Coming from a staunch ‘Quaker’ Christian family, where faith, works and righteousness as a whole has been given so much importance in my upbringing, I have never seen people’s faith being challenged by the contents of Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code’. It hasn’t shaken mine! Are you surprised…?
The controversy of the book is in the fact that it holds precepts of the good ole’ religion by the scruff of its neck and shakes its contents so meticulously by suggesting another ‘way of life’ and an alternative account of history of Christianity, that at first, you start doubting the very foundation of Christianity, Jesus, himself. The impact of ‘The Da Vinci Code’ on Christians, Catholics & Protestants alike, has been if anything, controversial, which begs the question, is it right to question your faith?
A great man once said, “Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one of them.” Well, what’s fun for me, maybe someone else’s hell… but I digress…
The Da Vinci Code, by itself, presents a totally different take on the 33 years in the life of the ‘Man of Galilee’, his relationship with Mary Magdalene and the events that followed to his crucifixion and thereafter.
To the seemingly unflinching Christian, the concept of Jesus being married can’t be anything but blasphemy … Jesus was God… but then the Bible also says…Jesus was man… and he was tempted which brings me to think, if Jesus was Man, why could he not be capable of marriage, or have children, just like any other man? And why should David’s bloodline stop at Jesus’ death? The answers to these questions that we otherwise know seem to pale to common reason…
And that’s where the breakdown begins and more doubts begin to surface…
Was it true that the church tried to kill Jesus’ bloodline? Are they hiding the truth from all of us today? What was written in the Dead Sea Scrolls & the Gospel of Barabbas? Is our version of the Bible today nothing but a diluted version of the actual truth? Did Jesus really rise from the dead? Does the Priory of Sion still exist? Was the sacred feminine a threat to the male dominated Church?
And so on and so forth…
The pages of history have always been written by winners…no one has questioned or questions them if it’s the complete truth. Humans have always known to exaggerate in varying degrees from the ridiculous to the white little lies that we use everyday to manipulate people or to just get by our own misdemeanors. And then you ask yourself, Are the facts all that important or is it what you base you faith on?
And yet, for just for one moment, if we separate ourselves from facts and figures, just like Robert Langdon, who bowed his head in front of the portrait of Virgin Mary at the Louvre Museum and accepted what he chose to believe in despite the facts (not being able to find the Holy Grail etc.).
That is the path we must take… because if you don’t BELIEVE in something, you’ll fall for ANYTHING…
