I wouldn’t believe this if it didn’t come straight from the prolific and estimable Ben Witherington. He has been working hard equipping churches to respond intelligently to the DaVinci Code as the movie release draws near. On his blog he reports that Andy Griffith and Ron Howard recently chatted about the movie:
…I was privy to a conversation between Andy Griffith and the man who once played his son on the Andy Griffith show— Ron Howard (aka Opie!). Griffith, who is a committed Christian made clear to Opie over dinner he was not best pleased about this movie but that he was a Christian and he still loved him.
Witherington’s point is to encourage Christians to have the attitude of Andy whenever we talk with people about the serious theological and spiritual implications of their entertainment choices. That’s good DaVinci Code advice (don’t be a big jerk when your neighbor says she thought the movie was fun, but do try to help her understand that the movie has bad juju). Come to think of it, that’s just good advice in general: have the mind of Christ and the attitude of Andy.
But Andy and Opie having a sit-down talk about good movies and bad movies. Too good to be true!
Now, Ope… I know all the fellas at school are gettin’ excited about this newfangled gnosticism, what with all the post-Christian whatnot. And there ain’t nothin’ wrong with havin’ some fun and gettin’ to know the new god in town. But there comes a time when you have to decide what really matters to you, Ope. And that’s not always the most popular thing. Ope, I can’t tell you what to do about this, you’ve got to decide for yourself. But I want you to know I’m proud of you, and I know you’ve got what it takes to do the right thing. Aunt Bea, is there any of that lemonade left?
I wonder if they had fishing poles with them? And What Would Barney Do?
