The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown - History or Fiction?

Dan Brown's book The DaVinci Code was originally promoted as a work of historical fiction. The DaVinci Code would have been fine as a work of fiction, but then in a shocking move author Brown changed his story. In interviews Dan Brown began asserting that The DaVinci Code was a true history as were his claims about Mary Magdalene and Jesus. Unfortunately, Brown's "research" seems to consist solely of looking for references, even those proven untrue, which substantiate his conspiracy theory.

I had planned to read The DaVinci Code when it was labeled as fiction, but as soon as Dan Brown started claiming The DaVinci Code was fact, I determined not to buy it until it went to paperback - on sale! I recently spent my $4.97 on The DaVinci Code at WalMart and laughed my way through the first half. I am no scholar, but I am a bit of a history and art buff, and even I can find countless holes in The DaVinci Code the size of the Sistine Chapel.

Then I got to the second half, and I wasn't laughing anymore. The DaVinci Code became so repugnant at that point and so tedious in pushing the "sacred feminine" vs. the "evil Christian" angle that it became laborious just to finish it.

In The DaVinci Code, Brown claims Jesus was a mortal, a good man but not divine, and that his "marriage" to Mary Magdalene produced offspring that survive today. He bases much of his "research" on some papers on the Priory of Sion that were supposedly "uncovered" in Paris (proven to be a hoax and the work of con man Pierre Plantard). Dan Brown also points to the Coptic Gospels * and Dead Sea Scrolls which were not included in the Holy Bible for several reasons, none of which he documents. His main point in The DaVinci Code is that Christianity is more or less a contrived religion that has "demonized" the worship of the "sacred feminine" so that men can be dominant, and this has produced all the ills of this world.

Bah humbug.

Brown also laces The DaVinci Code with lurid references to the sexual activities of the mythical Priory of Sion and other sects which reach "divinity" through sex. Not only that, but he portrays the early church as the worst kind of organization, resorting to deception and even murder to keep the truth from people.

The The DaVinci Code book and reportedly the movie are full of unsubstantiated false claims including: Jesus and Mary Magdalene were man and wife; they had a secret child; that Jesus bequeathed the church to Mary Magdalene; there were 80 gospel accounts of Christ's life; the Roman emperor Constantine gave us the New Testament; and the divinity of Jesus and much of the New Testament are inventions of fourth-century church leaders at the Council of Nicea.

Where Brown Sees an "M" in DaVinci's "The Last Supper," I See a Reclining "K."

Yawn. I will be so glad when it is not PC to demonize Christianity. This stuff grows tiresome. Where Brown sees an M in DaVinci's "The Last Supper," I see a reclining K. Perhaps that is Da Vinci's secret message to me not to waste my time on The DaVinci Code book or movie and to take a nap instead!

* Scientists at The University of Arizona's NSF-Arizona Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) Laboratory radiocarbon dated these samples of the Coptic manuscript at between A.D. 220 and A.D. 340. uanews.org.

Note: The DaVinci Code has spawned a host of books that explore and debunk the mythology and conspiracy theory of Dan Brown. Those books are probably well worth the money you would have wasted on tickets and popcorn to see the The DaVinci Code movie.

Originally published at ChristianActivities.com.

SOURCES

Wikipedia - Priory of Sion

Wikipedia - Pierre Plantard

Priory-of-Sion.com

uanews.org

ChristianActivities.com

Fiction or History? The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown - a Book Review

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