Gearing up for DaVinci Code

With the movie coming out this week (May 19th), it will be helpful for us to understand what is going on in this depiction of (rewritten) history. We begin the upcoming of this next week with a few thoughts to get your mind in gear, and will follow up with the FACTS concerning history regarding these matters in the coming week.

Also, in case you have nothing to do Monday (15th), at 7 pm there is a webstream debate with Dr. Darrell Bock, Christian, who wrote "Breaking the DaVinci Code: Answers to the Questions Everybody's Asking". He will be debating an Orthodox Jew and a Messianic Jew concerning the DaVinci Code's message. It should be a good resource, and he is a reputable scholar on these details, as LCMS Dr. Paul Maier has lifted him up. Here is the information and the webcast site:

http://www.davincidebateny.com/

Here is some more food for thought to get you "rollin" on this issue:

DaVinci Code: Fact or Fiction?
The “Jesus Game”…sensationalizing efforts by Hollywood’s best have these things in common:
The flight from hard evidence – solid historical, literary, and archaeological source material – to the flimsies of sensationalistic reconstruction.

The substitution of opinion for fact and hypothesis for history, leading to the most arbitrary conclusions possible.

Twisting the language of a historical source out of context to make it mean what the author wants it to mean in accord with his caricature.

Exchanging objectivity for bias, admitting only sources that favor the author’s hypothesis and dismissing the rest.

What might be called “smorgasbord research”: ignoring the succulent dishes of evidence spread out by the past but pouncing on a caviar wisp of data, then reporting that the entire dinner consisted of delicious fish eggs.

Façade “scholarship”: peppering the findings with references, book titles, or notes that may look authoritative, bur substantiate nothing at all.

In the case of fiction, exaggerating at will, removing data out of context, and masking outright falsehoods under the claim that the literary vehicle is fiction. (These points taken from The DaVinci Code: Fact and Fiction, p. 37-38, Hanegraaff and Maier)

Also, consider these quotes from Hanegraaff and Maier’s book:

“But Brown uses this “fact” (which in reality is completely untrue) to cast aspersions on Jesus Christ, the historicity of the Gospels, and the uniqueness of Christianity.”

“As we will see, much of what Brown trumpets as truth is based on a fabrication concocted by an anti-Semite with a criminal record.”

“Let me be clear: no one should feel that his faith has been undermined by the fantasies and lies presented under the guise of truth in this novel.”

More to come on this issue, which is getting ready to blast us: are you ready?


NIV 1 Peter 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect