Christians and the "Code"

A friend of mine gave me a copy of The Da Vinci Code. So, in light of all the (now bad) press for the movie and the fact that it's the best selling work of fiction ever (and no, Sir Ian McKellen, I'm not referring to the Bible), I read it, hoping to understand why it's such a phenomenon and what all the fuss is about. And by the way, I took this picture last year completely unaware that just a few yards in front of me lay buried the Holy Grail. What was I thinking...had I simply realized the great pyramid in front of me contained 666 pieces of glass and that Mitterand was in a secret society that protected, well, secrets, and that the curator of the Louvre was really good at anagrams. . .

But back to real reality. Having read it, I very much understand at one level why it would cause a fuss. I still, though, don't understand why it's the hit that it is. Sure, it's page-turning suspensful, but so are a lot of other airport books. There's hardly any character development, no psychological intrigue, and the plot is too predictable. Dan Brown occasionally bores the reader by needlessly explaining tid bits like the Fibinocci sequence. It's as though he's assuming the reader lacks a certain modicum of intelligence (and given the 40 plus million who've bought the book, maybe he's on to something). I have no interest or intention of ever paying to see the movie.

As to the fuss, I understand it. Of course it's a work of fiction. But in the fictional reality of this novel, Christ was but a man who, although lived a profoundly moral life, was nevertheless not divine. He died and to this day remains dead. Furthermore, the Bible itself is spoken of as nothing more than a collection of false tales and myths hand picked by "the pagan Roman emperor Constantine the Great."

Chills should run through any Christian when the divinty of Chirst or the authority of the Bible is questioned or denied--regardless of the genre or medium. So, yeah, I understand the fuss. To counter by saying that it's just a work of fiction, that Christians should be strong enough in their faith so as not to be upset by a novel completely misses the point. The issue isn't so much the impact the book has on the life or faith of a believer in Christ. What's so important is the influence the book may have (recall again it's massive worldwide appeal) on those who don't associate themselve with Christianity or those who nominally call themselves Christian but for all practical purposes are completely secular (think Europe). For these people, such an appealing work of modern culture is in a prime position to influence their thoughts on Christianity.

I write all this to say this: I believe that the Christian's response to this book and movie should not be shrill or bombastic. Nor should the Christian be unconcerned about the popularity of the book or the book's anti-Christian premise. To state it in the positive, a Christian must be prepared to declare the truth about the gospel of Christ and the real hope that is Christianity. This must be done, though, with humility and respect. In other words, I Peter 3:15. That's my hope anyway--that all the hullabaloo surrounding The Da Vinci Code will prompt the Church to shore up on apologetics and to pursue all the open doors of dialogue this cultural sensation will produce. And, Lord willing, the church will be larger and stronger for it.