble On was finally able to find time to watch Ron Howard's film adaptation of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. While the film was entertaining and fast-paced, it did not quite fulfill all the hype that its marketing campaign promised. What is of even greater interest however was the softening that took place between novel and film. What sparked such great controversy in the DVC (novel version) was the questioning of the divinity of Jesus. Howard's version however takes some liberties and attempts to play it safe, rather than being as forthcoming to challenge centuries of "traditional" Christian theology regarding the divinity of Jesus. Kelly Boggs points out some of this softening in his own blog,

The movie departs ever-so subtly from the book in a way that somewhat mutes the attack on Jesus’ divinity that Brown puts forth in his novel.

In the film, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, played by Tom Hanks, says, “History shows Jesus was an extraordinary man. Why couldn’t Jesus have been divine and still have been a father?”

While Christians will still have a problem with the line, it is not found in Brown’s book. Critics obviously felt that it softened the questioning of Jesus’ divinity. Also, contrary to rumors, the movie contains no scenes of Jesus and Mary Magdalene romantically involved, which I am sure some reviewers found disappointing.

Near the end of the movie the filmmakers further soften the question of Jesus’ divinity when they have Langdon say, "What matters is what you believe."

Had the movie remained true to Brown’s strong attack of Jesus’ divinity, the critics would have been falling all over themselves to praise the courageous effort. However, the muting of the book’s challenge to historic Christianity left most reviewers dissatisfied.

Overall the movie seemed to rush through the sequence of the novel, and left out many important details of the book that make understanding the DVC very difficult for those viewers who have not first read the novel. The mysterious sex rituals were never really addressed in Howard's DVC, as it was more clearly explained in novel form. The ending of the film was also disappointing, feeling much more rushed and wooden than in Brown's novel.
While the DVC will no doubt continue to make Mr. Brown and Mr. Howard extremely rich, the DVC has failed to live up to the hype, which accompanies the DVC bandwagon. Regardless of personal opinion, Ramble On encourages its readers to approach both the film and novel of DVC with an open-mind, but with knowledge that the DVC is no truer than other pieces of fiction such as Indiana Jones or Star Wars. A good understanding of our culture is essential to our ministry, and what better segway could one ask for to spark a conversation about faith than the DVC? While there are many resources out there about DVC, one of the best for the casual reader can be found at Westminster Theological Seminary’s website here. It offers a brief, yet thorough explanation into the historical and theological errors made by Brown and his cronies that will not take a weekend to read.

Rebound

After an embarrassing defeat to Morocco on Tuesday night, the U.S. men's national team finally showed that they are able to find the back of the net again. They men's soccer team defeated Venezuela 2-0 tonight in their second to last friendly tune-up match before they head off to their World Cup headquarters in Hamburg, Germany next Friday. Solid performances by Clint Dempsey and Bobby Convey will increase their chances of starting in Germany as both Americans were able to net goals and dominate their opponents offensively. Meanwhile backup keeper Tim Howard proved his worth notching a clean sheet thanks to a spectacular save off a Venezuela free kick early in the 2nd half. Ramble On encourages all to tune in for the final friendly of the season this Sunday vs. Latvia live on ESPN2 at 7:00 et.

British Nut

After a much-anticipated press conference between President Bush and PM Blair last night, a rogue member of British Parliament is claiming that an attack or assassination attempt on PM Blair would be morally justified. George Galloway is quoted as saying that since Blair sent thousands of troops to die in Iraq, then he would be justified in an assassination.

In the interview, former Daily Mirror editor Piers Morgan asked: "Would the assassination of, say, Tony Blair by a suicide bomber, if there were no other casualties, be justified as revenge for the war on Iraq?"

The Respect MP replies: "Yes it would be morally justified. I am not calling for it, but if it happened it would be of a wholly different moral order to the events of 7/7.

"It would be entirely logical and explicable, and morally equivalent to ordering the deaths of thousands of innocent people in Iraq as Blair did."

These comments have cause on uproar throughout the UK with all three major political parties condemning such comments. Galloway was a member of Blair's own Labour Party until the fall of 2003 when he was kicked out after he told British solders not to fight in Iraq in defiance to the war. Since then Galloway formed his own Respect party and was able to win a seat in Parliament from a Muslim delegation outside of London. Galloway's position can be summed up by his own actions, earlier this week he made a surprise television appearance from Cuba alongside Fidel Castro. He has since remained in Cuba, and confirmed his comments via his website. 'Nough said.

