Bowling Green Covenant Church

16 November 2007

Over the past several days I have received several inquiries as to BGCC’s position regarding the upcoming release on December 7 of the motion picture The Golden Compass, based on the book by the same name by Philip Pullman. Mr. Pullman is an atheist and his Dark Materials series, of which TGC is the first installment, is often referred to as the anti-Narnia, atheist alternative to C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia.

For the record BGCC has no “official” position on whether or anyone should or should not see The Golden Compass. It is our conviction that as grace saved, Spirit-filled believers you, the members of our church family, are mature enough to make wise choices about the movies you and/or your children watch. We are convinced that it is wise to speak clearly where Scripture speaks clearly and to be silent where Scripture is silent. Where the Scripture is silent we believe it is wise for the individual believer to trust the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

We arrive at this conviction based, in part, on Paul’s words in Romans 14.17, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking [and not a matter of movies and television programs either] but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” [See also Paul's argument about not eating meat sacrificed to idols in 1 Corinthians 8].

In the next paragraph, Romans 14.20-23, Paul writes,

“Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.”

Although taken out of the context of Paul’s larger argument, the general principle arising from the text is this: grace gives individual believers a wide-berth with respect to matters of conscience. At the same time, however, it is not good to use the freedom grace permits to make others stumble. It is assumed that those who have a clear conscience will not abuse the grace of God, that is, they will not sin that grace may abound. On the contrary, they will practice their freedom with due diligence out of obedience to Christ and from a desire to glorify Him with their lives as well as behave with charity toward their brothers and sisters in Christ.

To some, the decision whether or not to attend a movie based on a book written by an atheist, or with an anti-Christian message, is very clear cut. To others, it is merely a movie–a work of fiction regardless of the message therein. Following Paul’s counsel in Romans 14 then, the question is what your conscience will bear. If your conscience cannot bear watching TGC then do not see it. You are free to boycott the movie, to protest its message and to discourage others from attending its being shown.

However, if your conscience is strong enough to see TGC please abide by this counsel from the apostle Paul, “take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak,” [1 Corinthians 8.9]. If you choose to watch the movie it is best to keep to this stipulation: do not let your freedom become a stumbling block to those who choose not to see it.

I cannot help but think we have been here before and we will be here again. Are we really surprised by the discovery that our culture is hostile toward God and that it, too, is under the curse of Adam’s sin? Let us also remember that in her long and storied history the church has survived far worse than a movie based on a book written by an atheist [e.g., the Roman persecution, the Islamic invasion of Europe during the Middle Ages & the Holocaust of Nazi Germany in which several million Christians were killed along with 6 million Jews].

Many of us are old enough to remember the furor created by the release of The Last Temptation of Christ. That movie failed at the box office but not because Christians protested its release or its message. It failed because it was a bad movie. And what of The Golden Compass? Do we really believe a movie based on a book written by an atheist is going to destroy that which God has made?

In conclusion, while it may be permissible to be outraged by the release of a movie with an anti-Christian message, it may, in the end, prove more beneficial to put our time and energy into fulfilling the Great Commission, and to look for ways to show people about the love of God and tell them about Jesus Christ than to boycott and protest a potential box-office flop.

You think about that.

Michael

P.S. To learn more about the movie and Philip Pullman check the websites listed below. The knowledge gained from reading what is written there will help you make an informed decision either to see the movie or not.

http://www.pluggedinonline.com/cultureclips2/a0003495.cfm

http://www.citizenlink.org/fnif/A000005667.cfm

http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/compass.asp