Bp Varnanva blesses DaVinici Code Movie!

[尼古拉前执事]

'Da Vinci': Glittering Opening Night
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,195970,00.html

And who was the elderly looking, slightly hunched-over man with a long white beard and flowing black robe who preceded Poitier and Binoche?

He was not just someone who’d come in traditional formal wear. It was Archbishop Varnava of Cannes, who walked the red carpet like all the other celebrities.

The bishop of an exiled Russian Orthodox community came to give his blessing to “The Da Vinci Code,” and pronounced it safe for consumption.

Audience members were surprised that Varnava was so accessible, and ready to tell anyone who asked that he approved of Ron Howard’s film.

At least Varnava was granting an audience last night. When I asked “The Da Vinci Code” author Dan Brown, whose rather clunky book has been put on the screen by Howard, a simple question about the fate of one of his characters, he replied: “You know I don’t do interviews.”

*NOTE: Bp Varnanva just recently returned to the New York-based Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia synod who last week approved measures to unite with the Moscow Patriarchate church in Russia.

[GOCPriestMark]

There are several reasons why it would not be good to jump to the conclusion that the retired Archbishop Varnava of Cannes blessed anything having to do with the DaVinci movie. He may even be an annual attendant to the festival, but only caught the writer's eye due to the high profile 'religious' movie. Who knows. But it does show that clergy must be careful where they go and what they do so as to not cause scandal or even give the impression of 'evil'.

[尼古拉前执事]

Masons behind drive around Da Vinci Code - Andrey Kurayev

Moscow, May 22, Interfax - Deacon Andrey Kurayev, professor at Moscow Theological Academy and well-known Orthodox commentator, believes it is Masonic structures that stand behind the advertising campaign promoting the Da Vinci Code book.

‘The development around the novel can be described as none other than another volley in the age-old ‘cold war’ between the Masons and the Catholic Church. In the advertising campaign for the book by Mr. Brown a real Masonic structure working in our world has manifested itself’, Father Andrey said in an interview to Interfax.

He said ‘the advertising campaign which promoted first the book and then the film shows that very serious funds and resources have been invested in this project’.

‘These were hardly the personal means of the author of Da Vinci Code or his publishers’, Kurayev noted.

He stressed he was not inclined to see in whatever happens a result of the Masonic activity, while adding that ‘it would be idiotism to ignore the presence of these secret elite structures in the fabric of society beginning from the 18th century to this day’.

According to Kurayev, there are open Masonic publications ‘in which they commend themselves, and there are open recruit stations, such as Rotary Club and Lyons Club’.

He believes one of the Masons’ aims is to ‘marginalize the traditional Christian Church’.

Commenting on Brown’s book, Kurayev notes that it is ‘a typical conspiracy work with the primary massage that the world is ruled by secret lodges’.

[Priest Siluan]

'Da Vinci Code'
Cannes Archbishop Gives Blessing

Thursday , May 18, 2006
By Roger Friedman

'The Da Vinci Code'
'Da Vinci': Cannes Archbishop Gives Blessing

At the glittering opening night of the 59th Cannes Film Festival, the
biggest laugh of the night was not in the featured film, "The Da Vinci
Code," intentionally or otherwise. It was right before the movie started
when star Tom Hanks waved to the crowd behind him to come on in join him at
the premiere.

And who was the elderly looking, slightly hunched over man with a long white
beard and flowing black robe who preceded Poitier and Binoche? He was not
just someone who'd come in traditional formal wear. It was Archbishop
Varnava of Cannes, who walked the red carpet like all the other celebrities.
He came to give his blessing to "The Da Vinci Code," pronouncing it safe for
Catholic consumption. Audience members were surprised that Varnava was so
accessible, and ready to tell anyone who asked that he approved of Ron
Howard's film.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,195970,00.html

[Priest Siluan]

There are several reasons why it would not be good to jump to the conclusion that the retired Archbishop Varnava of Cannes blessed anything having to do with the DaVinci movie. He may even be an annual attendant to the festival, but only caught the writer's eye due to the high profile 'religious' movie. Who knows. But it does show that clergy must be careful where they go and what they do so as to not cause scandal or even give the impression of 'evil'.

This is true, Dear Father, the whole matter could be something outside of context