Controversy continues to swirl around the movie, “The Golden Compass,” due in theaters Dec. 7.

The movie’s plot comes from the His Dark Materials trilogy, a series “in which God is an imposter, angels are sexually ambiguous and the Church kidnaps, tortures and assassinates to achieve its goals, one of which is “stealing children’s souls,”
according to www.mtv.com.

Christians worldwide continue to protest the release of the movie because of its atheistic views. The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights said the movie “sells atheism to kids,” and Focus on the Family staff said the movie may “plant seeds to ultimately encourage some fans to reject God.”

NewLine, the studio producing the film, already promised the film’s story will be watered down from the actual books. However, many still have problems with allowing the movie in theaters, especially because the movie’s release date is so close to Christmas.

Catholic League President Bill Donahue said he believes the film is being watered down, parents won’t see anything wrong with the movie and will buy the books for their children – thus creating another way for children to be exposed to the anti-Christian views of the series.

“It’s a stealth campaign,” Donahue said in an mtv.com article.

Many other movies, including “The DaVinci Code,” have caused controversy in the Christian sphere and led Christian groups to boycott the movies.

The Optimist believes that while the concerns of the Christian groups have validity, trying to stop the movie’s release cripples the marketplace of ideas.

John Milton wrote in Areopagitica that when truth and falsehood grapple, truth eventually wins.

If Christians believe in their religion and its truthfulness, they shouldn’t feel threatened by ideas that counteract their beliefs.

Truth will win in the end, and by disproving differing opinions, that truth of Christianity remains stronger.