THE DA VINCI CODE by DAN BROWN
FALSE HISTORICAL INFORMATION
At the beginning of the book Dan Brown makes these claims:
"Fact: All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in this novel are accurate."
Fortunately we don't have to rely solely on Dan Brown's account for the truth about these historical events; we can investigate the events ourselves.
Many books and articles have been written documenting the blatantly false and misleading statements in The Da Vinci Code.
The name of the book is taken from this famous artist. Dan Brown reads so much into Da Vinci's painting of the last supper where Jesus is shown sharing his final meal with his disciples before his death. To support his bizarre theories, Dan Brown takes great liberties in interpreting hairstyles, complexion and body language depicted in this famous painting. Brown uses many words to persuade the reader of the veracity of his claims.
Some things Dan Brown neglected to tell you
Firstly, what we now see as The Last Supper painted by Leonardo Da Vinci most likely differs from what Da Vinci painted originally. The Last Supper is actually a mixture of egg tempera painted on dry plaster. The painting was not very durable and the plaster started to crack almost immediately. Starting in 1726, there have been seven restorations with the most recent in 1999. (Fold out, Cracking the Da Vinci Code, after page 112)
Secondly, and more importantly, even if we could see The Last Supper as Da Vinci painted it, the painting would have no credibility whatsoever as an historical source for what actually happened at the last supper. Da Vinci was not invited to the Last Supper! It took place long before his time. Da Vinci completed painting The Last Supper in 1498, nearly 1500 years after the event!
Dan Brown's book invites you to waste your time staring into a painting that has been restored many times hoping to discover supposed previously hidden insights into events that occurred one and a half millennium before it was painted! Perhaps even more bizarre than Brown's theories and interpretations is the fact that so many people have been willing to accept them without any serious scrutiny more on that later.
#2: The Priory of Sion
"Fact: The Priory of Sion- a European secret society founded in 1099..."
(The Da Vinci Code, introduction)
Dan Brown is wrong: In 1954, Pierre Plantard a Frenchman who had spent time in jail in 1953 for fraud and three other men started a small society club which they called The Priory of Sion. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Plantard created (fabricated) a series of documents about the existence of a bloodline of Jesus through Mary Magdalene down to the present day to include himself! In a court case, Plantard was called by the court to testify. Under oath, Plantard admitted he had made up the whole Priory scheme. (from CTC, page 112-13)
#3: The Dead Sea Scrolls
"Fortunately for historians," Teabing says, "some of the gospels that Constantine attempted to eradicate managed to survive. The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in the 1950s hidden in a cave near Qumran in the Judean desert." (The Da Vinci Code, page 234)
Dan Brown is wrong: None of the Dead Sea Scrolls contains gospels concerning Jesus! The Dead Sea Scrolls only contain 'books' from the Old Testament and other documents written before Jesus lived.
#4: The Council of Nicea
Teabing proposes that Jesus had not been considered divine until the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325. At that council, according to Teabing, belief in Jesus' divinity resulted from a "relatively close vote" "Until that moment in history, Jesus was viewed by His followers as a mortal prophet." (The Da Vinci Code, page 233)
Dan Brown is wrong: About three hundred bishops were in attendance at the Council of Nicea. Only two bishops refused to support the Nicene confession that Jesus was and is fully God. It is ludicrous to refer to the outcome as a 'relatively close vote'!
Dan Brown is wrong:
Jesus was considered divine well before the Council of Nicea.
Jesus himself claimed to be God (about 300 years before the Council of Nicea). His enemies realized Jesus claimed to be God, saw it as blasphemy and had him crucified for it. His disciples referred to Jesus as God, secular history records the early Christians worshipped Jesus 'as God' and the early Church leaders (in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd centuries) referred to Jesus as God. The council of Nicea simply confirmed what thousands had already died believing i.e. Jesus was their Lord and God.
