The Da Vinci Code (DVC) - Catholic Resources

The Da Vinci Code (DVC) Catholic Resources - Articles, Interviews, Reviews, Blogs and Websites

Catholic Articles

Amy Welborn

Explaining the Gullibility of The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code: The facts behind the fiction

Dan Brown, Theologian

People who take The Da Vinci Code's claims seriously need to crack open a Good Book.

Another Perspective: Kook Bestseller

Barbara Nicolosi

Let's "Othercott" Da Vinci

Many Christians see The Da Vinci Code as an opportunity for evangelism; others say it's a chance to engage the culture. Rubbish. Da Vinci is dangerous, so I'd like to suggest a better alternative.

Carl Olson:

Seeing (Code) Red: Answering The Da Vinci Code Bullies

"The 'It's Just Fiction!' Doctrine

A Da Vinci De-Coder

A controversial best-selling novel tries to undermine the foundations of the Christian faith and of the Catholic Church in particular. How should Catholics respond?

Seeing (Code) Red: Answering The Da Vinci Code Bullies

Are you a Christian who has a problem with The Da Vinci Code? Does Dan Brown’s novel upset you? If so, you just might be an ignorant jerk. Or a frightened man of little faith. Or perhaps a crazed zealot.

Anti-Catholic Passions

Relative Revelations

Dan Brown’s Code should be Left Behind.

Believing In Seeking, Not In Believing

Fiction Isn’t Just Fiction Anymore

Pulp thrillers are becoming the new Bibles of our time.

"Just" Fiction?

Catholic Answers

Cracking The Da Vinci Code

Catholic Encyclopedia

St. Mary Magdalen

The Last Supper

Leonardo da Vinci - Biography, History

Charles Colson

The Da Vinci Hoax: A Tour de Distortion

Elizabeth Lev

Lateran Museums; Debunking "The Da Vinci Code"

A Tradition Rises From the Ashes; Da Vinci Decoder

In this ZENIT article, Elizabeth Lev, who teaches art history at Duquesne University's Rome campus, refutes the idea, popularized by the novel, The Da Vinci Code, that the figure of the Apostle John, in Leonardi Da Vinci's Last Supper, is really Mary Magdalene.

Gabriel Garnica

Lies with Wings

Jesus, Mary & DaVinci with Elizabeth Vargas to be telecast tonight on ABC, is living proof that some in the media will stop at nothing to generate controversy in the drive to capture viewer interest. Based on the best-selling novel, The DaVinci Code, the program claims to "investigate" the controversial contentions of that Dan Brown book.

George Weigel:

The Da Vinci Code opportunity - George Weigel

Why do intelligent people think that The Da Vinci Code has some basis in historical fact? Why do Catholics imagine that a novel which suggests (and not so subtly) that the entire structure of faith is a lie is, well, no big deal? The Da Vinci Doubt - Our Faith in Action. The Da Vinci Code, written by Dan Brown, may not be as smart a hoax as the devil’s lie in the garden, but it has confused many people. (Our Faith in Action is a current events and issued based program comprised of monthly lessons that help teens understand and live out the Catholic Faith and Christian virtues.)

Dealing with Da Vinci

With sales of The Da Vinci Code now topping seven million, it's a safe bet that Dan Brown's Catholic readership is well into seven figures. Anecdotal evidence from around the Catholic scene confirms the hunch that a lot of Catholics have read the book — and more than a few have been disturbed by it. The question is: Why?

Resurrection vs. DaVinci

Dan Brown’s blockbuster novel, The DaVinci Code, will certainly outsell N.T. Wright’s The Resurrection of the Son of God by a factor of 10,000:1, and probably more. Quite unintentionally, though, Dr. Wright’s book is the perfect response to The DaVinci Code.

James Hitchcock, Dr.

Gnostics Are Back

This has been "the summer of Mary Magdalene," according to Time magazine. One of the things that made it so is a best-selling novel called The DaVinci Code, by Dan Brown.

Inventing a Religion of Intolerance

The Summer of Mary Magdalene

John Jalsevac

The Da Vinci Code: Hoodwinking the World

A quick perusal through the “religious” section at any local bookstore today reveals that a surprising number of people are pre-occupied with debunking The Da Vinci Code. Unsurprisingly the opposing sides of the debate have different explanations for this phenomenon.