Bush, Blair, and Enron

After 4 1/2 long years of evidence collection, interviews, and much litigation the trial of Enron founders Ken Lay and Jeff Skillings is finally over. At Ramble On we are happy to hear that both men were found guilty on all counts of various fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and cooking of the books in the Enron bankruptcy scandal. Both men will probably face between 20-30 years in prison for misleading both the public, and those inside the company about the true financial health of Enron, which was the largest company to ever file for bankruptcy at that time. Some believed that Lay and Skillings might get off with a light sentence or conviction by having the jury believed that they themselves received faulty information and were duped by their own accountants, but thankfully the jury saw right through these lies and convicted them both on all counts. Ramble On and millions of other Americans are pleased to see this conviction and hope that corporate executives around the country are feeling uneasy..................

PM Tony Blair will meet with President Bush tonight and hold a press conference to begin two days of talks about the situation in Iraq, as well as tentative pull out strategies and dates. After Iraq's announcement that they will be able to control security within its borders, many around the UK and US are anxiously awaiting a date that will be set for coalition withdrawal from Iraq. Press Secretary Tony Snow announced earlier today that no specific date will be set for British and American withdrawal. Bush and Blair are both hoping to recover some public approval with both leaders current approval ratings below 35% in their respective constituencies. While Blair is no doubt a lame duck figure head across the pond, it is much too late for him to save face even with good news for the British about Iraq, but the Bush administration is still hopeful that he can gain favor with the country.

Nouri al-Maliki

The AP reports today that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has stated that Iraqi forces will be able to take over the security within their borders. A tentative 18 month deadline has been set which will hopefully mean that U.S., British, and other allied troops will be able to begin to phase out of the region and turn control over to Iraq. While Maliki says that Iraq can secure the country from a manpower point of view, they still will need to rely on the West for recruits, training, and equipment. While Tony Snow explained that the White House will not set a specific date for pulling out of Iraq, they are hopeful that this is a step in the right direction.

"I do not believe that you're going to hear the president or the prime minister say we're going to be out in one year, two years, four years — I just don't think you're going to get any specific prediction of troops withdrawals," Bush spokesman Tony Snow said. "I think you're going to get a restatement of the general principles under which coalition troops stay or go."

President Bush is meeting with PM Tony Blair on Thursday to discuss among else, the status of the coalition in Iraq. Ramble On and the gentle readers of R.O. can only hope that the free democracy implanted will become self-sustaining, stabilize the region, and help those in the Middle-East realize the opportunity and freedom a democracy offers.

No More &

The BBC reports the Montenegro has voted to secede from Serbia and become its own sovereign nation. The tiny state that has been incorporated into Serbia and Yugoslavia since 1918 will now finally will be independent for the first time in 80 years. The Belgrade Agreement of 2002 made provisions so that Serbia would be the successor-state should Montenegro decide to leave the union. This means that Serbia will keep the seat in the U.N. as well as other such organizations and agreements. Montenegro is a state of only about 650,000 people and with only a few thousand votes uncounted about 55% of the population voted to secede. Montenegro will also now face an easier chance at petitioning the EU for membership, because Serbia has neglected to deal with certain human rights violations and war crimes.

Montenegro's Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic has been arguing that his republic would complete its integration with the EU much more quickly if it negotiated with Brussels as an independent state.
EU officials are doubtful, citing Montenegro's poor administrative capacity and its modest results in tackling corruption and organised crime. But if the suspension of talks with Serbia persists for more than a few months, Montenegro's independence advocates may yet be proved right, and Podgorica could overtake Belgrade in its talks with the EU.

Ramble On encourages Montenegro to become more zealous in its prosecution of organized crime, and then hopefully they will be considered for EU membership, which will result in the stabilization of Montenegro as well as the enlargement of the EU.

Across the Pond (again)

On May 30th the European Union is hosting an ecumenical event designed to discuss basic human rights and mutual respect among the world's most popular religions. Delegates and various world religious leaders will be gathering to brainstorm solutions that each religion can play in easing tensions and prejudices across the board. Kudos to all in attendance, hopefully more dialogue and discussion will continue to take place and help put an end to religious persecutions across Europe........

