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Evangelical Resources on The Da Vinci Code

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Articles
  3. Books
  4. Audio
  5. Websites
  6. Observations
  7. Conclusion

Introduction

A murder in the Luvre catapults Robert Langdon, an expert in religious symbology at Harvard, and other unwitting accomplices into an adventure in which they discover the greatest cover-up of all time. The curator of the Luvre was murdered for knowing the truth about early Christianity; a secret history that passed through many generations to Leonardo Da Vinci, who encoded the secret in his art. Everything that has been taught about Christianity for the past two thousand years is a fabrication!

All of these claims, and many more, are made in Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code, a bestseller with incredible appeal. Although the book is technically fiction, it claims to be accurately reporting "FACT" about many things it records throughout its pages.

In reality, The Da Vinci Code is little more than the rehashed "lost gospel" quest that is so common in North American apocrypha. The ideas it contains are by no means new; many were refuted well before the pages of Dan Brown's novel saw the light of day. But to an eager and uncritical public willing to jump on the latest conspiracy theory hook, line, and sinker, The Da Vinci Code was the perfect novel to seize upon.

Many Christians were caught entirely off-guard by the growth of The Da Vinci Code. In fact, despite all the postive press the book has been receiving, on the whole Christians have been blissfully ignorant that their friends, loved ones, co-workers, and neighbors have been reading and absorbing uncritically the worldview of Dan Brown. We as Christians must become aware of the myriad of problems latent in this work of fiction, and be prepared to give an answer for the hope that is within us. The excitement of The Da Vinci Code, rather than being an impediment to outreach, can become a springboard by which we can share why, at a fundamental level, Christians believe the Bible to be trustworthy, and that Jesus Christ continues to save today. Rather than shrinking back in a sullen retreat, let us step forward, speak the truth in love, pointing people from the Jesus of Dan Brown, toward the Jesus Christ that broke into human history transforming it forever.

If you have comments, issues, or concerns, please email me directly: michaelh@ductape.net

Articles

News articles pertaining to The Da Vinci Code are faithfully blogged by Religion News Blog.

Religion News Blog: The Da Vinci Code
[ http://www.religionnewsblog.com/category-cat=703.html ]

Evangelicals on The Da Vinci Code

Roman Catholics on The Da Vinci Code

Books

Audio

Websites

Evangelical Websites

Official Websites

Observations

Conclusion

Despite its predictable plot, dry two-dimensional characters, trivial puzzles, and its outrageous claims that stretch beyond the point of believe-ability, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code will continue to be popular, finding a wide audience of people who find its simple style less challenging to read and its conspiratorial vision compelling evidence that two thousand years of Christian history are some sort of cosmic forgery. For Christians, it is important to recognize this piece of fiction for the publishing phenomena that it is, while at the same time preparing ourselves to answer the questions being raised by those who read the book. The Da Vinci Code serves as an amazing opportunity and challenge for the Christian church to present a detailed case for the most important facets of the Christian faith, showing that despite all the "lost gospel" hypotheses that have come and gone, the Bible and Christianity have continued to stand solid.