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September 29, 2007
Rennes-le-Chateau Da Vinci Code Priory of Sion Conspiracy Conspiracy Conspiracy
I first read the Da Vinci code at Stansted Airport back in 2004. As mumbo-jumbo goes, it was cracking stuff. My favourite bits are the early rushing-around-the-Louvre scenes; the anagrams, the clichés, the melodramatic lines, in particular Robert Langdon's anguished 'I need to get to a library - fast!'
Saw the Da Vinci Code film for the first time on Wednesday night and I have to admit that I enjoyed it.
The GPS-in-the-soap bit always appealed to my imagination (that was when GPS tracker shenannigans were still quite original and fun). In the book you see them throw it out of the window onto the truck, but in the film you don't - interesting scriptwriting dilemma, that. Show the soap being thrown or not? What do you think? Which is more fun - being in on the trick or being left guessing?
As for all the Jesus-and-Mary-bloodline claims, Dan Brown has said this: "This book is not anti-anything. It's a novel. I wrote this story in an effort to explore certain aspects of Christian history that interest me...A reader does not have to agree with every word in the novel to use the book as a positive catalyst for introspection and exploration of our faith." Full interview here.
Fair enough, in principle. But how many people closed 'The Da Vinci Code' or walked out of the cinema believing one or more of the following?
- That Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene who had a child who escaped to France.
- Mary Magdalene was to head the church, but Peter and the other disciples took over.
- Jesus was turned into “God” in order to protect the patriarchal system, the Catholic Church along with the rest of Christianity has worked together to maintain this 2000-year cover up.
- The secret of Jesus’ “True Identity” is maintained by a group known as the “Priory of Sion” that has existed since 1099.
If you are seriously bothered by any of the above questions, have a look at one of the many Debunking Da Vinci sites.
Yesterday Charlie and I visited Rennes-le-Château in the French Pyranees. Here's a picture of it, from Blather.net
That is the 'Tour de Magdala' perched on a the top of a mountain, overlooking the beautiful countryside below.
It can be argued that this tranquil village Rennes-le-Château is the source of the whole Da Vinci Code maelstrom. The 'Priory of Sion' myth can be easily traced back from Dan Brown to Henry Lincoln to Gérard de Sède to Pierre Plantard to Noël Corbu - a hotel owner in Rennes-le-Château who created the 'mystery' in order to attract custom to his restaurant!
The whole delicious trail is explained under the subheading 'The Saunière Story' in the Wikipedia entry for Rennes-le-Château.
Posted by sahelsteve at 10:36 AM
Anonymous Vase
 | Do you recognise this fine vase? It was left on the gifts table at our wedding, but there was no name or message attached. If you gave it to us, please get in touch, so that we can thank you properly. |
Posted by sahelsteve at 10:05 AM
September 28, 2007
French tongue twisters
It can seem sometimes that most French phrases are tongue twisters. But here are a couple real ones:
Les chaussettes de l'archi-duchesses sont-elles sèches, arch-sèches?
Are the archduchess' socks dry, very dry?
Un chasseur sachant chasser sait chasser sans son chien.
A hunter who knows how to hunt knows how to hunt without his dog.
Know any others?
Posted by sahelsteve at 10:11 AM
September 23, 2007
Arrival in Carcassonne
Well, Charlie and I have made it to Carcassonne. We're trying to improve our spoken French, and I am trying to make progress on 'H4CK1NG T1MBUKTU' - a parkour 'n hacking book for boys.
The medieval part of Carcassonne (La Cité) is particularly nice.
In church today there was a dog who rolled on the floor at the front during worship. No photo of that, unfortunately.
Talking of domestic animals, does anyone know the French word 'taupin'? At least, that's what it sounds like, but I can't find it in the dictionary. The reason I ask is this: the owner of our gite has a cat called Taupin. 'Why's he called Taupin?' I asked. 'Well,' said Léon (in French), 'that's because when we first got him he had large black testicles, and we had to have them removed.' 'Oh,' I said, and scurried off to find a dictionary.
So, any takers? Why is the cat called Taupin?
Posted by sahelsteve at 10:55 PM
September 18, 2007
Their mine isn't theirs
I posted something the other day about the Tuareg grievance in Niger. There are big uranium mines on 'their' land, but they feel they are not reaping the rewards of it.
Well, it seems that Keith Smith is dealing with a very similar issues in the north of Burkina Faso:
"I go over to Essakane occasionally, about 40km from Gorom-Gorom, to visit the pastor there. It is one of those bizarre and disturbing paradoxes: the least developed region of the 4th poorest country in the world – and there is a rich deposit of gold there. The question is whether that gold will bring any joy or blessing to the region. Or whether – as so often in such cases – it will only be a cause of grief, conflict, degradation and immorality."
