Beliefnet: 'The Da Vinci Code' Faith, Doubt, and the Search for Truth

Of late, I have been digging up some very interesting resources that relate to the Da Vinci Code and well as articles on the historical facts supporting the traditional Christian teachings on Jesus. This website is a very concise and comprehensive resource for materials that debunk all the concepts purported by the Da Vinci Code novel. What I like here is that the historical facts are presented in bite sized chunks as a series of questions and answers. Excellent layout.

Beliefnet: 'The Da Vinci Code' Faith, Doubt, and the Search for Truth

But it's just a work of fiction !

Excerpts from "Debugging the Da Vinci Code" by Dr. Mark D. Roberts.

One common response to Christian concern over the Da Vinci Code focuses on the book's genre: "It's only a novel," many have said. "It's fiction. Why get so worked up over something that isn't meant to be historical?"

It is important that Christians acknowledge that Dan Brown did indeed write a novel. When we treat the Da Vinci Code as if it's a non-fiction piece meant to disparage Jesus, we end up looking foolish. Yet there are reasons for engaging the ideals of this novel from a historical, and not merely a literary, point of view. For one thing, millions of readers have taken the "historical" revelations of the Da Vinci Code as if they were factual. This is alarming, especially when well-meaning readers begin to believe that what is contained in a fictional work is historical. A recent survey on the beliefnet website found that 22% of the respondents believed Jesus to have actually married Mary Magdalene.

The novel itself contributes to the pretext that what is revealed about Jesus and the Bible is true in fact when it is actually untrue. Sir Leigh Teabing, a fictional historian in the book, lays out the supposedly true story of Jesus and his marriage to Mary Magadalene. He bolsters its apparent historicity by saying things like, "the marriage of Mary to Jesus is a matter of historical record" (p.244 of the Da Vinci Code) and that the "vast majority of educated Christians know the history of their faith" (p.234), which in context is actually the "history" as related by the Teabing character. Moreover, the first page of the novel includes this statement:

"FACT: ..... All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in the novel are accurate" (p.I).

Since the "Jesus is not divine" theory is supposedly derived from ancient documents, it seems as if Brown is claiming that what Sir Leigh Teabing reveals is actually true (and in interviews, Brown himself admitted to believing many of these things).

So, given the impact of the Da Vinci Code on people's actual beliefs about Jesus, and given the way in which wild theories are presented as historical truths, Christians can't simply dismiss the Da Vinci Code as fiction and forget about it.

Debugging the Da Vinci Code

The release of the Da Vinci Code movie is both a concern and an opportunity for Christians to share the truth about who Jesus was --- and is. Dr. Mark D. Roberts.
Excerpts from Dr. Mark D Roberts article entitled Debugging the Da Vinci Code.

On 19 May 2006, one of the most popular books of all time hit the big screen. The Da Vinci Code, having sold more than 36 million copies worldwide, comes to life under the direction of Ron Howard. With Tom Hanks as the featured star, Dan Brown's riveting "who-done-it" will draw millions to the cinemas. Many are devotees of the novel; others will discover for the first time the secrets of the Da Vinci Code.

According to the book, it turns out that Jesus was not divine, and that the biblical gospels are filled with "historical discrepancies and fabrications". It also says that the truth about the merely human Jesus is to be found only in non-canonical gospels. Thus "almost everything our fathers taught us about Christ is false" (The Da Vinci Code p.235).

Its easy to see why many Christians are concerned about the release of the Da Vinci Code book and the film. It will popularise the book's controversies and undermine the Bible.

Over the next few postings, I will comment about these controversies (like the thousands before me) and also extract excerpts from Dr. Roberts notes on this wave that is threatening to divide many in society today.

Christian Sermons on the Da Vinci code

The furor among the Christians surrounding the movie on Dan Brown's book has not subsided yet. There are still many blogs and articles being posted around the internet about the controversial book and movie. Here are some sermons by Scott Hathaway on the topic. I have not myself heard his sermons, however, I am still posting them hear for your listening pleasure.

Waiting in peace

Lord let me wait on You

Waiting in peace, originally uploaded by gardawind.

The Elusive Holy Grail

The Holy Grail has been the feature of many writings and movies through the years. It was prominently featured in the story of King Arthur, Indiana Jones, and many others. Wikipedia has an interesting definition as well. Legend has it that anyone who drinks from it will live forever.

I think that sometimes, people focus too much on the tangible. In this instance, what is more important, the grail itself? Or the person who used the grail, the person of Jesus.

Let's look back at John 4:13-14, "Jesus answered and said to her, 'Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.'"

