Breaking the Da Vinci Code: Answers to the Questions Everyones Asking

I rarely review books unless I recommend them. However, Dr. Bocks style of religious paranoia is growing very tiresome, so comment is needed. It is certainly OK to have deeply-held religious beliefs, and Bock is entitled to his. It is also OK to defend those beliefs, and Bock clearly intends to do so. There are many wonderful people in this world who are devout Christians. On the other hand, it is intellectually shoddy to accuse people of pernicious agendas just because they believe differently than you. That is where Bock abuses the credentials of his PhD and contributes to the bad reputation of Texas-style fundamentalism. (Bock is a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary and past president of the Evangelical Theological Society.) To Bock, Dan Brown had sinister motives for writing The Da Vinci Code: one can spot an agenda expressed through the novels key characters. For some mysterious reason, he also feels a need to go after an unrelated author, Elaine Pagels, because she takes the Nag Hammadi documents seriously by darkly hinting about her, There is an agenda here. The only agenda these people have is a desire to express religious and historical ideas that they find interesting or compelling. Dr. Bock is quite welcome to state where he differs in opinion and why, but it is very unscholarly of him to accuse people he disagrees with of being influenced by evil motives. If you are interested in separating fact from fiction in The Da Vinci Code, a much better book is Bart Ehrmans Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code.

In Breaking the Da Vinci Code, New Testament scholar Darrell Bock describes and refutes the codes behind The Da Vinci Code, which could better be understood to be the presuppositions of author Dan Brown, and those who subscribe to his Gnostic view of Christianity. Sadly, in our day and age, very few Christians, much less the general population, have any knowledge of the literature of the Early Church, except perhaps for the New Testament itself. It is because of this general ignorance that so many seem to readily buy into Dan Browns code behind the code. As I read The Da Vinci Code nearly a year ago, I was totally engrossed in the mystery, but as the story progressed, I was increasingly appalled at the history. As an amateur student of Church history, I couldnt help but wish for a single volume I could recommend to help counteract the erroneous views of Christian development that Brown promotes. Breaking the Da Vinci Code is one such volume. While each code could have a scholarly work written about it (and indeed many have been), Bock does a good job of addressing popular misconceptions about Mary Magdalene, whether or not Jesus was married, the Gnostic gospels, the development of the New Testament, and other related issues. It is significant that this book is endorsed by well respected Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox Christian scholars. Personally, as an Orthodox Christian, I found Bocks statements to be, for the most part, thoroughly orthodox (small o), in the sense of C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity (another book I would also heartily recommend). For further reading, I would strongly urge readers to take a look at Ecclesiastical History (also published as Church History), written by Eusebius in the 4th century. As I stated in my Amazon review of this work, it should be required reading for all thinking Christians. Other Early Church writings should be considered, such as The Apostolic Fathers, edited by Jack Sparks; or any of the volumes in Ante-Nicene Fathers and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers set of 38 volumes, edited by Philip Schaff; or many of the volumes in the Ancient Christian Writers series from Paulist Press. I listened to the audio recording of Breaking the Da Vinci Code, read by Chris Fabry, as I followed along in the book. While Fabry has a clear, pleasant and convincing voice for this work, I noticed that his mispronunciation of the occasional word slightly shifted the meaning of the authors intent. Not a big deal, but worthy of note. An advantage of the book over the recording is the inclusion of a selected bibliography and a helpful, simple glossary.

Mr. Bocks writing style is not the greatest but he does do a good job of explaining very clearly why Dan Browns book is a fictional novel based on a fictional theory. You can call me many things, Actively Religious is not one of them. I read Mr. Bocks book because Dan Browns book was simply too incredible to believe. If you would like a better understanding of what historians and biblical scholars understand about the beginnings of Christianity, I recommend you read it. If by the end of the book, you still believe the Da Vinci Code gives an accurate historical depiction then you probably also believe a vast right wing conspiracy forced Bill Clinton to have sex with Monica.

Breaking the Da Vinci Code is an attempt by a Christian professor of religion, Darrell L. Bock, to refute the information provided in the popular novel, The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown. Bock justifies this effort by saying that not only has the novel been highly popular, it proclaims as true some concepts that are contrary to traditional Christianity. The book is divided into eight codes, or chapters. The first three of these deal with Mary Magdalene. Was she, as Brown’s book claims, the wife of Jesus, an apostle and a key figure in the early church? Bock provides evidence from the gospels and other writings that she was not. He says that Jesus was single and never married. Mary Magdalene was a devoted follower of him, but no more. Brown’s book further claims that Christian leaders have tried to diminish her in order to preserve their authority, a claim that Bock also rejects. He points to evidence in the gospels that show a positive role for women, given the culture of the times. He also says that the gnostic gospels, discovered in 1945, do not help us understand Christianity. Brown’s book says that people who had a political agenda assembled the New Testament gospels and Jesus was not upgraded to the status of God until the Emperor Constantine and the adoption of the Nicene Creed in 325. But Bock points out that Paul said Jesus was God in the first century. Bock also disagrees with two Harvard professors on various matters. Brown’s book, Bock says, essentially states that the Church, in order to defend itself, made Mary Magdalene out to be a prostitute and hid her marriage to Jesus. His conclusion is, “We have examined this claim and found it to be wanting historically at every key point.” The last code asks who was Jesus? The Resurrection is the real code that shows he truly was God. Professor Bock represents the Christian establishment and thus is defending it against what he sees as an attack on its beliefs. The life of Jesus Christ and the formation of the Catholic/Christian church are shrouded in mystery and there have been many interpretations. A number of scholarly books have pointed out that the bible is not historically accurate and many of its events may be myths or parables. We are now quite certain, for example, that the biblical account of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus is largely inaccurate. The Resurrection may be one such myth. Jesus may not have actually come back to life; rather the message might be that if you follow his preachings you will be resurrected after your death and reside with God. We just do not know and one either believes or disbelieves as a matter of faith, not fact. For this reason, then, Bock’s book fails in its mission. He tries to use “facts” to disprove other “facts,” neither of which may be true in reality. In any case it would be a good idea to read Brown’s book first so that you can have the background for what Professor Bock is trying to refute.

First of all, Im not one of the people who asked the questions Dr. Bock answers in this book. I read The Da Vinci Code for what it was: an entertaining whodunnit with a religious conspiracy twist, one of my favorite subgenres of thriller. And I am utterly amazed that some certain segment of the population took seriously the outlandish conspiracy theory on which Dan Brown based his novel. Read that again. NOVEL. N-O-V-E-L. Meaning, its fiction. F-I-C-T-I-O-N. Meaning, its not true. *takes a deep breath* Relax, avanta. *chants a mantra* Okay. Better now. However (she resumed in a calmer fashion), not too long ago I overheard several of my colleagues, women who I otherwise thought had a grain of sense, discussing the NOVEL and its basis with all seriousness. I mean, they truly believed the story contained a thinly disguised version of the truth. This shocked me. Does it make a difference that these women are for the most part either unchurched or followers of a non-Christian religion? Possibly. I dont know any Christian serious about his faith who takes the theories presented in The Da Vinci Code as anything other than sheer entertainment. I wanted to jump in their conversation and point out the fallacies; unfortunately, I did not have adequate information. I knew they were wrong but didnt have data to make my points. This book provides the data. Dr. Bock sets up each code and knocks it down again with a satisfactory thunk. He quotes Scripture and scholarly research; he provides historical and sociological background; he explains the Gnostic heresy; he discusses the Council of Nicea and what led to its stamp of approval on the Biblical Canon; and generally applies logic, reason, and critical thinking to each aspect of the so-called conspiracy, thereby debunking it in total. A short fast read, overflowing with information, and worth every minute of the readers time. If The Da Vinci Code raised questions in your mind, or if you want to answer someone elses questions, this is the book you need.