John J. Miller

Seeking Truth at the Movies

John Wauck, Fr.

The Da Vinci Code Catechism

Kevin J. Symonds

Dan Brown: Sensationalist, Not Researcher

Dan Brown has placed a novel entitled The Da Vinci Code before the Catholic world. The book has sparked a lot of criticism, not least among Catholic apologists. Why has this book caused such controversy?

Laura Miller

The Da Vinci crock

A fascinating conspiracy about Jesus transformed the cheesy thriller, "The Da Vinci Code," into a phenomenal bestseller. Too bad it comes from "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," a masterpiece of bogus history.

Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D.

New Age and the Da Vinci Code: Revisiting Gnosticism

For nearly a generation, the New Age movement has been importing exotic religious ideas from the East into middle-class America. For the past couple of years, a best-selling novel, supposedly based on the authority of a secret tradition, has painted for many a picture of Jesus far different than what we read in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Nothing New Under the Sun

Marcellino D'Ambrosio explains why the ideas found in Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code and the New Age movement are nothing new, in fact they go all the way back to the second century, to a loose but widespread religious movement in the ancient world — Gnosticism. The author summarizes the essence of Gnosticism, the basic ideas that people called Gnostics held in common.

Mark Shea

Book Reviews on the DaVinci Code Provide Helpful Discernment

The Da Vinci Deception

Massimo Introvigne

The Da Vinci Code FAQ, or Will the Real Priory of Sion Please Stand Up?

Beyond The Da Vinci Code: History and Myth of the Priory of Sion

Matt C. Abbott and Mary Kochan

Reacting to TheDaVinciChallenge.com

In a crafty marketing move, Sony, along with Grace Hill Media, launched a new website on February 9th, 2006. TheDaVinciChallenge.com claims to be a site “offering informative essays by a broad array of leading Christian scholars, pastors and educators addressing many of the historical and theological issues touched on in The Da Vinci Code. The essay writers represent an eclectic group of experts from Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant traditions.”

Michael Whitcraft

Rejecting the Da-Vinci Code

Olson & Miesel

On The Da Vinci Hoax

Carl E. Olson and Sandra Miesel comment on their book, "The Da Vinci Hoax: Exposing the Errors in The Da Vinci Code."

Part 1 of a Special Planet Envoy Critique of The Da Vinci Code

Part 2 of a Special Planet Envoy Critique of The Da Vinci Code

Opus Dei

Press statement on The Da Vinci Code

The Opus Dei Communications Office in Rome released the following statement regarding The Da Vinci Code film.

Theological issues raised in the Da Vinci Code

Although this book was published as a work of fiction, claims have been made that it is "meticulously researched" and useful as a tool for theological reflection. We wish to alert readers to the fact that it many of its claims about Christian history and theology are contrary to the conclusions of mainstream Christian scholarship.

The Da Vinci Code, the Catholic Church and Opus Dei

Randall Murphree

TV Review: Jesus, Mary and Da Vinci

ABC "Jesus" Special Surprises Viewers

Richard Bernier

A Brief Response to Some Claims of The Da Vinci Code

Sandra Miesel

Dismantling the Da Vinci Code

'The Da Vinci Code' is one of the most virulently anti-Catholic novels to be written in years, and it’s gaining influence among those unschooled in the history it claims to present.

The Real History of the Holy Grail

Sandra Miesel traces the true origin of the Holy Grail story beyond the legends and mythology.

Stanley E. Porter

The Da Vinci Code, Conspiracy Theory and Biblical Canon

Steve Kellmeyer

Dan Brown and His Books of Renown

Before he wrote The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown wrote another novel, Angels and Demons. Anyone who has read the two will immediately notice the similarities: both are conspiracy novels, both describe nefarious Catholic bishops, in both the protagonists make the same points, sometimes even in the same words. So why was the first book a moderately successful also-ran while the second turned into a runaway best-seller?

Pain: Da Vinci Code Versus The Passion

“What kind of God would want that kind of pain inflicted on someone?” This is one of the central questions posed in Dan Brown’s best-selling novel, The Da Vinci Code. It is also the question posed by Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. Mr. Brown’s answer is simple: God, whoever he or she might be, does not want the scourging and Cross that Jesus embraces. Thus, Jesus cannot be God.