Speaking of Europe as of this post there are 20 days 20 hours remaining until the World Cup is under way. All of England will be holding its collective breath until 25 May. This is the date that Wayne Rooney will undergo a final scan that will let Sven-Goran Eriksson and the rest of England know whether or not the young striker will be able to play in this year's cup. Rooney broke a bone in his foot a few weeks ago, and many are skeptical about his fitness for the cup. When the tournament gets underway it will have been about 7 weeks since Rooney injured his foot. Man U. manager Sir Alex Ferguson has warned that if Eriksson decides to play Rooney at anything less than 100% then it will be detrimental to the team, and to the striker's health and longevity in the sport. While no doubt Ferguson wants his star healthy for next year's club season, he does raise a good point. Four years ago when England rushed Beckham to the cup he was not 100% and as a result he was merely a shell of himself on the pitch. If Rooney is not able to play Eriksson will mostly likely make Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard the number two striker.

It's Big in Europe

Congratulations are in order to the tiny European nation of Slovenia. Slovenia will become the first country to join the eurozone since the inception of the Euro in January 2002. It is expected that in January 2007 Slovenia will abandon its tolar for the European currency that has quickly become one if the dominate currencies in the world market. Slovenia was able to meet the strict economic requirements that all (sort of) countries must meet before they can join the eurozone. The acceptance of Slovenia has left some Europeans perplexed why Lithuania was denied entrance into the eurozone. Slovenia had slightly lower inflation rates than Lithuania, whose rates for last year were just hundredths of a percentage point away from the 2.6% the EU mandates. Officials of the EU state that while Lithuania could have been granted membership, they felt that its inflation was headed even higher in the future, and didn't want to set a precedent of bending the rules for other potential candidates. Aside from the inflation rate, Lithuania is actually much better off economically than Slovenia. President Valdas Adamkus is disappointed with their rejection, feeling that the implementation of the Euro would be the spark that Lithuania needed.

"Introducing the euro would have strengthened the country's attractiveness for investment, and eased trade relations and the movement of our citizens in eurozone countries"

Ramble On continues to support these former soviet states in their quest to integrated into mainstream Europe. We hope more of the other EU member nations will soon be able to adopt the Euro and compete economically with the rest of the world.......... For more information on the Euro click here.

Diplomacy Not Blood

In Vienna, Austria key European nations are meeting this week to discuss how to handle Iran's nuclear enrichment project among other issues. The latest development is that several European nations are considering giving Iran a light-water nuclear reactor in hopes that it will stop development of a heavy-water nuclear reactor that they are currently implementing. The International Atomic Energy Agency aggress that the chance of misuse (for nuclear weapons) is much lower with a light water reactor than with the heavy-water design. British and UN officials have confirmed that this offer is on the table, but Washington is still very skeptical about such an idea. They are not convinced that this measure will prevent Iran from continuing its development of nuclear enrichment. China and Russia are still dead set on opposing the U.S. position of force stating that diplomacy must be used, and that there was no reason to use brute force or military action against Iran. Ramble On urges the U.S. and its citizens to continue to promote diplomacy before we even begin to speak of more military action in the most volatile region in the world.

Whose Line is it Anyway?

The USA Today reported today that the National Security Agency has been amassing the largest database in history, logging every phone call that is made within the U.S. The NSA is using this data to monitor calling patterns in order to protect against terrorist activity, and they do not listen to or record any of the actual phone conversations from this database. This means that every call that Americans make using Bellsouth, AT&T, and Verizon carriers are being logged into a massive database. This program is more massive than the White House has ever publicly acknowledged. Last fall President Bush acknowledged that the government does monitor international e-mails, and international phone calls.

"In defending the previously disclosed program, Bush insisted that the NSA was focused exclusively on international calls. 'In other words,' Bush explained, 'one end of the communication must be outside the United States".

This clearly shows that there was purposeful deception on behalf of the White House, leading Americans to believe that domestic phone calls were indeed private. While Ramble On does not have a major problem with the practice of monitoring call patterns, we do take issue as to the secrecy, and covert nature of such a program. The White House had a perfect opportunity to let Americans know exactly what the procedures and practices of the NSA entailed last fall when the whole surveillance issue came to head. This secrecy feels dirty and makes Ramble On wonder if other such surveillance techniques exist without knowledge to the public. The timing of the story is also interesting, since the president has appointed Michael Hayden to replace Porter Goss as director of the CIA. Hayden headed the NSA for the last 6 years, and he no doubt would have headed up this domestic surveillance program. Not surprisingly Hayden choose not to comment on the issue, along with every other top official in the NSA.