The Opus Dei

Just who are the Opus Dei? Are they some secret sect with strange rituals? Are they some special group within the Catholic Church entrusted with its protection? Opus Dei has around 85,000 members, both men and women; 98% are laypersons, most of whom are married. The remaining 2% are priests, drawn from the Prelature's lay faithful. So what do they do? Well, follow the link in the title of this post to see who they really are.

Urban sunrise

Lord Jesus, every sunrise speaks of Your unfailing love

Urban sunrise, originally uploaded by pmarella.

Luak Bay, Sarawak, Borneo

Lord please take care of my today and tommorrow as I cast my cares upon You

Travel: Luak Bay, Sarawak, Borneo, originally uploaded by Ciao™ the constant traveler.

Why Christians ought not to watch the Da Vinci Code

Hi everyone, before opinions start flying about regarding my title of this post, let me just say that I obtained the following excerpt from an email that is being circulated around the internet. Here it is:

Dear all,

A question: if a man beats up your father, would you then pay him $10 to watch the video of the beating? No, of course you wouldn't. Why would you wanna do something like that? It's crazy.

How about paying $10 to watch a movie that trashes the very figure of Christianity that you have come to know and love? The Da Vinci Code claims Jesus had sex with Mary Magdalene and had a child together. Sure it's a work of fiction, you say. However, the cover of the book claims the story is based on facts. It's very convenient also that the author failed to point out which are facts and which are not.

Hence, many people have been misled into believing Jesus did indeed had sex with a woman and that He was not all that special. Afterall, if Jesus had sex then that just means that He gave in to sin (coz he couldn't control his sexual desire) which also makes Him normal like the rest of us.

So then, why would you want to profit a person who insults your faith? Why would you want to put money in the pocket of a man who repeatedly refused to back down from his hare-brained claims? According to him, your Bible is nothing more than a fairy tale story fit for bedtime.

Jesus stood alongside me throughout many difficult moments of my life. It's now my turn to stand alongside Him. I'm sure He has stood alongside many of you many times before as well. So, I urge you to join me in boycotting this movie. It's not very often we get a chance to stand up for Him like this...

Doing my part for Him

Henry

Leonardo Da Vinci

Is this the man that was responsible for all the controversy that is raging today? Many do not think so. He was a genious of this time, and even today. What was he like. Take a look at this Wikipedia description of Leonardo Da Vinci.

Who was Da Vinci?

With all the fuss on Dan Bown's fictional novel, who was Da Vinci? What was he like? Here is an interesting, succinct Squidoo lens with an art historical take on Leonardo DaVinci himself. I especially like the cheatsheet list of DaVinci's Seven Principles of Life and Art.

The Da Vinci Code Phenomena

Dan Brown's thriller The DaVinci Code has attracted worldwide attention and controversy. It's a work of fiction mixed with some facts. Today there are so many websites, books, blogs, lectures, sermons, news articles just talking about it. Over the next few blog posts, I'll summarise some which I particularly like.

The first one is by Russell Smith, a pastor in Cincinnati, says, "The action has really heated up in the past few months on this project -- more books and websites than anyone can digest." And so he created his own overview lens to make sense of the noise. The DaVinci Code, Answered is where Russell shares his thoughts on the book and gets you pointed in the right direction to find out more. "This is a lens that deals with the truth about the early church (and beyond)."

Da Vinci Code in the Media

So what's the fuss about? Jib Hunt's lens focuses on the media aspect of The DaVinci Code. Information about the movie, Amazon links to the book, and more are shown here. Get your popcorn here. There is no moral discussion or controversial arguments offered in this lens. Just links to resources on the Da Vinci code.

Soaring

Lord let me soar with wings of an eagle

Time to change the sheets! IMG_6941.jpg, originally uploaded by wildorcaimages.

Timeless

Lord I want to care for the things that You care for

Timeless, originally uploaded by chrissie2003.

Nuggets of Gold

Hi everyone, I have been thinking about sharing little bits of my prayers that I tend to send to God during the course of my day. What I would do is to post these prayers against the backdrop of some of the most beautiful photos I've seen in Flickr. I call these my "Nuggets of Gold". Hope you enjoy this !

Trinity Christian Centre Sermons

I think it was great when someone came up with the idea of creating a sermons repository so that anyone can listen to and follow the sermons that were preached in Trinity. If other churches have this facility, it would make the Rhema Word of God available to anyone in the world.

In Trinity, we believe a sermon is never just a sermon.

Because the Word of God is relevant to contemporary life, it speaks into the very situations of our lives, bringing revelation, breakthrough and wisdom. It demystifies LIFE and reveals how we can live life the way God designed it - to the fullest!

Every preaching series focuses on contemporary life issues. Listen and discover how practical and relevant God’s Word is to your everyday life!