Greetings and salutations!

The Da Vinci Question

Recently, several people have been asking me why I’ve not published a response to The Da Vinci Code. One of the reasons is that there are always plenty of issues up for discussion and one has to choose their battles. That being said, the main reason I’ve not bothered commenting on Dan Brown’s novel, or the upcoming Ron Howard film, is that it’s simply not worth the time to comment.

Contrary to what many believe, this idea (Christ married to Mary Magdalene, etc…) is not at all new and has been around for years. Personally, I was shocked Mr. Brown wasn’t found guilty of plagiarism because he does pretty much lift the entire concept of ‘non-fiction’ works such as Michael Baigent’s Holy Blood, Holy Grail, as well as numerous other publications before it. I’m assuming his powerful associates and his thin defence of a fictional status came in handy.

I’m not going to dig into much detail here – but there is quite literally next to no evidence to support the ideas espoused by these publications. Strands of possibilities woven together at best. All of the “research” that went into this grandiose story is simply research into a conspiracy theory and, as anyone who has tried knows, you can find data and information on various conspiracy theories to keep you busy for years.

Aside from the lack of evidence, not to mention the fact that the man who planted the Priory of Sion list in the National Archives, confessed it was a practical joke, the traditional challenges of massive conspiracy theories remain: the amount of people required to keep such a thing secret makes the very idea logistically impossible, and the human record simply can’t stand up to any real scrutiny. Ultimately though, as always, people will see what they want to see.

Another factor is that most of the people in the circles I travel in, whether of eastern or western tradition, orthodox or mystic, just don’t have much interest in the whole debate. I would raise the point though, that churches (the Catholic Church in particular) should quite attacking this baseless entertainment, as doing so only lends it greater credibility (remember Passion of the Christ?). As well, it sends the message that you consider your members to be easily manipulated suckers. Rather, use the opportunity to share your beliefs on the nature of Christ – it’s time to be a bit more proactive.

I should clarify that I’ve not yet read The Da Vinci Code (not enough hours in the day) but I’ve read much of the work on which it is based and I’m sure the novel will be very entertaining. I plan to see the movie as well – because that’s what good entertainment is!

American Hero

It’s no secret that I love Jon Stewart (the Daily Show) and Stephen Colbert (the Colbert Report). These guys are sharp, hilarious, and filling a gap left sadly void by mainstream journalism. Now my respect has gone up substantially for Stephen Colbert because that guy has some brass balls! Last weekend he hosted the Whitehouse Correspondents Dinner and offered up the most stunning, clever, blasphemous monologue ever! I can’t imagine he’ll be invited back to the White House anytime soon – but he is the man of men! To watch the entire speech, click here or read the transcript here.

With Hope,
Joseph

The Da Vinci Code | Stephen Colbert | Holy Blood Holy Grail