Decoding the Da Vinci Code
Last night ABC aired a program entitled, “Jesus, Mary, and Da Vinci.” It was a documentary-type program on the novel, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.
The novel opens with the murder of Jacques Saunirer, the curator of the Louvre. A baffling cipher is found near the body. Police call Robert Langdon, “professor of religious symbology” at Harvard, to help solve the riddle. Langdon discovers that it leads to clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci. He joins forces with Sophie Neveu, the victim’s granddaughter, who is also a cryptologist. They learn the curator was involved in the Priory of Sion, a secret society whose members included Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci. They eventually decided that Mary Magdalene was married to Jesus and that Jesus and Mary had a daughter. Moreover, the Holy Grail, the cup that Jesus used at the Last Supper, was actually Mary Magdalene, who held the blood of Jesus in her womb while carrying his child. Da Vinci knew about all of this, because he was a member of the Priory and in his painting of the Last Supper, he placed Mary on the left side of Christ!
The novel has been criticized for its “characters thin as plastic wrap, undistinguished prose, and improbable action” (Miesel). Yet a writer has accused Brown of plagiarism! The New York Daily News book reviewer said, Brown’s “research is impeccable.” Yet another reviewer said, “So error-laden is The Da Vinci Code that the educated reader actually applauds those rare occasions where Brown stumbles (despite himself) into the truth” (Miesal). For example, The Priory is an organization officially registered with the French government in 1956. It does make claims of antiquity, but it was most likely originated after World War II. With the exception of filmmaker Jean Cocteau, its illustrious list of Grand Masters, including Da Vinci, Newton, and Hugo is not credible (Miesal). Novelist, Mark Lawson (Going out Live) says “There are probably a couple of verses in Nostradamus predicting the triumph of The Da Vinci Code. Certainly, the novel’s success can be attributed to those who read Nostradarnus and believe that the smoke from the blazing twin towers formed the face of the devil or Osama bin Laden.” In her review, Miesal concludes that “In the end, Dan Brown has penned a poorly written, atrociously researched mess.” (See her excellent, detailed review at crisismagazine.com.)
“Was Jesus married?” The answer is, “not yet.” He was not married to Mary. ABC asked several Biblical scholars, “Is there any proof in the Bible that Jesus was not married? Of course not! The Bible does not give any proof that Jesus was not married for the same reason that it does not give any proof that He had six fingers on His left hand.
But Jesus is engaged. All who have trusted Him are His Bride (2 Cor. 11:2) waiting for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7, 9). “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev. 22:20).
© G. Michael Cocoris, 11/4/2003
The novel opens with the murder of Jacques Saunirer, the curator of the Louvre. A baffling cipher is found near the body. Police call Robert Langdon, “professor of religious symbology” at Harvard, to help solve the riddle. Langdon discovers that it leads to clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci. He joins forces with Sophie Neveu, the victim’s granddaughter, who is also a cryptologist. They learn the curator was involved in the Priory of Sion, a secret society whose members included Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci. They eventually decided that Mary Magdalene was married to Jesus and that Jesus and Mary had a daughter. Moreover, the Holy Grail, the cup that Jesus used at the Last Supper, was actually Mary Magdalene, who held the blood of Jesus in her womb while carrying his child. Da Vinci knew about all of this, because he was a member of the Priory and in his painting of the Last Supper, he placed Mary on the left side of Christ!
The novel has been criticized for its “characters thin as plastic wrap, undistinguished prose, and improbable action” (Miesel). Yet a writer has accused Brown of plagiarism! The New York Daily News book reviewer said, Brown’s “research is impeccable.” Yet another reviewer said, “So error-laden is The Da Vinci Code that the educated reader actually applauds those rare occasions where Brown stumbles (despite himself) into the truth” (Miesal). For example, The Priory is an organization officially registered with the French government in 1956. It does make claims of antiquity, but it was most likely originated after World War II. With the exception of filmmaker Jean Cocteau, its illustrious list of Grand Masters, including Da Vinci, Newton, and Hugo is not credible (Miesal). Novelist, Mark Lawson (Going out Live) says “There are probably a couple of verses in Nostradamus predicting the triumph of The Da Vinci Code. Certainly, the novel’s success can be attributed to those who read Nostradarnus and believe that the smoke from the blazing twin towers formed the face of the devil or Osama bin Laden.” In her review, Miesal concludes that “In the end, Dan Brown has penned a poorly written, atrociously researched mess.” (See her excellent, detailed review at crisismagazine.com.)
“Was Jesus married?” The answer is, “not yet.” He was not married to Mary. ABC asked several Biblical scholars, “Is there any proof in the Bible that Jesus was not married? Of course not! The Bible does not give any proof that Jesus was not married for the same reason that it does not give any proof that He had six fingers on His left hand.
But Jesus is engaged. All who have trusted Him are His Bride (2 Cor. 11:2) waiting for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7, 9). “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev. 22:20).
© G. Michael Cocoris, 11/4/2003