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The following article answers the ten most common questions from Catholics regarding the outrageous claims of ’s infamous best-seller.

Top 10 Catholic Questions on

By Matthew Arnold

Dan Brown’s controversial novel The not to be taken at face value but as spurious writings like the Gnostic Da Vinci Code has sold over 40 mil- stories with hidden symbolic mean- gospels. lion copies and spent many months ings…Thus it was possible to write on the top of the best-seller lists. new ‘gospels’…modern people like 4. What about the claim that, after The source of the controversy it has Dan Brown, who treat the Gnostic Constantine created his “new Bi- generated, and the true explanation gospels as history, miss the point— ble,” all the “earlier” gospels were of the book’s popularity, lie in dubi- to the Gnostics themselves it was gathered up and burned? ous, anti-Catholic religious and his- irrelevant what actually happened torical claims presented in the form when was on earth, if he ever We’ve already shown that histori- of a murder mystery. The subject of was.” cally this is nonsense, but it’s also a big-budget movie and just not logical. For one thing it had the source of many books and The first Gnostic gospels weren’t already been tried by Pagan Rome DVDs, the fictional claims of The Da written until AD 150, others in the for some three centuries. Vinci Code demand a non-fiction third century. Their supposed au- response. thors, Peter, Phillip, Thomas, Mary Catholics (men, women and chil- Magdalene, etc. were all long dead dren) had proven themselves quite 1. Isn’t The Da Vinci Code “only when the Gnostic gospels were writ- willing to die to protect the Four Gos- fiction” and therefore harmless? ten. pels. They suffered martyrdom for three hundred years rather than give Firstly, fiction can be harmful. Writ- The Gnostic gospels were not “lost,” up the Sacred Books, or deny the ing “mere fiction” does not give an they were abandoned because they Resurrection, or deny the Real Pres- author the right to slander individuals were known to be heretical fables ence of Christ in the Eucharist, etc. or groups, or to commit blasphemy. that fail the test of historicity—both For that matter, does Dan Brown today and in the early centuries of Many of the bishops at Nicea were really intend the heretical claims in the Church. missing eyes and hands from previ- his book to be considered fictional? ous Roman persecutions. It is an This is an assumption that Brown, 3. Was the Christian Bible really insult to the memory of these coura- himself, refutes. “collated by the Roman Emperor geous people of faith, not to mention Constantine?” the intelligence of the informed Although the plot of his story is obvi- reader, to suggest that they suddenly ously fictional, a preliminary note Brown’s claim that Constantine as- abandoned the Gospel because of under the bold heading “Fact,” in- sembled the New Testament at the the mere threat of persecution. forms readers that, “All descriptions 4th century Council of Nicea is histori- of artwork, architecture, documents cally ridiculous. 5. Did the Council of Nicea estab- and secret rituals in this novel are lish Jesus as the Son of God by accurate.” Moreover, Brown has of- Writing a century before Nicea (c. vote “and a close one at that” as ten publicly defended the outrageous A.D. 233), Early Church Father Ori- The Da Vinci Code claims? claims in his book as “gospel” truth. gen affirms: “The Church has four Gospels; but the heretics have Fictional historian Leigh Teabing So if critics complain about his many many… But among all of these we claims “until that moment in history, appalling religious distortions and approve none others except those, Jesus was viewed by his followers as historical errors, it is the height of the four only Gospels, which are a [merely] mortal prophet…” This is hypocrisy for Brown and his defend- received by the Church.” nonsense. ers to hide behind the excuse, “Its only fiction,” when he has gone to so In fact, at Nicea a copy of the Four Jesus’ Divinity was clearly estab- much trouble to convince the public Gospels was placed on a splendid lished in His earthly ministry as wit- that the many errors expounded in throne beside the Emperor as a sign nessed by the Scriptures and Apos- The Da Vinci Code are not “only fic- of the presence of Christ in His tolic Tradition long before the fourth tion.” Church! century (cf. John 1.1-14; Mark 14.61- 62, etc.). Rather, the Council of 2. Do the Gnostic gospels reveal While the Gospels and the other Nicea was called to put an end to the the true history of Jesus? Biblical books were well known by Arian heresy. the early Church, the Canon of the According to historian Dr. James New Testament wasn’t officially set The heretic Arius taught that Jesus Hitchcock: "The Gnostics did not until the Council of Hippo (A.D. 393) was divine, but not equal to God the accept the Incarnation of Jesus and and then confirmed by the Council of Father. Therefore all the bishops treated doctrinal orthodoxy as being Carthage (A.D. 397) partially to put gathered at Nicea agreed that Jesus too literal-minded. The gospels were an end to the false claims made for was both divine and human. It was

