Responding to the Da Vinci Code Movie

I joined many people around the world who watched the Da Vinci Code movie in its first week of release. I would like to address a few thoughts about the movie and the continued success of the book. I wrote a response to the book in February 2004 before the Christian bookstore was lined with multiple books debunking the Da Vinci Code. I have only read a few Christian responses, but I have read a number of secular responses to the book and movie. I start with some general responses the Da Vinci Code cottage industry before addressing the movie.

What is incredible about the success of the Da Vinci Code book and movie is that the majority of experts in all fields dislike it. Historians find it ridiculous, art experts laugh at its interpretations, theologians poke holes in its arguments, literature experts find it poorly written, and most movie critics did not like the movie. That said, it is the best selling novel of the 21st century and had the best weekend opening at the movies in 2006. My guess is that its success is a combination of it being a book that is hard to put down (even if you think the argument is foolish) and we live in a culture which is very interested in spiritual ideas.

The main reason I wrote about the Da Vinci Code book in 2004 was that it starts with a fact page implying the story is fiction but the history, secret societies and art descriptions are factual. There has been plenty written by fans and critics that expose the fact page as fiction. At the core of the book’s argument is this group called Priory of Sion. This secret society had as one of its leaders Leonardo Da Vinci who paints secrets about Jesus into his famous works. It has now been well documented that Priory of Sion was invented in France in the 1950s by a con man named Pierre Plantard. Without the Priory of Sion being real, the book’s religious ideas have no history to stand on.

I believe the movie reflects the fact that the Da Vinci Code moved from an alternative view of Christianity three years ago to being considered a work of fiction today. The movie makes no claim to any facts as the book does. The main character, played by Tom Hanks in the movie, is less hostile to historic Christianity than his counterpart in the book. An added scene in the movie has him talking about praying to Jesus as a child and finding some comfort. The message changes from the book implying that the Jesus in the Bible is all wrong to the movie saying believe in any sort of Jesus you want to believe in. As a minister who teaches from the Bible every week, I still have issues with both the book and the movie. I expect that the movie chooses to avoid being too offensive to where many people are in our culture.

Although the movie sugar coats its alternative view of Jesus, it does maintain its harsh treatment of the Roman Catholic church. Opus Dei is still an evil group tied to covering up the secret that Jesus was married. The church is depicted as being very willing to use murder to advance its causes. It is unfortunate that Roman Catholics can be so freely ridiculed and treated in ways that Hollywood would never consider treating Jews or Muslims.

I close with my concern about the impact the Da Vinci Code as a book and movie. Some will watch the movie or read the book and treat the whole thing as fiction. These people will either be well read and see all the errors or be well grounded in Christian beliefs and teaching. Others will watch the movie and accept it as valid history and religion. I do not expect this group to be large in number but there are people who are members of the flat earth society as well. The third response is to take only a small portion of the story line as true. One may believe that Gnostic writings are as valid as our New Testament texts or that all organized religion is destructive and very capable of murder. Some in this position may say that the Da Vinci Code may not be right, but after reading the book, the historic view of Jesus cannot be trusted. My major concern about the book and movie is that many viewers and readers fall into this third category. Some of these people attend church and may find their faith weakened. Others may be less likely to turn to the church in a time of need because the Da Vinci Code has made them believe the church is less trustworthy.

My hope is that the book and the movie would cause people to embark on a quest for the truth about Jesus Christ. I am confident that a diligent study into the person and work of Jesus Christ will bring the searcher to the conclusion that Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on a cross and rose from the dead. There is no more important person to study. God will bless those who hunger to know the truth and pursue the truth with diligence. The New Testament writer John quotes Jesus as saying “I am the way and the truth and the life.” (John 14:6) May God bless you in your study!

Suggestions for Further Reading:

The Bible - preferably in a modern language translation. Our church uses the New International Version (NIV), but there are other translations that are quite readable.

A Case for Christ (1998) and A Case for Faith (2000) - by journalist and former atheist, Lee Strobel. These books give a thoughtful defense for the place of faith in our modern world.

The Purpose Driven Life - by Rick Warren. This non-fiction best seller of 2003 is a 40 day study on the foundational teachings of Christian faith.