Toni Collins

Jumping Over the Hedge: Going a Da Vinci Boycott One Better

“SEEK THE TRUTH,” says Sony’s trailer for The Da Vinci Code. “The Da Vinci Code describes history as I have come to understand it,” says author Dan Brown. “I left the Catholic Church, and now that I’ve read The Da Vinci Code, I know I did the right thing,” said a neighbor to one of my daughters.

William P. Saunders, Fr.

Mary Magdalene

Time magazine (8/11/03) published an article about Mary Magdalene, which denied that she is the same as the prostitute in the gospels, the woman who anointed Jesus, and the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Also, the article accuses the Church of a smear campaign against Mary Magdalene, identifying her as the prostitute. I always thought otherwise. Can you help me? — A reader in Sterling

Gnostic gospels

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Interviews

THE DA VINCI CODE Author Roundtable

FaithfulReader.com has brought together 11 authors who have all written books in response to Dan Brown's controversial 2003 novel, THE DA VINCI CODE. Richard Abanes, Darrell L. Bock, Dan Burstein, James L. Garlow, Peter Jones, Steve Kellmeyer, Erwin W. Lutzer, Sandra Miesel, Carl E. Olson, Amy Welborn and Ben Witherington III discuss why they believe so many people have accepted this fictional thriller as fact. They also address some of the claims Brown makes in the book about Christianity and explain the potential damage that his conclusions could inflict on a person's faith.

Interview with Carl E. Olson, co-author of The Da Vinci Hoax

Interview with Sandra Miesel, co-author of The Da Vinci Hoax

Decoding The Da Vinci Code By Kristin Deasy - An interview with Carl Olson

Transcript of CNBC segment on The Da Vinci Code

The Truth Behind "The Da Vinci Code" - Carl Olson Analyzes the Controversial, Confusing Best Seller

Dissecting "The Da Vinci Code" - Interview With Apologist Mark Shea

The Da Vinci Fallacy - Interview With Columnist and Author Amy Welborn

"Da Vinci Code" -- a Blessing for Opus Dei? - Use the Lemon to Make Lemonade, Says Spokesman

Da Vinci's Secret Christian Message - Interview With Giuseppe Fornari

Opus Dei on John Allen's New Book - We're "Neither Angels nor Demons," Says Spokesman

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Reviews

Argument Masquerades as Truth in 'The Da Vinci Code' - Reviewed by Joseph R. Thomas

Book Review: The DaVinci Code - By Amy Welborn

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Blogs

The Da Vinci Code & Opus Dei

The Da Vinci Code, The Gospel of Judas and Other Nonsense

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Websites

Jesus Decoded

Jesus Decoded, sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, is an attempt to provide a solid Catholic response to the false statements made about the Church in Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, soon to be released in theaters as a feature-length film. The site includes contributions from historians, an Opus Dei priest, Bishop Gerald Kicanas, the U.S. bishops’ communications office, and other experts. Overall, this site is beautifully executed and will provide Catholics and non-Catholics with the needed ammunition to counteract the falsehoods being promoted under the guise of historical fact.

Da Vinci Outreach

A coalition of Catholics, including Ascension Press, Catholic Exchange, and Catholic Outreach, has formed an initiative called DaVinci Outreach to help readers and moviegoers navigate their way through the web of bogus history and outright lies conjured up by Dan Brown and brought to life by Imagine Entertainment and Sony Pictures.

The Da Vinci Outreach campaign hopes to clear up the historical and theological confusion that surrounds The Da Vinci Code. The outreach effort provides concerned individuals with the resources they need to seek the real truth and equip themselves for the inevitable watercooler conversations that will attack the principles of Christianity, the Catholic Church, and the Person of Jesus Christ.

The website offers various ways of combatting this blasphemous film. A book, The Da Vinci Deception may be purchased and free study guides may be downloaded from the site.

DavinciFacts

A guide to accurate facts about The Davinci Code movie and book, the history of Christianity, and the Catholic Church.

Other-Cott

Boycotts rarely achieve desired results. PR campaigns can work, but they require extensive time and resources. But is there anything else can we do?

The answer is “Yes!” Hollywood, meet the first-ever organized Christian Other-cott.

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Tags: Da Vinci Code Leonardo Catholic Church Opus Dei Jesus Mary Magdalene John