Da Vinci Code Debunked

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Da Vinci Code Debunked
May 15, 2006
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Introduction

• Panelists
• Irene
• Mariana
• Adam
• Ann
• Why is there a problem after all, isnt it just
  fiction?
• Focus on errors about Scripture and early Church
  History (Ann)
• Focus on errors about Opus Dei (Irene, Mariana,
  Adam)

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Popularity and Impact of Da Vinci Code

• NYT Bestseller List for over 150 weeks
• 25 million books
• 45 languages
• One of the most widely read books of all time
• Dan Brown named one of the worlds top 100
  influential people by TIME magazine

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Problem Pretense to Historical Accuracy

• According to Dan Brown
• 8/28/03HOW MUCH OF THIS NOVEL IS BASED ON
  FACT?All of it. The paintings, locations,
  historical documents, and organizations described
  in the novel all exist. Photos of the paintings
  and locations can be viewed in art books or on my
  website.
• 1/17/04HOW MUCH OF THIS NOVEL IS BASED ON
  FACT?The paintings, locations, historical
  documents, and organizations described in the
  novel all exist. Photos of the paintings and
  locations can be viewed in art books or on my
  website.
• www.danbrown.com (currently one big commercial
  for the movie)

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The Da Vinci Code Proclaims Itself Based on FACT

• First Page, before the Prolog is a page entitled
  FACT
• Priory of Sion
• Opus Dei
• All descriptions of artwork, architecture,
  documents, and secret rituals in this novel are
  accurate.

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But Errors Abound In

• Art
• History
• Jesus Christ
• Canon of Scripture
• The Church
• Man and Woman
• Opus Dei

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Cottage Industry in Exposing Fallacies in Da
Vinci Code

• 60 Minutes, 30 April 30 2006, exposed the lies in
  the DVC about the Priory of Sion and its
  ancient documents http//www.cbsnews.com/stories
  /2006/04/27/60minutes/main1552009.shtml
• Catholic Answers discusses in detail errors
  associated with Church http//www.catholic.com/lib
  rary/cracking_da_vinci_code.asp
• Several books recently published highlighting
  errors

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Must Limit Discussion to a Few Errors in DVC

• Focus on Scripture and Early Church History
  Errors
• In particular, Chapters 55-60 (30 pages)
• Jesus Christ
• Canon of Scripture
• Gnosticism
• Constantine the Great and the Church

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Jesus Christ

• DVC HISTORICAL CLAIMS
• Married to Mary Magdalene
• Church defamed Mary Magdalene
• No Jewish man would willing accept celibacy in
  first century

• HISTORICAL FACTS
• No documentation of time makes any claims about
  Jesus being married to Mary Magdalene
• Mary Magdalene is the apostles to the apostles
  how is this defaming??
• Many Jews lived celibate life style
• Philo and theraputae in Egypt
• Qumran community

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Canon of Scripture

• HISTORICAL FACTS
• Qumran Scrolls are NOT Christian, but Jewish
  literature of 1st Century
• Genesis in part of Hebrew, not New Testament,
  Canon
• NT completed by 100 2nd C Christians refer to
  it Canon of Scripture predates Constantine by
  200 years (Irenaeus)

• DVC HISTORICAL CLAIMS
• Christian philosophers wrote Genesis to replace
  female creative power with male creative power
• Qumran Scrolls are early Christian works
• Bible collated by Constantine

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Gnosticism

• DVC HISTORICAL CLAIMS
• Nag Hammadi scrolls earliest Christian literature
• Gospel of Philip and Mary describe marriage of
  Jesus to Mary Magdalene
• Believed Jesus was only human

• HISTORICAL FACTS
• Nag Hammadi scrolls were written well after NT
• Gnostics believed that Jesus was NOT human, he
  only appeared to be human
• Gnostics thought the material world (including
  flesh, sex) were evil
• Marriage is eschatological Jesus marries the
  Church and initiates spiritually marry Jesus
• See for example Robert Grant, The Mystery of
  Marriage in Gospel of Philip, Vigiliae
  Christianae, 1961 available on line through MIT
  Libraries

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Church and Constantine the Great

• DVC HISTORICAL CLAIMS
• Constantine turned Jesus into a deity
• Constantine shifted day of worship to coincided
  with worship of Sun
• Constantine ordered the writing of NT
• Constantine baptized against his will on his
  death bed

• HISTORICAL FACTS
• Earliest heresy (2nd C) was that Jesus was not
  human, only divine
• Earliest church Fathers (Ignatius of Antioch,
  Ireraeus) taught that Jesus was human and divine
• Sunday as day set aside for Christian worship
  goes back to late 1st C first day of week, new
  creation, Easter
• Common practice in 4th C not to be baptized until
  near death

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Christ is being sold again, no longer to the
leaders of the Sanhedrin for thirty denarii, but
to editors and booksellers for billions of
denarii.

• --Fr. Cantalamessa,
• Good Friday Homily 2006,St. Peters

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243 Lexington Avenue, NY
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Opus Dei www.opusdei.org

• Opus Dei is a Catholic institution founded by
  Saint Josemaría Escrivá in 1928. Its mission is
  to help lay people turn their work and daily
  activities into occasions for growing closer to
  God, for serving others, and for improving
  society.
• In 61 Countries.
• Africa 1,800Asia and the Pacific 4,800The
  Americas 29,400Europe 49,000

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Message of Opus Dei

• Holiness is not something for the privileged few
  but for everyone.
• Work, family life, and other ordinary activities
  are occasions for spiritual union with Jesus
  Christ.

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What Does Opus Dei Do?

• Opus Dei complements the work of local churches
  by offering classes, retreats and spiritual
  direction.
• These activities are held in Opus Dei centers or
  in a church, office or private home.

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Opus Dei

• DVC CLAIMS
• Head of Opus Dei afraid it will be ejected from
  Church
• Members are fixated on pain
• Women members are repressed

• FACTS
• Personal prelature initiative of Vatican II
• Members struggle to become persons for others, in
  their work, family and social life
• Men and women centers
• and programs are independent of each other

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Opus Dei

• DVC CLAIMS
• Secrecy
• Brain-washing
• Interest in money
• Conservative

• FACTS
• Respect for privacy, interior life
• Loyal to teachings of the Church freedom of
  opinion in all else
• Use money at the service of doing good
• Preserving doctrine and liturgy but open to all
  noble initiatives

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TRUTHS ABOUT OPUS DEI

• Ordinary lay people
• Sanctifying their daily lives
• Virtues
• Spiritual life Prayer, Study, Presence of God,
  Spiritual direction, Sacraments
• Ethical work
• Joy and Peace in everyday tasks

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Receiving Formation at Opus Dei Center

• I am not a member
• Weekly Circle (formation class- scripture and
  catholic virtues)
• Confession and meditation
• Helps me to live out my catholic vocation as a
• Student
• Wife
• Daughter
• Friend
• Mother

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Opus Dei Cooperators

• Not members of Opus Dei but support the Prelature
  with prayer, donations, etc. and share in certain
  spiritual benefits
• Cooperators often friends or family of members,
  but not necessarily do not even have to be
  Catholic!
• Reasons one might want to be a Cooperator find
  the spirituality helpful, esp. for students
• Sanctification of work/studies
• Unity of life and contemplation in the world
• Divine filiation
• Desire to encourage or support the apostolic work
  of Opus

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Resources

• Planet Envoy
• Catholic Answers
• www.jesusdecoded.com
• Uncommon Faith
• www.opusdei.org
• www.opusdeiblogs.org
• www.stjosemaria.org

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Testimonial

• Chris Blunt, member of Opus Dei