Anglican Communion News Service - Digest News

The Anglican Church in Sydney will launch a cinema advertising campaign this month aimed at challenging the claims made by the Da Vinci Code that Jesus was not God, did not die on the cross and that he married Mary Magdelene and had a family.

The cinema advert will screen on 250 screens across Sydney for 4 weeks from May 11.

'Our aim is to get people to discover the truth about Jesus. The concept for the cinema advert was to engage with the same questions raised by the Da Vinci Code, but then also raise the question of how Jesus himself might respond to these claims,' says Allan Dowthwaite, CEO of Anglican Media Sydney.

The advert promotes a website, developed by Anglican Media Sydney, called www.challengingdavinci.com which includes material written by Dr Greg Clarke, director of CASE at New College, UNSW.

Bishop Robert Forsyth, chairman of Anglican Media Sydney, says that the campaign is important because, 'When it comes to Jesus, there is a huge information void for many people'.

'Our concern is that the Da Vinci Code will mislead people about the truth,' says Bishop Forsyth. 'We are not afraid of the film. We are not seeking to discourage people from seeing it. But we are well aware of the power popular films have in filling the information void about Jesus.'

A key part of the strategy involves linking people back into local congregations. As a result, the site also encourages people to find out the truth about Christianity by visiting seminars run by local churches.

This aspect of the campaign fits within the Diocese of Sydney's goal of seeing 10 per cent of the population of Sydney Diocese in Bible-based churches by 2012.

In October 2005, at the Synod of the Diocese of Sydney, money was made available to Anglican Media Sydney for evangelism through the media in order to further the Diocese's mission goals. 

'In 2006 alone, Anglican Media has set aside $150,000 to spend on promoting the gospel through the popular media,' said Mr Dowthwaite. 'About a third of this money is being spent on this particular campaign.'

Quick Facts about the campaign

• It is a 20 second advert.
• 250 screens in the Diocese of Sydney
• 15 multiplexes in Sydney, plus Wollongong and Shellharbour (which are also in Sydney Diocese).
• 4 weeks from May 11
• We have bought Val Morgan's 'movie mix' package which means it will screen before many more movies than just the Da Vinci code.

The advert was conceived and produced by Anglican Media Sydney and has a slightly tongue-in-cheek tone. The advert can be viewed online at www.challengingdavinci.com/cinema.html