DAN Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code has divided opinion and caused more than controversy than any book since Salman Rushdie's infamous Satanic Verses.

To some, The Da Vinci Code is a classic, with exciting twists and a deep meaning. To others, it is a shallow piece of rubbish with a flawed plot.

According to the Archbishop of Canterbury, it is an assault on Christianity, which undermines the message of the gospel, but there is a danger in Church leaders taking it too seriously.

Our view is that The Da Vinci Code is a novel - a piece of fiction - and should be treated as such.

We agree with the Bishop of Newcastle, the Right Reverend Martin Wharton, who joined the debate yesterday by saying that the Church should not feel threatened by the book, but be encouraged by the renewed interest it has generated in religion.

Where would we be if writers were not allowed artistic licence to weave creative plots into historic contexts?

The novel is an important artistic medium and should not be constrained by those who cannot see the distinction between fact and fiction.

Enjoyment of The Da Vinci Code as a page-turning thriller, or as a new film starring Tom Hanks, does not mean that it has to be believed - any more than we should imagine that any of the Mission Impossible movies would have actually been possible in real life.