You can read the whole post here; it's well worth it.
And on a lighter note, here is a little poem which I wrote way back in 2003 about the gold mine in Monde So, near Djibo.
Posted by sahelsteve at 03:27 PM
September 10, 2007
Stranger than fiction
Well, The Yellowcake Conspiracy (an African spy thriller for 11 to 14 year-old boys) has launched. This nice man enjoyed reading it, and I hope that others will too.
For the launch event, I had proposed to Andersen Press that we convert a Soho basement bar into an African uranium mine. Invites would be radioactivity stickers, and head-torches would be distributed to guests on entrance (only two of many ideas I floated). The publisher responded to these ideas very graciously, beginning with the words 'We don't want to dampen your enthusiasm, but...'
Anyway, the book is out now. If you live in the UK (and if the Random House distribution machine has worked) you should be able to get it in your local bookshop. Otherwise it is available on Amazon.
The Yellowcake Conspiracy is about a group of malcontent Tuareg fighters mounting a 'second rebellion' in Niger under the leadership of a man known only as 'the Teacher' (the first rebellion ended back in 1995). They intimidate workers at a uranium mine in the north of the country, and exploit uranium in their bid for political power. Despite issuing from tiny towns in the Sahara desert, these second-wave rebels are extremely savvy in their use of technology, using the internet to communicate with each other and with the outside world.
I finished writing the book in November last year (although it has only now been published), stressing in the foreword that the story is fiction. But an email from France this morning has alerted me to current events in Niger, which seem to be mirroring fiction to an uncanny degree.
In February of this year (after twelve years of tenuous peace) the Second Rebellion started in the north of Niger. A group of malcontent Tuareg fighters (now thought to number over 2000) has formed the Niger Movement for Justice under the leadership of folk hero Aghaly Ag Alambo. They have mounted attacks on the Niger military and on various foreign economic interests, including the uranium mines. Despite issuing from tiny towns in the Sahara desert, the rebels are extremely savvy in their use of technology, using the internet to communicate with each other and with the outside world. They even have a blog, which is updated three to ten times each week (if only we were all so assiduous in posting new material).
In my first children's book Sophie and the Albino Camel, the baddie Moussa ag Litni happens to be a Tuareg. He could just as well have been a different ethnicity - Tuaregs certainly do not have a monopoly on banditry in the Sahel. As for the Tuaregs who make up the Niger Movement for Justice, are they terrorists or freedom fighters? The line is a fine one, as explained in Sam Urquhart's excellent article for Dissident Voice, Fake Terror and Instability in North Africa.
Urquhart believes that some of the Tuareg grievances are legitimate.
"Uranium dust from foreign owned mines, such as that run by the French group Areva, has dispersed across huge areas of Tuareg grazing lands that lie downwind from them. Efforts by local people and NGOs to monitor the environmental and health effects of the mining have been obstructed and prevented by the government in Niamey, which fears the withdrawal of investment in the mines, with the collusion of the French. As a result, local people continue to drink water poisoned by the mines and graze their animals on contaminated lands. At present, with the uranium sector undergoing an expansion in Niger, Tuareg concerns are rising, feeding anti-government sentiment. 30 new projects are slated for exploration and development, with Chinese, Indian and Canadian firms leading the way. Tuaregs know that they will suffer the consequences of these projects and receive few of the benefits."
In the midst of this Second Tuareg Rebellion, please pray for Niger. Pray that the Niger government would respond wisely to the uprising and that civilian casualties would be minimal. Tuareg dissatisfaction in the north of the country has never been properly addressed. Here's hoping it gets properly addressed now.
Posted by sahelsteve at 01:00 PM
September 04, 2007
The M word
- Where do you work?
- Burkina Faso.
- What do you do?
- I'm a missionary.
- But surely you don't try and convert people?
- 'Fraid so. With all my heart.
- But that's -
- Controversial?
- Worse. It shows no respect for the beliefs of others. It's awful.
- It's obedience. Christianity is a missionary religion and always has been. Jesus told his disciples to go to the ends of the earth.
- To trample on the sincerely held beliefs of others everywhere they went.
- No, to say that light and love have come into the world. And to love and serve and heal in Jesus' name.
- Can't you just practise your faith privately and keep quiet about it?
- If everyone did that, Christianity wouldn't exist.
- That wouldn't be such a bad thing.
- Haha. Yes it would. Besides, I couldn't keep quiet about Jesus even if I tried.
- Yes you could.
- No I couldn't. Here's why.
- But what if other religions did the same? All trying to convert each other. It would be war. It would be chaos.
- Not necessarily. It could be dialogue.