Some things Dan Brown neglected to tell you
The bible says Jesus is God
Jesus claimed to be God
In Exodus 3:14, God referred to Himself as the "I AM". Jesus took upon Himself this title that God used for Himself in the time of Moses. "Jesus answered, 'Before Abraham was born, I AM!'" (John 8:58)
His enemies realized that Jesus was claiming to be God
(The Jews said to Jesus): "We are stoning you because you claim to be God" (John 10:33). His disciples referred to Jesus as God
(When Thomas saw the risen Jesus Thomas said to Jesus): "My Lord and my God" (John 21:28).
Secular history says Jesus was worshipped as God
Christians "were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god " 4 (Written in 112 A.D. by Pliny the Younger, the governor of the Roman province of Bithynia, in present-day Turkey.)
The early church leaders referred to Jesus as God
In the first, second and third centuries the early church leaders in their many writings and letters repeatedly referred to Jesus as God.
"Jesus who is God and man." - Ignatius (30 A.D. - 98 A.D.) 7
Jesus is "both God and the Lord of Hosts." - Justin Martyr (100 A.D. - 165 A.D.) 7
Jesus is " our Lord, our God and saviour and king." - Irenaeus (120 A.D.- 202 A.D.) 7
Jesus is " truly most manifest Deity." - Clement of Alexandria (150 A.D. - 215 A.D.) 7
#5: The reliability of the New Testament
"The New Testament is based on fabrications." (The Da Vinci Code, page 341) "What I mean," affirms Leigh Teabing, "is that almost everything our fathers taught us about Christ is false." (The Da Vinci Code, page 235)
Some things Dan Brown neglected to tell you
The 'willingness to die' factor
The disciples were prepared to die for their firm belief that Jesus did rise from the dead. Peter, Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, James (the son of Alphaeus) and Simon (the zealot) were crucified. James (the son of Zebedee) and Matthew were killed with the sword. Thaddaeus was killed with arrows and Thomas with a spear. (From page 57, MTAC)
In 64 A.D., the Roman emperor Nero "fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures" 4 on Christians. Only a short time after Jesus died, Christians were prepared to die the most hideous deaths because they were convinced Jesus really did rise from the dead.
Tacitus (the Roman historian) describes the manner in which Christians were prepared to die.
"Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames. These served to illuminate the night when daylight failed' (Tacitus, Annals 15.14:6). 5
"[Nero] therefore turned the accusation against the Christians, and the most cruel tortures were accordingly inflicted upon the innocent. Nay, even new kinds of deaths were invented, so that being covered in the skins of wild beasts, they perished by being devoured by dogs, while many were crucified or slain by fire, and not a few were set aside for this purpose, that, when the day came to a close, they should be consumed to serve for light during the night" (Sulpicius Severus, Chronicle). 5
Polycarp (A.D. 70 - 156) was a disciple of (student of) John the Apostle a direct disciple of Jesus. Ignatius (A.D. 70 - 110) and Irenaeus (120 A.D. - 202) were both disciples of Polycarp. How convinced were these people that Jesus did indeed rise from the dead? Polycarp was burned at the stake rather deny Jesus, and both Ignatius and Irenaeus were martyred for their faith.
Just before his death, Polycarp was given the chance to recant (deny his faith). He was reputed as saying, "Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He hath done me no wrong. How can I speak evil of my King who saved me?" (Page 64, ETDAV)
The bible - the most reliable ancient historical manuscript
The New Testament passes the three standard historical tests with 'flying colours'.
1. The Bibliography Test
The more surviving manuscripts and the smaller the time gap between the existing copies and the original, the more confidence you can have in the accuracy of the material in the manuscript.
The New Testament has more than 20 000 manuscripts compared to its closest 'rival' The Iliad that has only 643 manuscripts. The time between The New Testament and the earliest existing copy is around 25 years for a portion of the book of John, around 100 years for manuscripts containing major portions of the New Testament or around 250 years for a manuscript containing almost the whole bible. For The Iliad (the bible's closest rival again) the time gap between the original and the earliest existing manuscript is 500 years.
