Vatican’s ‘Code’ Word

Re “20 Million Copies Later, Vatican Says Don’t Read ‘Da Vinci Code,’ ” March 18: May I suggest that the cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who has urged the faithful not to read “The Da Vinci Code” is in fact boosting the readership of the book.

For heaven’s sake, the book is fiction. Fiction is fiction, here in my country as it is in yours or in the Vatican.

Perhaps the better position for the cardinal to take is to tell adherents of the Catholic faith that if they want to read “Da Vinci,” they should do so with a discerning mind.

Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

Manila

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It has taken the Vatican two years to realize that “The Da Vinci Code” has been at the top of the bestseller lists all that time. When will it understand that the Catholics in the pews are not children and should be allowed to use their free will to choose what books they will or will not read. Dan Brown is not attacking the church. He’s telling a story.

Marie Pietrasanta

Encino