The Gospel according to Judas and Dan Brown

It seems that another front has opened in the war to challenge, if not demolish, the age-old tenets of the Catholic church. No, I'm not referring to crucifixion, stoning to death and being served as dinner to rapacious beasts - standard punishment for early Christian converts.
The first salvo was fired by Dan Brown who claimed in his highly controversial book, The Da Vinci Code, that Christ was not celibate. He further inflamed outrage among Christians by alleging that Jesus sired children with Mary Magdalene and the fabled Holy Grail was none other than her.
Okay, I'm no expert in theology or history, but I could only laugh at Brown's retraction of his first claim that his novel was historical after experts systematically exposed the gross inaccuracies in his prose (but it only heightened the curiosity of the people as books defending and debunking Brown's claims were published).
Dan Brown sure is lucky. He picked the right religion. If he did that to the Muslims (remember the tempest whipped up by those Danish cartoons of Mohammed?), he would be holed up in the Himalayas or Antarctic surrounded by a battalion of bodyguards and not enjoying the fame and royalties from his novel. Perhaps, he has heard of what happened to Salman Rushdie. And may I add that had Dan Brown published his book during the Inquisition, he would have been roasted at the stake.
Nobody wants to be branded as a Judas. In the Philippines, calling somebody Judas is a sure to spark a fight. The Blacksheep among Christ's disciples earned eternal ignominy when he sold Christ to Caphias and his gang for thirty pieces of silver. But the recent translation of the so-called Gospel of Judas to English from its original Coptic text may just clear the name of the wayward apostle that was blackened by his treachery.
I admit that Judas played a crucial role in the accomplishment of Christ's mission by delivering him for crucifixion. If he had not ratted on Jesus, a great rewriting of the crucifixion would have been done. But to elevate his name and clear his reputation may be too much. They wanted us to understand that Judas only did what Jesus asked him to do (like a Marine!!!). They wanted us to see that the highest honor belonged to Judas for turning Christ in.
If this claim will sink into the minds of many, then Judas will become synonymous with unwavering obedience and not with perfidy. I'd rather not be called Judas when that day comes.