Michael Fass, 61, the Episcopalian priest of Rosslyn Capel near Edinburgh which featured heavily in the ending to The Da Vinci Code, will leave his post in July.

Reverend Fass said he has been overwhelmed by thousands of Da Vinci fans visiting the chapel following Dan Brown’s claims that the Holy Grail is situated in one of the columns, known as the Apprentice Pillar. The priest said the fabulously ornate building has “become a Disneyland for Da Vinci Code fans.”

Before Da Vinci, Rosslyn had 9,500 tourists a year. Last year that rose to 117,000 visitors. Even more are expected this year after the chapel was used as a location in the film version of the book.

Michael Fass has been at the church for nine years. Yesterday, a friend said: “Rev Fass is a serious and committed man. He thought it was unbearable when services were interrupted by tourists. This has been a place of worship for hundreds of years. You cannot just trample over that because of a book. He raised his concerns with the trust that runs the chapel but the impression was that their interest lies in only getting more people through the door. He was swimming against the tide.”

One can’t help wondering what the size of the congregation was before the book. The Da Vinci Code has certainly made the Church and Christianity more exciting subjects than they were before.

This is a piece found on the Internet, author unknown. But it has the ring of truth:

If we could shrink the Earth’s population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look like this:

There would be:

57 Asians, 21 Europeans, 14 from the Western Hemisphere (North and South), 8 Africans.

51 would be female; 49 would be male.

70 would be non-whites, 30 white.

70 would be non-Christians, 30 Christian.

50% of the entire world’s wealth would be in the hands of only 6 people, all citizens of the U.S.

80 would live in substandard housing.

70 would be unable to read.

50 would suffer from malnutrition.

1 would be near death, 1 would be near birth.

Only 1 would have a college education.

No one would own a computer.

Terri Jean has put together this 20-point code of ethics from Native American sources. Interestingly, if you strip away the cultural forms, it reflects an ethical stance that can be found all over the world. I love this particular form it takes, and it’s good to know we agree on some things, even if we don’t all put them into practice.

1. Rise with the sun to pray. Pray alone. Pray often. The Great Spirit will listen, if only you speak.

2. Be tolerant of those who are lost on their path. Ignorance, conceit, anger, jealousy and greed stem from a lost soul. Pray that they will find guidance.

3. Search for yourself, by yourself. Do not allow others to make your path for you. It is your road, and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you.

4. Treat the guests in your home with much consideration. Serve them the best food, give them the best bed and treat them with respect and honor.

5. Do not take what is not yours whether from a person, a community, the wilderness or from a culture. It was not earned nor given. It is not yours.

6. Respect all things that are placed upon this earth — whether it be people or plants.

7. Honor other people’s thoughts, wishes and words. Never interrupt another or mock or rudely mimic them. Allow each person the right to personal expression.

8. Never speak of others in a bad way. The negative energy that you put out into the universe will multiply when it returns to you.

9. All persons make mistakes. And all mistakes can be forgiven.

10. Bad thoughts cause illness of the mind, body and spirit. Practice optimism.

11. Nature is not for us, it is a part of us. They are part of your worldly family.

12. Children are the seeds of our future. Plant love in their hearts and water them with wisdom and life’s lessons. When they are grown, give them space to grow.

13. Avoid hurting the hearts of others. The poison of your pain will return to you.

14. Be truthful at all times. Honesty is the test of one’s will within this universe.

15. Keep yourself balanced. Your Mental self, Spiritual self, Emotional self, and Physical self, all need to be strong, pure and healthy. Work out the body to strengthen the mind. Grow rich in spirit to cure emotional ills.

16. Make conscious decisions as to who you will be and how you will react. Be responsible for your own actions.

17. Respect the privacy and personal space of others. Do not touch the personal property of others, especially sacred and religious objects. This is forbidden.

18. Be true to yourself first. You cannot nurture and help others if you cannot nurture and help yourself first.

19. Respect others’ religious beliefs. Do not force your belief on others.

20. Share your good fortune with others. Participate in charity.

Spiritual Nirvana has got an exclusive video clip from the new movie of Dan Millman’s book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior.

As a great fan of the book, I’m looking forward to the film enormously. The clip is titled “frustration” and shows the part where Dan is injured and prevented from competing in his gymnastics discipline. It also gives a taster of the score from the movie.

The movie will be in theaters from June 2. Just click the poster image in the sidebar to get the clip.