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The Da Vinci Code is only a novel. It is not a source of serious information, but it does raise some serious questions. 1. Was Jesus Christ really married? Yes. Jesus was married to the Church. In the New Testament, Jesus is frequently referred to as the Bridegroom, and St. Paul tells us: “a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh. This is a tremendous mystery. I’m applying it to Christ and the Church.” (Ephesians 5:31-32) In fact, the Christian vocation is nothing less than an invitation...

Prayer Vigil on the Da Vinci Code Once they mocked Him with a crown of twisted thorns, the soldiers there, a game to amuse themselves while they passed the time, to prove how secure they were in this foreign land how much stronger, how much in control. No threat, He, beaten, bloody, bound, an interesting toy to play with in the morning. Now they mock Him with a crown of twisted words, those who choose to despise Him, soliders in a different war, yet still in need of  games to amuse themselves with, to prove how much wiser, stronger, smarter...

Everyone likes a good riddle. It's human nature to want to find meaning, solve problems, and seek out purposeful solutions. Dan Brown capitalized on this by writing the best selling novel, "The Da Vinci Code". Speaking of which, the title of my post is a riddle: WOE ON RON HOWARD, T. HANKS' D.C. FIB. By rearranging the letters of the title, you can find a meaningful question posed about this novel and film. The solution is in the context of the story, as the answer resembles a major puzzle within it. If it is not obvious at this point that...

The Da Vinci CatechismThe Da Vinci Code is only a novel. It is not a source of serious information, but it does raise some serious questions. 1. Was Jesus Christ really married?Yes. Jesus was married to the Church. In the New Testament, Jesus is frequently referred to as the Bridegroom, and St. Paul tells us: “a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh. This is a tremendous mystery. I’m applying it to Christ and the Church.” (Ephesians 5:31-32) In fact, the Christian vocation is nothing less than...

If "Its Only Fiction," Why Do So Many Want To Believe It Is The Truth? There have been so many expose's of the Da Vinci Code on cable TV, religious programs, and talk radio broadcasts that if there are any true believers left, they should be hiding in the Priori of Sion. From the beginning, Dan Brown always confessed that the novel is fiction. However, he has contradictorily claimed that the fiction was based on facts in his book and on his website. I skimmed hundreds of Da Vinci Code reader comments on Amazon.Com which has archived thousands of reader...

'Da Vinci' unlikely to pass Egypt censors By Betsy Hiel TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, May 14, 2006 CAIRO, Egypt - "The Da Vinci Code," the film based on Dan Brown's best-selling book, will not be seen in Egypt when it is released worldwide Friday. Nor will the long-awaited film play in Jordan or Lebanon, which banned Arabic translations of the book.

"A lie is halfway round the world while the truth is still putting its boots on." --- Mark TwainMy first reaction to Dan Brown's novel, "The Da Vinci Code," was: "It's a work of fiction, a thriller, a page-turner. Everybody knows that." I was wrong. A young friend of mine met a classmate from Catholic high school who told him that she was seriously thinking of giving up her faith after reading "The Da Vinci Code." My friend said, "You'd give up your faith because of a novel?" She answered, "Oh, but it's all true!"Oh, but it's not! Soon the...

DAN Brown’s bestseller, The Da Vinci Code, was first published in 2003. By April 2005 it had sold 17 million copies in 44 languages and it is still selling well, as any traveller by plane, bus or train will confirm. It is a novel of the popular, conspiracy theory type. The central thesis is that “the Church” has covered up the fact that Mary Magdalene married Christ. Christ’s divinity was a myth invented by Roman Emperor Constantine in the 4th century AD and the pair had descendants. Brown suggests that Mary Magdalene’s character was unjustly impugned by “the Church” in...

Tom Hanks Provokes Catholics’ Ire As if starring in one of the highest profile blasphemies of history was not enough, The Da Vinci Code star Tom Hanks has added insult to injury with a blasphemous skit on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” on May 6. During the show’s beginning monologue, cast members dressed as clergymen and “clergywomen” reportedly derided Mr. Hanks for starring in The Da Vinci Code and threatened him with eternal damnation. The blasphemous parody escalated as actor Jason Sudeikis appeared dressed as “Jesus Christ,” saying that he forgave Mr. Hanks. Mr. Hanks responded, “So you have seen the...

Dan Brown's murder mystery novel presents a problem for Christians. A 2005 Canadian survey showed that one-third of those who have read the book believe that it is factual.( 1 ) The Da Vinci Code has sold more than 42 million copies. The film version starring Tom Hanks is opening on May 19 in the United States. Serious Christians will see through the many lies and historical fictions that Brown plants throughout the book, but millions will believe that this profoundly dishonest book contains at least some "truth" about Jesus and the church. The truth is that Brown is peddling...

