What every parent should know about ‘The Golden Compass’

             Indianapolis (Zenit) — The film “The Golden Compass” isn’t simply about using fairy-tale magic to tell a good story. It corrupts the imagery of Lewis and Tolkien to undermine children’s faith in God and the Church, says Catholic author Pete Vere.

            Vere and Sandra Miesel are co-authors of the booklet, “Pied Piper of Atheism: Philip Pullman and Children’s Fantasy,” to be published by Ignatius Press next month on the topic of “The Golden Compass.”

            In an interview with the Rome-based international news agency ZENIT, Vere and Miesel discussed the movie adaptation of the fantasy novels written by Philip Pullman. The film, staring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, will be released in the United States in early December.

Q: The first movie of “The Golden Compass” trilogy is being released at Christmas. What kind of books are these and to whom do they appeal?

            Vere: The books are marketed for 9-12-year-olds as children’s fantasy literature in the tradition of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and J.K. Rowling. Personally, I just can’t see a child picking up these books and reading them. I see them more as books that adults give kids to read.

            “The Golden Compass” (1995) is the first book in Pullman’s trilogy. The second book is titled “The Subtle Knife” (1997), and it is followed by “The Amber Spyglass” (2000).

            Collectively, the trilogy is known as “His Dark Materials,” a phrase taken from John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” This is appropriately titled in my opinion, since each book gets progressively darker — both in the intensity with which Pullman attacks the Catholic Church and the Judeo-Christian concept of God, as well as the stridency with which he promotes atheism.

            For example, one of the main supporting characters, Dr. Mary Malone, is a former Catholic nun who abandoned her vocation to pursue sex and science.  The reader does not meet her until the second book by which time the young reader is already engrossed in the story.  By the third book, Dr. Malone is engaging in occult practices to lead the two main characters, a 12-year old boy and girl, to sleep in same bed and engage in-at the very least-heavy kissing.

            Another example is Pullman’s portrayal of the Judeo-Christian God. Pullman refers to him as “The Authority,” although a number of passages make clear that this is the God of the Bible. The Authority is a liar and a mere angel, and as we discover in the third book, senile as well. Additionally, Pullman uses the imagery of C.S. Lewis’ “Narnia” chronicles. “His Dark Materials” opens with the young heroine stuck in a wardrobe belonging to an old academic, conversing with a talking animal, when she discovers multiple worlds. So the young reader is lulled early on with the familiar feel of Lewis.

            Nevertheless, Pullman’s work isn’t simply about using fairy-tale magic to tell a good story. He openly proselytizes for atheism, corrupting the imagery of Lewis and Tolkien to undermine children’s faith in God and the Church.

Q: Many Catholics, including William Donohue of the Catholic League, are speaking out against the movie. What should parents know before they let their children watch this film?

            Vere: I don’t recommend any parent allow their children to view the film. While the movie has reportedly been sanitized of its more anti-Christian and anti-religious elements, it will do nothing but pique children’s curiosity about the books. I’m a parent myself. My children would think it hypocritical if I told them it was OK to see the movie but not to read the books. And they would be right.

It’s not OK for children — impressionable as they are — to read stories in which the plot revolves around the supreme blasphemy, namely, that God is a liar and a mortal. It is not appropriate for children to read books in which the heroine is the product of adultery and murder; priests act as professional hit men, torturers and authorize occult experimentation on young children; an ex-nun engages in occult practices and promiscuous behavior, and speaks of it openly with a 12-year-old couple; and the angels who rebel against God are good, while those who fight on God’s side are evil.

            Miesel: Furthermore, there’s a great deal of cruelty and gore in the books, not just battles but deliberate murder, sadism, mutilation, suicide, euthanasia and even cannibalism.

            I agree with Pete. Avoid both the movie and the books. It would be best if people didn’t picket or make a public fuss because that’s just free publicity. If the movie fails at the box office, the second and third books won’t be filmed.

Q: The author, Philip Pullman, is an outspoken atheist. Does this come across in the books and the movie as a secularist position or more in the form of anti-Catholicism?

            Vere: It’s not an “either/or” situation. What begins as a rebellion against the Church turns into a rebellion against God. This then leads to the discovery that God — and Christianity — are frauds.

            The 12-year-old protagonists — Lyra and Bill — discover there is no immortal soul, no heaven or hell. All that awaits us in the afterlife is some gloomy Hades-type afterlife where the soul goes to wait until it completely dissolves. Thus Pullman uses anti-Catholicism as the gateway to promoting atheism.

Q: The trilogy is being compared to “Harry Potter” and “The Lord of the Rings.” Is there a comparison to be made with either?

            Vere: On the surface, yes. You’ve got wizards, heroines, strange creatures, alternate worlds, etc. Although for reasons already stated, the real comparison — by way of inverted imagery — is to C.S. Lewis’ “Narnia” chronicles. Pullman, who has called “The Lord of the Rings” “infantile,” has a particular dislike for Lewis and “Narnia.” This is reflected in Pullman’s taking Lewis’ literary devices and inverting them to attack Christianity and promote atheism.

Q: Nicole Kidman, a Catholic who stars in the film, has said she wouldn’t have taken the role if she thought the movie was anti-Catholic. What do you make of this response?

            Vere: During an interview with Hollywood screenwriter Barbara Nicolosi a couple of months ago, I asked her whether it was possible to tone down the anti-Christian elements for the movie. Nicolosi is the chair of Act One, a training and mentoring organization for Christians starting out in Hollywood. She had given the question thought. A few years ago one of her friends — an evangelical Christian — had been asked by her agent to pitch on the project, that is, propose to write the screenplay adapting “The Golden Compass” to film.

            “We read (the book) and there was just no way we could come in on this,” Nicolosi told me. “Pullman’s fantasy universe is nihilistic and rooted in chaos. You cannot fix that in a rewrite without changing the story Pullman is trying to tell — which is atheistic, angry and at times polemical.”

            But let’s suppose Kidman is right and the movie has been sanitized of its anti-Catholicism. The books remain saturated with bitter anti-Christian polemic. So why promote a movie that will only generate interest in the books among impressionable young children?

            For the Christian parent, the movie cannot be anything but spiritual poison to their children — for the movie is the fruit of the book.

Reprinted from the The Long Island Catholic, November 21, 2007