(Page 43, 46 and 47 ETDAV)
Sir William Ramsey, widely recognised as one of the greatest archeologists that ever lived, was at one time skeptical that the book of Acts (written by Luke) was written in the first century as the book itself claims. But after careful and extensive study of the Book of Acts and emerging archeological evidence over many years, Ramsey was finally forced to conclude, "Luke is a historian of first rank this author should be placed along with the very greatest historians." (Page 39, MTAC)
Sir Fredrick Kenyon (British scholar and former director of the London Museum) concluded, "No ancient book has anything like such early and plentiful testimony to its text, and no unbiased scholar would deny that the text that has come done to us is substantially sound."
(Page 47, ETDAV)
2. The External Evidence Test
The more external evidence that confirms the events in a manuscript, the more confident you can be that it is accurate.
The New Testament has much evidence of its accuracy from both other historical documents and from archeology. I have cited a few examples but many more could be given.
The bible is confirmed by outside historical sources
Ancient historians who had no sympathy for Christians or Christianity confirm many of the basic events of Christianity.
Tacitus was a Roman historian. His 'Annals', written about 115 A.D., mention the emperor Nero's persecution of the followers of Christ in Rome in A.D. 64. This was the year of the great fire of Rome. There were suspicions that the emperor himself had started the fire.
This is what Tacitus says:
"To dispel the rumor, Nero substituted as culprits, and treated with the most extreme punishments, some people, popularly known as Christians, whose disgraceful activities were notorious. The originator of that name, Christus, had been executed when Tiberius was emperor, by order of the procurator Pontius Pilatus. But the deadly cult, though checked for a time, was now breaking out again not only in Judea, the birthplace of this evil but even throughout Rome, where all the nasty and disgusting ideas from all over the world pour in and find a ready following" (Annals 15:44).
This passage written by an unsympathetic pagan historian confirms what the bible says.
Jesus was a real historical person who lives in the time the bible said he did
Christ was executed while Tiberius was Roman emperor (14-37 A.D.)
Jesus was executed by order of Pontius Pilate (procurator from 26-36 A.D.)
The movement Jesus started had its origins in Judea
There were enough followers of Christ in Rome by A.D. 64 to be made scapegoats by Nero
Many people were so convinced about Jesus that they were prepared to face an unbelievably cruel death.
Pliny the Younger was Governor of Bithymia in Asia Minor (A.D. 112) when he wrote to Emperor Trajan because he was concerned with the number of Christians (men, women, boys and girls) he was putting to death.
Pliny said that he also "made them curse Christ, which a genuine Christian cannot be induced to do."
Pliny (who was obviously no friend of Christians!) gives support to a number of things the bible says when he writes:
"They (Christians) were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verse a hymn to Christ as a god, and bound themselves to a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit any fraud, theft, adultery, never to falsify their word, not to deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up." (Page 83, ETDAV)
Bible supported by archeology
The bible says that " Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea " (Luke 3:1). In 1961, archeologists unearthed a two-by-three foot inscription in Latin in the Mediterranean port of Caesarea that read: "Pontius Pilate, Prefect of Judea was presented the Tiberium "
(Page 215, HWAU)
3. The Internal Evidence Test
The closer, both geographically and chronologically, the writer is to the events they are describing the more chance they have of accurately relating the events.
The accounts of Jesus were writing by either eyewitnesses (John and Matthew) or people (Mark and Luke) who received their information from eyewitnesses.
Peter, an eyewitness of Jesus' entire ministry, said "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty" (2 Peter 1:16).
John, an eyewitness of Jesus entire ministry, said "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched-this we proclaim concerning the Word of life."(1 John 1:1).
The introduction to the Gospel of Luke says, "Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught" (Luke 1:1-4).
An example of this careful research of Luke is recorded when he writes, "In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar-when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene- during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the desert"(Luke 3:1-2).