Cowboys Strike Again

Our friends the minutemen are at it again. This ultra-conservative, anti-immigration, group of backwater wanna-be cowboys have decided to construct two short security fences on a private ranch in Arizona as part of their brilliant plan to stop illegal immigration. The fence will be constructed "Israeli" style with a 15 foot tall pair of chain mesh fences, and an unpaved road in between the two barriers. The fence will be monitored independently via various web-cameras to monitor the fencing. This is good, while we have genocide occurring all over Africa, an Iranian president who is dead set on developing nuclear weapons, an overstretched military overseas, an inept United Nations, and our own domestic political problems, these minutemen are really serving their country by spending thousands of dollars so they can play cowboys and Indians out west. Besides the obvious practical problems of such horribly thought out plan (i.e. immigrants will simply walk around the fence, or find other ways to enter the U.S. illegally), the root of the problem of illegal immigration is not being addressed; only the symptoms are being treated. What America needs to focus on is why we are hiring workers without proper paperwork, why Americans will not perform the hard labor that these workers seek to find, and why we are not working more with Vicente Fox to come up with a solution that will work for both the U.S. and Mexico.

Save Darfur

As the UN continues to drag its feet over the crisis in Darfur, President Bush yesterday reaffirmed his commitment to giving food, money, and other humanitarian relief efforts to the poverty stricken region of Darfur that has experienced genocide of its native African population since 2003.

"America will not turn away from this tragedy,"

proclaimed President Bush in speech delivered yesterday. Bush also sent Secretary of State Rice to the UN to continue to pressure the organization to take the initiative in resolving the conflict. While the U.S. is by far the largest contributor of food and aid to this region, we simply cannot provide for the 20,000 troops needed to monitor the region, which is roughly the size of Texas.

'The aim is to nearly double the 7,200 African Union peacekeeping force on the ground in Darfur and put the expanded force under U.N. control."

The UN needs to act quicker and provide the manpower to save this region from more violence and conflict. The U.S. contributes $215 million annually to the cause, and President Bush has re-submitted a request to Congress that would send another $225 million in emergency aid. Ramble On encourages you to visit Save Darfur's website to support the 4.5 million who are living in poverty while the UN drags it feet.

Spy vs. Spy

The Khaleej Times reports today that it seems the French government is involved in yet another controversial issue being dubbed the "Watergate of France". French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin is being accused of spying on a member of his own party; in fact it is his own Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy. While Watergate involved Republicans spying on Democrats, this scandal involves two candidates looking to succeed Jacques Chirac for centre-right control of the French presidency. De Villepin was looking into allegations that Sarkozy received any part of $2.8 billion in kickbacks from the sale of goods to Taiwan back in 1991. While De Villepin claims that he is innocent and is actually a victim in this investigation himself, this only further confirms Ramble On's theory of France. Not only are they intolerant, arrogant, and eternally set on living in the past, but the last year or so has proven that their government has just as many problems as we do, yet the still insist on proclaiming the superiority of French culture especially against our own American style. Ramble On offers this bit of advice to France: start worrying about planks before attacking the splinters.

Unveiled

The AP reports that today 50 women have been named Muslim Preachers in the Western-friendly country of Morocco. State officials have been hoping to combat radical fundamental Muslims, and this is a major means in which to accomplish that goal.

"..part of a concerted effort by authorities in Morocco to promote moderate Islam in a country grappling with extremism.......The training of the preachers is part of a campaign launched by the young king (King Mohammed VI), a descendant of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad, to strengthen state-controlled mosques while undermining radical clerics who preach Islamic extremism. He has vowed that no foreign religious doctrine would be tolerated in the North African kingdom, which is a close ally of the United States and a partner in its war against terrorism."

While these women imams will mainly only be working with other women, but they sometimes will be working with, teaching, or praying along side other men in the Muslim community. Stark opposition will no doubt arise among more fundamental, radical Muslims. This is a big step forward for a Moroccan nation, which is trying to weed out radical, and violent terrorist groups and mosques. This moderate form of Islam is spawning out of terrorist attacks that took place in Casablanca back in 2003. We can only hope that more countries in N. Africa/Middle East can be as committed to riding their borders of these radical terrorist groups. In a related story, the Christian Science Monitor is reporting that Egyptian Islamic television is getting a moderate makeover, at least on one station. Famous Egyptian actress Sabreen is being touted as the Oprah for the Islamic world. She has started a show in Dubai that addresses contemporary, moderate Islam with an audience full of men and women, with some women appearing unveiled. While this may seem a far cry from moderate to your Western eyes, it is very progressive and controversial in the Islamic world.

