Debunking the Da Vinci Code
As I work my may through Dan Brown's blockbuster, The Da Vinci Code, it is easy to see why the book is so incredibly popular. The book is very well-written thriller, with fast-paced action, interesting characters and conspiracy that covers roughly 2,000 years. It is difficult to put down.
But it is also full assertions and theories and historical claims that are just plain nonsense. What is more, any reader who thinks Brown's novel presents the truth about Jesus and Christianity must conclude that orthodox Christian belief is a completely man-made trick on the world.
The movie version is coming out this June. The media is already buzzing about it. Tom Hanks, who plays the lead character in the movie adaption, even made a surprisingly soon second appearance on The Actor's Studio, promoting the movie. Usually, the host, James Lipton, waits a longer time before bringing a prominent actor back for a second visit to his program, but apparently the upcoming Da Vinci movie warranted it.
The book and movie provides a great opportunity for Christians to engage non-believers in discussion about Christ. To that end, many solid books have been published to help believers understand the issues and talk intelligently about the book and movie. I've listed several good books in my "Debunking the Da Vinci Code" sidebar box. But there are also many good resources appearing on the web. Some are not so good, others are excellent. Following are a few good places to start. I will update this list as I find quality material.
A great assortment of resources from Christianity Today:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/special/davincicode.html
A lecture by New Testament scholar N.T. Wright:
http://www.spu.edu/depts/uc/response/summer2k5/features/davincicode.asp
An excellent website sponsored by Westminster Theological Seminary:
Ben Witherington III's blog has several excellent posts (he wrote a good book on this topic):
http://benwitherington.blogspot.com
Dr. Darrell Block's blog has much good material:
A great video discussion from Dallas Theological Seminary:
http://www.dts.edu/media/dialogue/davincicode/
A free study/outreach plan by Dr. Jim Garlow:
http://www.wesleyan.org/Media/MediaManager/Da-Vinci-handout_wph.pdf
Good essays from Chuck Colson and others at BreakPoint:
Recent Comments