Reconstructing the New Testament from early church writings
The early church leaders lived in the second and third centuries. 99.86% of the New Testament can be re-constructed from their surviving writings and correspondence. Only 11 verses of the New Testament are not found in the copies we have of their writings.6
You can rely on the bible
Clark H. Pinnock, professor of systematic theology at Regent College puts it well when he says:
"There exists no document from the ancient world witnessed by so excellent a set of textual and historical testimonies, and offering so superb an array of data on which an intelligent decision may be made. An honest [person] cannot dismiss a source of this kind. Skepticism regarding the historical credentials of Christianity is based on an irrational [i.e. antisupernatural] bias." (Page 55, MTAC)
Lord Lyndhurst was one of the greatest legal minds in British history. He wrote, "I know pretty well what evidence is; and I tell you, such evidence as that for the resurrection has never broken down yet." 3
One of most famous and brilliant lawyers of all time was Simon Greenleaf. He came to the conclusion that, according to the laws of legal evidence used in courts of law, there is more evidence for the historical fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ than for just about any other event in history. 3
Lord Chief Justice of England, Lord Darling, once said, "no intelligent jury in the world could fail to bring in a verdict that the resurrection story is true." 3
Conclusion
If you want to find accurate historical information about Jesus, don't waste your time looking in the book The Da Vinci Code written by Dan Brown! To find out accurate information about Jesus read the eyewitness accounts in the bible - a book shown to be historically accurate.
The fact that some people readily accept the falsehoods in The Da Vinci Code as accurate history confirms what the bible says; that there will come a time when people will "turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths" (2 Timothy 4:3-4). Or as Pascal the French philosopher writes, "The evidence of God's existence and His gift is more than compelling, but those who insist that they have no need for Him will always find ways to discount the offer" Page 12, ETDAV)
Attempts to confuse or mislead people about the real historical Jesus are not new. But long after these attempts have faded into the darkness, the effect that Jesus has had on mankind shines on as strong as ever. This is illustrated in "One Solitary Life" written about Jesus by Dr James Allan in 1926.
He was born in an obscure village
The child of a peasant woman
He grew up in another obscure village
Where he worked in a carpenter shop
Until he was thirty
He never wrote a book
He never held an office
He never went to college
He never visited a big city
He never travelled more than two hundred miles
From the place where he was born
He did none of the things
Usually associated with greatness
He had no credentials but himself
He was only thirty three
His friends ran away
One of them denied him
He was turned over to his enemies
And went through the mockery of a trial
He was nailed to a cross between two thieves
While dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing
The only property he had on earth
When he was dead
He was laid in a borrowed grave
Through the pity of a friend
Nineteen centuries have come and gone
And today Jesus is the central figure of the human race
And the leader of mankind's progress
All the armies that have ever marched
All the navies that have ever sailed
All the parliaments that have ever sat
All the kings that ever reigned put together
Have not affected the life of mankind on earth
As powerfully as that one solitary life
Laura Miller, The Last Word - The Da Vinci Code Con, The New York Times, 22/02/2004. This article (as of June 2007) could be accessed at //query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B07E0DD103AF931A15751C0A9629C8B63
James L. Garlow and Peter Jones, Cracking the Da Vinci Code, Kingsway Communications, 2004.
Taken from www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=551 (as of June 2007)
Taken from www.carm.org/bible/extrabiblical_accounts.htm (as of June 2007)
www.bibleinfo.org.uk/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=8&Itemid=26 (as of June 2007)
See www.bibleevidences.com/transmission.htm (as of June 2007)
Firefighters, The Da Vinci Code Examined, DVD by Charlie H. Campbell, USA.
Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code, New York, Doubleday, 2003.
Josh McDowell, More Than A Carpenter, Illinois, Tyndale House Publishers, 2004 (MTAC)
Josh McDowell, He Walked Among Us, San Bernardino, Here's Life Publishers, 1988. (HWAU)
Josh McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, San Bernardino, Here's Life Publishers, 1986. (ETDAV)
