'Da Vinci Code' sparks controversy among Muslims

Calgary Muslim leader calls for a boycott of 'Da Vinci Code' movie, based on Dan Brown's novel and expected to be released next week.

Sayed Soharwardy, president of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada, who filed a Human Rights complaint against the Western Standard for reprinting the once published by Danish paper, cartoons ridiculing Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), published last month the first issue of the Muslim Free Press in the aftermath of the "Cartoon Affair" in an attempt to explain to non-Muslims how to respect and understand Muslim values.

Based on the controversial novel, "The Da Vinci Code" is generating lots of heat.

The movie would anger the Muslim world as it questions one of Islam's most important prophets, Jesus Christ, Mr. Soharwardy told the Calgary Sun today.

"He's part of my faith", Soharwardy said "and deserves to be treated with honour and respect".

The Da Vinci Code, dubbed as the most anticipated movie of the season, argues that the Catholic Church hid throughout history that Jesus had a child with Mary Magdalene and the ancient bloodline still exists.

It refers to Jesus' "true" legacy as a fertility pagan cult.

A "few secular fanatics cannot undermine the high honours of Jesus Christ", Soharwardy said in a press statement released last week, adding "it is time for Muslims to standby with Christian friends and express solidarity with Prophet Jesus Christ".

Such movies "should not have been produced", he said, adding that "if we don't stand up to these movies, they'll become more frequent".