Page 1 Copyright © 2009 Matthew Arnold All rights reserved.

the definition of this truth that was 30); in the Parable of the Marriage “,” and Mary Magda- worked out by the council, and that Feast, where a king hosts a marriage lene’s identity as the “true Holy definition was voted on, but it was feast for his son, the king is God the Grail,” come from works of pseudo- hardly close, the final vote being 316 Father, His Son, the Bridegroom, is history like Holy Blood, to 2. Jesus. (Matt 22.1-14, Luke 14.16-24) and The Templar Revelation. Jesus is also the Bridegroom in the 6. Was the victim Parable of the Wise and Foolish Vir- His notion of Mary Magdalene as the of “a smear campaign” by the gins. (Matthew 25.1-13) His Bride, of true leader of the early Church is Church? course, is the Church. (Ephesians taken from another speculative work, 5.25) The Woman with the Alabaster Jar This is a truly strange charge consid- whose author also cites Holy Blood, ering that, after the Blessed Virgin 8. Is Mary Magdalene seated next Holy Grail as a source. Mary, Mary Magdalene is arguably to Jesus in ’s the most important woman in the “Last Supper?” None of these books were written by New Testament! historians, nor are any of them taken The figure seated on Jesus’ right in seriously by the legitimate academic She is mentioned first among the “The Last Supper” is John the Apos- community. women who ministered to Christ tle, not Mary Magdalene. The rea- (Luke 8.2, 3); all four Gospels place son there has never been any ques- 10. According to The Da Vinci her at foot of the Cross with the tion about this is because “The Last Code, “Every faith in the world is Blessed Virgin and St. John; all four Supper’s” depiction of St. John based on fabrication.” Is faith name her as the first witness to the clearly follows both the artistic con- really only, “acceptance of that resurrection; and, at a time in both ventions that came before it, as well which we imagine to be true, that Jewish and pagan culture when a as the well-known Biblical account. which we cannot prove?” woman could not give legal testi- mony, it is on her word that John and Scripture teaches that the “beloved Dan Brown and his fictional charac- Peter go to the empty tomb to see disciple” who “leaned on His [Jesus’] ters contend that to believe some- that Jesus is risen (John 20.8). breast at Supper” is St. John (cf. thing by faith is irrational. But real John 13.21-24; 19.26-27; 21.21, 24) faith is not blind acceptance of what For these reasons, and more, the and Leonardo’s depiction of him is we cannot prove, but trust in one who refers to Mary Mag- typical. Because St. John was the has proven himself. Faith is not dalene as the “Apostle to the Apos- youngest of the Apostles, artists from imagination, but a rational reaction tles,” and considers her the model all periods tend to depict him as both given to compelling evidence. Christian—an ideal example of peni- beardless and effeminate. tence, true contrition, and good The missionaries of the New Testa- works. A most unusual “smear cam- Virtually all reputable art historians ment did not appeal to feelings, but paign” indeed. agree the figure on Jesus’ right is St. to facts: the resurrection and the . This is what has empty tomb; Jesus’ miracles; His 7. Was Jesus Married? always been known about Leo- fulfillment of Old Testament proph- nardo’s masterpiece. ecy; in other words, evidence. Brown claims to find evidence for the marriage of Jesus and Mary Magda- There simply isn’t any controversy Faith, by definition, means to believe lene in the heretical Gnostic gospels, except in the imagination of Dan in something you can’t prove. But it but this is false. Brown and some of his more gullible doesn’t mean believing in something readers. for no reason. The Gnostics believed all matter to be evil and therefore rejected pro- 9. What are the sources for the The ads for the Da Vinci Code say, creation as the source of more “evil” many false assertions in The Da “Seek the Truth.” Catholics need not matter. The idea that Jesus was Vinci Code? fear this advice because it is pre- married and had children is antitheti- cisely the truth that will debunk the cal to and unheard of in Although falsely portrayed as a prod- book’s many fabrications. their false gospels. uct of “meticulous research” the Da Vinci Code actually represents no As Jesus said, “If you continue in my Further, Christian Tradition is unani- credible scholarship whatsoever. Mr. word, you are truly my disciples, and mous that Jesus was celibate. He Brown doesn’t quote a single book of you will know the truth, and the truth Himself recommends celibacy the New Testament, or any of the will make you free” (John 8:32-33) (Matthew 19.12), as does St. Paul (1 writings of the early church when he Corinthians 7.7-8; 32-36). makes claims about what early Chris- +++ tians believed. However, spiritually speaking, Jesus is married. John the Baptist calls Likewise, all his assumptions about Jesus the “Bridegroom” (John 3.28- the , the so-called Page 2 Copyright © 2009 Matthew Arnold All rights reserved.