Are you agreeing with the content of The Da Vinci Code and therefore challenging the Catholic Church's teachings and policies?

Like the author and filmmakers, we agree that this book is fiction. The most important result of The Da Vinci Code's popularity is the tremendous conversation it has sparked about women, religion and how we continue to be treated as less than equal partners in faith.
 
Aren't you doing this just because you are a feminist and this book promotes your agenda?

Feminism is simply the idea that all people, men AND women, are equal in God's eyes. While there are many points of controversy in Dan Brown's book, one message rings true; the book affirms Jesus' teaching that all people are equal in God's eyes.

This film is a great example of how pop culture can give us an opportunity to talk about very serious and substantive issues. Our hope is that people will see this film and be moved to talk about the ways religion has touched their lives and the role religion can play in creating a more just world for women.

Do you think that the Catholic Church, and any others that do not treat women equally, should be forced to change their policies? Why not simply start your own church that has policies you see as fair?

Women have long been pillars of their faith communities - Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim. Yet, some of our greatest faith traditions are not living up to their full potential because women are not considered equal partners in their respective faith traditions.

However, the crimes of any religious institution do not negate the values of love and justice at their core. Human institutions will always be flawed reflections of the values they hope to embody. But cutting ourselves off from our birthright to a spiritual home only enlarges the problem. Far too many women find themselves spiritually deprived because they feel unwelcome or less than in their own houses of worship.

Do you believe that Jesus has living blood descendents and that he married Mary Magdalene, or any other claims in the book?

Like the author and the filmmakers, I agree that the book and film are fictional. There are scholarly debates about many of the issues raised in the film, debates that will surely continue. What is most important is that this film provides us with an opportunity for an important conversation in our country: What is it about the relationship of women and the church today that makes a mere fictional novel so popular and so controversial? What deep need for answers to these questions has this phenomenon tapped into? I think that women are realizing that they have been denied access to a full spiritual life because of the inequalities ingrained in so many religions.

Why do you think the Catholic Church and other theologians are upset about this book?

Despite the fact that this book is fiction, it is based on themes and characters with which we are all familiar. But the issues of inequality this book and film have raised are real. You don’t have to look far on this site to find our stories of relegation to second class status within our communities of faith.

How do you feel about the protests being organized around the book?

Protests are an expression of human urgency. Clearly some people feel a sense of urgency about the questions The Da Vinci Code has raised in respect to the role of women in the history of Christianity. Our hope is that those who have taken issue with the fictional representation of Christian figures will take the time to examine the very real struggles for equality women have endured for centuries in all religious traditions.