This book was very informative. If you go to this book looking for an easy answer to all the questions rought up in the Da Vinci Code, you will be let down. The book is riddled with quotes from early church fathers and ancient Gnostic gospels. I really enjoyed this but it contains a lot of info and can be boring if you are not too interested in the topic. This is the best book that talks of the Davinci Code!

Dr. Bocks book engages the early history of the church brought up in Dan Browns The Da Vinci Code in a clear and logical manner. It allows the reader to analyze the fundamental claims that Browns book makes about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and early Christianity from a scholarly and historical perspective. Dr. Bock lays the facts before the reader and guides them through the debates surrounding these subjects as the arly church was being formed. He has been able to break down the political and religious arguments in a way that the reader can easily follow. The facts contained in the pages of this criticism are not restricted to the The Bible and accepted Christian dogma, but also include a detailed investigation of the Secret Gospels and other extrabiblical material. This analysis is not the argument of only conservative biblical scholars, but also extends into the realm of liberal historical Jesus followers. It is an analysis that focuses on history and not interpretaton. The bottom line is after Dr. Bock is through with his investigation, the historical basis for The Da Vinci Code is debunked, and the rest of the story, including Da Vinci and his artwork, is a novel construct for an author to tell a good tale and nothing more.

The arguments the Author presents are so air-tight that he feels compelled to repeatedly tell the reader that the code is broken. Its intended audience is obviously the Sunday head-nodder with little interest of any serious discussion. The book gives you the feeling that the author felt a real need to hurrieldy puplish this work as if to address a serious threat to the faithful. Just imagine what may happen if Christians start reading the history of their own church for a change. Although the Author selectively references ancient documents, he mainly uses the N.T. to prove his arguments. It is as if you are listening to a Republican quoting Bush to prove a Republican point. My favorite was quoting Acts 1:15-26, listing the qualifications of an Apostle (male, be with Jesus, & a witness to the ressurection) to prove the Biblical limitaions of the role of women. The very same text can be used to prove that the men who gave us this text meant to limit the role of women for no other reason than being a woman. Twelve men casting lots to pick a replacement for a man that betrayed Jesus, stipulating that the replacement has to be a man. The very same point that the Da Vinci code tried to make.

mr. bock doesnt do any good with his book. he lacks order, research and ways to get to the reader to explain his points of view. every chapters is left open leaving you without options, hints or even interest. as a christian i was expecting to find the answers the books says it will give. i was left only with more questions and whats worse, doubts. the book reminded me of preachers who speak and sound hollow. i took the da vinci code, as it is supposed to be, a novel. i have heard of all its theories before, and thought interesting even though i dont think them true, but these book is so shallow and meaningless that it does wrong for the faith its supposed to be defending.

With over 40 million copies sold into 44 languages (as of May 2006), the Brown blockbuster has certainly made an impact. And the May 2006 film version simply adds to the books success. But the book is as controversial as it is popular. Indeed, while the book is a work of fiction, Brown claims it is based on fact. And given the importance of the subject matter - who Jesus was, what he taught, and how the church presented that - if his book is in fact riddled with errors and misinformation, then it deserves closer inspection. And that has happened. There have been a number of good critiques of The Da Vinci Code written by both Catholics and Protestants. Over a dozen book-length treatments come to mind. One of the earliest, and best, Protestant treatments is this book. Darrell Bock is a leading New Testament scholar and is well qualified to address this topic. He has written extensively elsewhere on some of the issues raised by Dan Brown. Thus this volume is a first-rate assessment of the many theological and historical errors found in Browns best-seller. Meaty chapters cover the key points of controversy: Did Jesus marry and have a child? Just who was Mary Magdalene? Are the Gnostic gospels on a par with the four canonical gospels? Did the early church suppress certain truths and writings about Jesus? Was the divinity of Jesus a later church construct? These and related questions are carefully answered by Bock. The nearly 200 pages of argument found here make a solid case that Brown has got it wrong big time. Moreover, Bock demonstrates that the central claims of Christianity remain trustwothy. Everyone who has read Brown should also read Bock. The falsehoods and foolishness of Brown are more than adequately dealt with by the intelligent and irenic pen of Bock. Five stars.