AS Professor Robert Langdon runs through Paris in his quest for the Holy Grail, little does he know he is inspiring a generation of school pupils.

Although the book, and now film, of The Da Vinci Code has been vilified by some Christian organisations, it seems to have had a positive effect on religion in school.

RE is now the fastest-growing subject in terms of the number of students choosing to take it at GCSE or A-level, and a lot of that enthusiasm has been put down to the interest in the Da Vinci craze.

Hollywood has sprinkled its stardust once again. Where once RE was seen as boring or irrelevant by schoolchildren, in recent weeks, teachers have reported increased enthusiasm, particularly since the film's release last month.

But should we be worried that what is essentially a work of fiction is having an influence on serious scholarly work?

Alan Brown, a senior lecturer in education studies at the University of Worcester, and former RE teacher, thinks not.

He says schools - and religion - should have nothing to fear from The Da Vinci Code and any subject that inspires students to talk and debate in a serious way can only be a good thing.

"As long as they understand it's a work of fiction which is interesting to read but ultimately nothing more, it's not something to get too excited about," he says.

"Most children don't go to church and so they rely on the television to find out about religion - and this often is about violent issues.

"Unfortunately, it is the most controversial aspects of religion that get noticed, but we should welcome anything that encourages students to talk about religion."

Perhaps it is no wonder that the success of the book has filtered down. The novel, by the American Dan Brown, has now sold more than 40 million copies across the globe.

Mr Brown - that's Alan, not Dan - says RE these days should be about discussing these controversial issues. When he was a teacher, he brought into the classroom discussions about former England manager Glenn Hoddle's controversial views on disability and re-incarnation. He sees parallels now.

"The teaching of RE has certainly improved a lot in recent years," says Mr Brown, who used to work for the Church of England.

"Even at GCSE stage, pupils are encouraged to talk about ethical issues such as abortion, contraception and war. They talk about issues that are around us every day and, yes, in some ways even the Dan Brown book can come into that.

"Children have lots of questions. When Glenn Hoddle was sacked because of his views, they were no different from the traditional Indian belief about previous lives."

Like every subject in school, teachers have a fine balancing act in keeping to the syllabus and bringing in other relevant issues to capture the imagination.

In Worcestershire, the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (Sacre), meets three times a year to advise the county council on matters connected with faith.

Mr Brown, who is a member of Sacre, says he enjoyed reading The Da Vinci Code. "Any questions children raise about The Da Vinci Code can only be a good thing," he says. "These issues can be talked through in academic terms."

In a sign of how seriously The Da Vinci Code is being taken, the Catholic Education Service has written to all schools explaining some of the details in the film from their perspective, while the Catholic Enquiry Office has created a website devoted to students with questions.

Clare Ward, of the Catholic Agency To Support Evangelisation, says the prominent role of St Mary Magdalene in Catholic life meant her appearance in the book had to be explored.

"The claims made about her in Dan Brown's book have been the source of heated discussion which many argue are fiction and a distortion of the facts," she says.

"In a positive sense, the book reveals a thirst for the truth."