"Da Vinci Code” director Ron Howard has said there would be no disclaimer in the film labeling it as a work of fiction – and Catholic League President Bill Donohue is deeply disturbed by Howard’s stance. "The book which the film is based on begins with three ‘facts,’ all of which are malicious lies, yet Ron Howard says no disclaimer is needed because ‘this is a work of fiction,’” Donahue said in a statement. "He is disingenuous.” As Donahue points out, the following got a disclaimer in a fictionalized TV show or film: Asians: "Year of the Dragon” Blacks: "Birth...

On the way from bestseller to blockbuster, Da Vinci Code producers launch a schizophrenic marketing plan to win a religious following without a religious backlash. Dan Brown's novel, The Da Vinci Code, has sold some 43 million copies, making it the biggest-selling adult novel in history. Now the movie adaptation, with A-list director Ron Howard and superstar Tom Hanks, is poised to reach millions more when it opens in theaters nationwide May 19. If The Passion of the Christ brought millions of moviegoers to see a powerful, though controversial, film about the Jesus of Christianity, The Da Vinci Code presents...

Scratchcards, usually associated with National Lottery games offering "instant cash prizes", are to be put to a more elevated use - debunking The Da Vinci Code.The Christian Enquiry Centre is distributing 270,000 specially designed cards today to every cinema screening the Hollywood version of the Dan Brown bestseller when it is released next week. The film is expected to be one of the biggest hits of the year despite being denounced as "stridently anti-Christian" by Vatican officials. The cards feature 10 claims made in the book. Cinema goers are asked to judge whether they are fact or fiction by scratching...

'The Da Vinci Code': Why Christians Should Celebrate May 11, 2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Any Hollywood studio would pay big money for publicity like this. In Rome, a top Vatican cardinal asks Catholics to boycott a soon-to-be-released movie. Another cardinal suggests filing a lawsuit against its makers. And three cardinals say the only reason there’s so much public interest in the film is because the general public is so ignorant. In Athens, the Greek Orthodox Church condemns the film as “undermining religious knowledge in a treacherous manner.” In Manila, a top government official demands the Filipino government ban the film. The government...

The row over the imminent release of the Da Vinci Code film grew today when star Tom Hanks hit out at its Catholic critics. Cardinals, speaking with the authorisation of the Vatican, have called for the Hollywood version of Dan Brown's bestselling novel to be boycotted. They say the theme of the film - that Jesus Christ had children with Mary Magdalene and that hardline Catholic movement Opus Dei covered up his secret life - is highly blasphemous. But Oscar-winner Hanks said objectors to The Da Vinci Code are taking the film too seriously, telling the Evening Standard: "We always...

Brian McLaren on The Da Vinci Code An interview by Lisa Ann Cockrel With The Da Vinci Code poised to go from bestseller list to the big screen on May 19, pastor and writer (and Sojourners board member) Brian McLaren talks about why he thinks there's truth in the controversial book's fiction. What do you think the popularity of The Da Vinci Code reveals about pop culture attitudes toward Christianity and the church? Brian McLaren: I think a lot of people have read the book, not just as a popular page-turner but also as an experience in shared frustration with...

The Da Vinci Code director Ron Howard has rejected demands by Opus Dei to attach a disclaimer to his would-be blockbuster labeling the film as a work of fiction, spurring a rebuke from the religious sect. "It's not theology. It's not history. To start off with a disclaimer...Spy thrillers don't start off with disclaimers," Howard told the Los Angeles Times in Sunday's edition. ... "It's very controversial," Howard said. "What Dan Brown did with the novel, we didn't back away from in making the movie. I think what a lot of people have discovered--a lot of theologians--is this is a...

Official wants Da Vinci movie bannedWed May 10, 8:51 AM ET MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippine government should ban the controversial movie "The Da Vinci Code," a senior official in the mainly Catholic country said Wednesday, describing the religious thriller as blasphemous. The film, based on the best-selling fiction novel of the same title, is due to open in Manila's cinemas next week. "I think we should do everything not to allow it to be shown," said Eduardo Ermita, executive secretary to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, expressing his personal opinion as a "devout Catholic." He told journalists the state's censors...

Here's something that all Catholics can do in the days before the the release of the Da Vinci Code movie. Pray the Rosary, with the intention that all those who are thinking about seeing the movie avoid doing so, so their souls may not be put at risk. If you say the Rosary daily, add this intention to those that you already have. If you can, pray the Rosary every day, during the nine days left before the release of the movie. Continue to pray the Rosary during the run of the movie in the theaters. No matter what you...

Are you one of those curious types who after reading The Da Vinci Code want to see what is really inside an Opus Dei center, the group author Dan Brown mistakenly claims harbors sadistic albino assassins? While I certainly wouldn't classify myself as a "sadistic albino assassin," I would say that it is indeed quite easy to see the inside of an Opus Dei center. In fact, in Madrid I simply called up and asked to come over for a visit. Nobody turned me down, and I imagine that's the way it is around the world. Indeed, it is so...