The Da Vinci Load
Permit me, if you will, to speak shortly of The Da Vinci Code. If you haven't heard of it you must have been living under the proverbial rock. And in that case you probably haven't got an Internet connection and won't be reading this anyway, which makes the last few line kinda superfluous.
I'm feel compelled to write this because of the emmense amount of attention that is being paid to the "phenomenon" at the moment, and because ppl need to calm down. Way down. In fact ppl need to calm down almost as much as they did during the "crisis" that was the drawings of Muhammed.
I shall explain why.
The Da Vinci Code is a book written by Dan Brown. It tells the story (as if you didn't know) of the true grail, and of how Jesus was actually just your regular guy, with a family. Wife and kids. He was still a guy worth remembering, the teachings are the same, only he's not devine. Now, usually everyone would read that book and think either "nice read" or "utter crap". But because of a few words at the very beginning of the book the whole world has gone slightly balistic about it.
Fact:
Priory of Sion blablabla secret society, members include Isac Newton, Victor Hugo and da Vinci.
Opus Dei blabla catholic sect etc.
All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents and secrets rituals in this novel are accurate.
Only it's not "fact". Opus Dei does exist, but the Priory (supposebly) does not. And so on. Here are some quotes I shamelessly stole from a forum. The source wasn't credited, so please forgive me. To whoever wrote it, thank you.
| Quote: |
| Jesus' life was not recorded by thousands of followers across the land; it is not true there were eighty Gospels considered for the New Testament; it is false to state that Jesus was considered divine until the Council of Nicea; Constantine did not commission a "new Bible" that omitted references to Jesus' human traits; the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in 1947 and not in the 1950s, and furthermore, they were not among "the earliest Christian records." In fact, they are Jewish, and contain nothing Christian in them. The Nag Hammadi documents do not narrate the Grail story, nor do they underline Jesus' human traits. On the contrary, they do just the reverse. It is leading astray when we assert that Jewish decorum forbade a Jewish man to be unmarried, and in fact most of the individuals behind the Dead Sea Scrolls were male unmarried celibates. There is nothing to tell us about the lineage of Mary Magdalene, and there is no evidence that she belonged to the House of Benjamin. Moreover, what evidence exists that she was pregnant at the crucifixion, as Brown suggests in his book. As for the Q document being hid by the Vatican, where is the proof, and how do we know it is a book allegedly written by Jesus? |
| Quote: |
| The very first sentence in the book implies this is more than a mere tale. "Fact: The Priory of Sion – a European secret society founded in 1099 – is a real organization." This arcane society, according to Mr. Brown's telling, has been the keeper of the secret about Jesus and Magdalene. But the "fact" is almost certainly wrong. Last month, 60 Minutes piled up evidence that a Frenchman – an anti-Semite with a history of criminal fraud – "created" the Priory as a hoax in the 1950s. |
| Quote: |
| The glass pyramid at the Louvre has 673 glass panes, not 666. The Dead Sea Scrolls were written by Jews and say nothing about Jesus. They were discovered in 1947, not the 1950s. The irrational number Phi is not precisely equal to 1.618. If the figure to the left of Jesus in The Last Supper is really Mary Magdalene, as the book claims, then Leonardo left out an apostle. If it's really John, as most art historians claim, Leonardo was neither the first nor the only artist to paint him as a beardless, long-haired young man. |
| Quote: |
The New Testament never mentions Jesus being married or even suggests it, so Brown uses one of the Gnostic gospels, the Gospel of Philip to support this claim. We only have fragments of the text he uses as his support and that text reads as follows: “And the companion of the…Mary Magdalene…her more than…the disciples…kiss her…on her…” (Philip 63:33-36). Philip 58-59 seems to indicate that the kiss would have been on the lips. In 1 Corinthians 16, Paul mentions this kind of chaste kiss of fellowship, and this is likely what is meant here. However, we need not rest on that argument. The protagonist in Brown’s book claims that the word “companion” in this verse actually means spouse because that’s what the Aramaic word really means. I kind of feel sorry for Brown here. This document wasn’t written in Aramaic. It was written in Coptic. The word used for companion is koinonos and it means companion, not spouse. |
There we go. A few things to mull over. And why, do you ask, am I stating this? I'm stating this because the book is still entirely readable and very much entertaining. It is not, however, fact and a world altering truth.
The catholic church has been campagning to have the film either stopped or at least have a disclaimer inserted, stating that it is not, in fact, fact. Alot of ppl are rather upset. Because we can't have Jesus running around and being all not-devine.
Does this remind you of anything?
Yes! You are correct. The whole Muhammed debacle. A newspaper printed DRAWINGS, for god's sake (no pun intented) of the guy, and Muslims start rioting. Although it has not come to that there are some simalarities. Are there not? We should all just be able to live and let live. I'm sure Dan Brown was not out to get christians and I'm sure he's sorry about causing all this trouble.
What he is also doing is rubbing his hands together and living in a house made of pure money. The book has sold, what, 40 million copies? You do the math. And all this controversy (me writing this?) is all adding to the hype.
Which means more people will buy the book. And see the movie. And earn him more cash. I'm telling you, if I was Brown I would be laughing all the way to the bank. In the large van I would need to carry all the huge amounts of money I was earning. Several trips per day. Maybe I would even get someone to help me carry all my money. That I was earning because of all the talk about my book. Oh, and I would also be wondering if the whole lawsuit about me having stolen my ideas from another book was just yet another stunt to create more hype, since both books were from the same publisher. But I would certainly have alot of money. Yes, indeed. Lots.
I seem to be straying. My point is this, should it not be obvious: It's just a damn book. It's a good book. A read it in 3 days and liked it. I even read Angels and Demons afterwards (which I in all fairness believe to be superior because it does not pretend to be "fact"). But it is NOT, I repeat, NOT the actualy, undeniable truth about the historical Jesus and it does not mean the world is going to end. So can we all just please live in peace now?
Now that's a load off of my mind...
posted by Daniel @ 10:40 AM
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