Torch, Summer 2006

in on the conversation! I was curious now, seeing a completely new view, wondering at the challenges this small story presented to the bigger one I loved. It wasn’t about only this book now (and if a book is worth reading at all, it seldom is), but about larger issues, larger questions. So, should you read The Da Vinci Code ? Well, remember I told you that my husband is a runner. He actually is a particular kind of runner — a marathoner. He loves to run, and he has runner friends and runner gear and runner places that he goes. He can and does have authentic and remarkable conversations with these people — not just about running, but about a whole range of topics. I can only go and cheer them on. It would be crazy and immediately detectable (believe me) if I tried to talk to this gang as if I were one of them. He has a “place at the table” in those conversations that I will never have. And I was prompted to read The Da Vinci Code , not because I thought I should, but because I love to read and it came up in the natural scheme of things as I was going about my daily activities. Bottom line? My advice to you is, don’t read The Da Vinci Code if you are not already a reader. Don’t do it just to open doors to talk about all of the interesting questions it raises about faith and life. Don’t try to pretend to critique the book if you only see the movie (anyways, the book is almost always better). But, if you are a person of faith who is prayerfully cultivating your reading habits as interests and passions that God has given you, then definitely throw your hat in the ring, have an opinion, and share what the Bible says. Just be yourself, be authentic! Frederick Buechner, in his book Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC , says, “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Your reading of this intriguing book will open exciting opportunities for you to participate in significant and thought- provoking conversations. When you know what you are talking about and care about Summer 2006 / TORCH 21