The group was there to condemn the movie "The Da Vinci Code," which opened Friday.

About 12 people stood at the intersection of Md. 85 and Crestwood Boulevard holding signs reading "Honk against The Da Vinci Code" and "I love Our Lord Jesus Christ. I reject The Da Vinci Code!"

John Ritchie, the group's organizer, held a sign and used a megaphone to promote the group's message.

"'The Da Vinci Code' is blasphemy," Mr. Ritchie shouted.

After several passing cars honked approval, he shouted a thank you for their support.

"About every 30 seconds, we get a honk," he said.

Although several motorists honked their approval, by 7 p.m., five evening showings of "The Da Vinci Code" were sold out, according to Fandango.com.

A call to Regal Entertainment Group was not returned.

"As Catholics, we have an obligation to stand up for our faith and stand up for Our Lord," Mr. Ritchie said. "A dog barks to defend its master. As servants of the Lord, we also defend the Lord."

Mr. Ritchie, along with the members of his group, drove from the organization's national headquarters in Spring Grove, Pa., to protest the movie. The gathering was one of more than 1,000 protests held by religious groups across the country Friday.

"The whole essence of 'The Da Vinci Code' is blasphemy against Jesus Christ," he said.

Although Mr. Ritchie has only read a couple of excerpts from the 2003 novel written by Dan Brown, those were quite enough for him. The novel, which has sold more than 40 million copies, questions many tenets of Christianity, including the divine nature of Jesus.

He said he would never read the book or watch the movie, and he believes it is wrong to participate in something that defames the Lord.

"The Da Vinci Code is a brutal attack," he said. "It's not entertainment. It's blasphemy."

Mr. Ritchie was so disgusted that actor Tom Hanks and director Ron Howard participated in the book's film adaptation, he plans to never see any of their movies -- even if they do not have a religious theme to them.

The group plans to protest again today and Sunday between 5 and 7 p.m.

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