Opus DeiDream

With the release of the Da Vinci Code movie only a few weeks away, many Christian and Christian groups have publically professed the faithful to boycott the film based off Dan Brown's 2003 bestselling novel which has sold over 42 million copies as of this post. Various Christian groups (most notably the Vatican) have denounced this film as heretical, anti-Christian, anti-Catholic, anti-gospel, and many other "antis" too numerous too mention. I have read the book and have read the reviews, the hype, the lawsuits, the boycotts, and so on, but what I am suggesting is this: embrace the myth. Now I know that the theology and doctrine that the Da Vinci Code contains is largely exaggerated, erroneous, and sometimes down right made up, yes the dialogue is a bit predictable, overly suspenseful, and well, wooden. Nonetheless I still believe that the DVC should not be overlooked or ignored. It is not a stretch to say the DVC may be the most culturally influential piece of media of the decade, after all is said and done. With this in mind, it is imperative that we as Christians use this popularity of the DVC as a tool. Ignorance is not always bliss, rather than boycotting and ignoring the DVC (in any medium) we should equip ourselves with a thoughtful knowledge, and background of the work. I can't imagine an easier opportunity to engage in a thoughtful, meaningful dialogue about a popular book turned movie. A quick google of "the da vinci code" heeds an astounding 41,800,000 hits, the magnitude of this fiction simply cannot be overlooked. Now while some advocate boycotts, Ramble On offers a different take on dealing with Da Vinci, read it, watch it, and embrace it. Keeping in mind that the novel is a work of fiction the DVC can be an entertaining read, and it will no doubt be #1 at the box office for many weeks. I also strongly recommend that we as Christians should take the time to be informed and well versed in a few basic responses to the questions, misconceptions, and errors found in the DVC. Many works have been written as biblical responses to the DVC. and Ramble On suggests visiting your local library or bookseller to become informed and equipped to engage in the DVC cultural phenomenon. We as Christians have buried our collective head in the sand long enough, let us use the DVC as a tool for ministry rather than condemning all things Da Vinci. Stay tuned for more postings about the DVC in later posts.

Fools Rush In

Today the EU gave authorization to the UN security council to eventually use "mandatory force" in its dealings with Iran's nuclear enrichment program. The authorization is supported by the United States who also have reason to fear the development of nuclear weapons. As a response Iran threatened that they would be quick to attack Israel if they fall under any sort of attack from the U.S. Israel has been supported, armed, and backed by the U.S. every since its reestablishment as a nation over 50 years ago. Further complicating the already akward and touchy situation are permenant UN Security Council member countries Russia, and China who do not support the idea of sanctions against Iran, and further do not believe Iran should be labeled a potential threat by the Western powers. Russia and China's motivations for supporting and protecting Iran, like all things in the Middle East, revolve mostly around oil. With Russia still rebuilding their economy, and China's rapid industrialization both nations will continue to rely heavily on Iran for oil. This delicate relationship has many around the world on edge, fearing another possible conflict in the near future, and this does not bode well for the U.S. who's military is already overburdened and spread to0 thin. May I humbly suggest to Washington that we develop a strategic plan in conjunction with and with the blessing of the rest of the world (i.e. UN and EU) before hastily entering another Middle-Eastern war zone.

Kudos

Kudos to EU nations Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Finland for lifting employment restrictions for all members of the European Union. They join along with Britain. Ireland, and Sweden in making it easier for all Europeans to have equal access to their labour markets. Other nations such as Austria, Germany, and France have not yet lifted the employment ban mainly because of geographic reasons. Austria in particular is worried that its close proximity to the former communist states would lead to a flooding of its labour market and in turn lead to higher rates of unemployment for its native population. Other EU member nations are waiting for the economic gaps to close before they allow any immigration from the new 2004 EU members. The BENELUX states have plans to lift the ban in the near future, but they are doing so gradually, sector by sector. I believe that this is another positive step in the right direction for a unified and strong Europe. Eliminating borders and restrictions to all workers will eventually allow for the newer Balkan states to continue to rebuild their economies, help their people to learn study abroad working in other nations, learn English, and experience true democracy to bring back to their native lands.