Vinny, you're welcome.  Anything that guy writes, he really does his research.

earlier, Vinny Samarco, wrote:
>Hi John
>    Thanks for this.
>Vinny
>----- Original Message ----- From: "John Schwery" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2006 5:43 AM
>Subject: Fwd: THE DA VINCI CODE MYTH
>
>
>>Some of you were wondering about the Da Vinci Code.  This is a long 
>>read, but if you want documentation and a read by somebody who does 
>>his research, read this article by David Cloud.
>>
>>Text of forwarded message follows:
>>
>>>----- Original Message ----- From: "FBIS News Service" <[log in to unmask]>
>>>
>>>THE DA VINCI CODE MYTH
>>>
>>>May 14, 2006 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service,
>>>P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143,
>>>[log in to unmask]; for instructions about subscribing and
>>>unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at
>>>the end of the article) -
>>>
>>>The Da Vinci Code, which is a bold attack upon the Christian faith,
>>>has taken the world by storm. The book, first published in March
>>>2003, has sold more than 40 million copies, and the Sony Pictures
>>>movie starring Tom Hanks, scheduled for release on May 19, 2006, is
>>>expected to be a blockbuster. The book has received rave reviews in
>>>hundreds of newspapers and journals. It is so popular that Da Vinci
>>>Code tours are now conducted to the various sites that are mentioned
>>>in the book, such as the Louvre Museum and St. Sulpice Church in
>>>Paris and Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland. I fly about 75,000 miles a year
>>>these days and on practically every flight I take, I see someone
>>>reading The Da Vinci Code.
>>>
>>>Woven integrally into the storyline of this fast-paced novel is a
>>>wild-eyed theory that Jesus was a mere man who married Mary Magdalene
>>>and had a child by her; she was not only his wife but the chief
>>>apostle and the recipient of the "truth" about goddess religion and
>>>the "sacred feminine." One of the main characters in the Da Vinci
>>>Code says: "Jesus was the original feminist. He intended for the
>>>future of His Church to be in the hands of Mary Magdalene" (p. 248).
>>>After Jesus' death Mary Magdalene and the child fled to Europe and
>>>married into a bloodline that still exists. Mary Magdalene and her
>>>bloodline are presented as the very "Holy Grail" of ancient folk lore
>>>(the quest for the Holy Grail first appeared in a 12th-century
>>>novel). Brown's novel alleges that the Roman Catholic Church invented
>>>the doctrine of Jesus Christ's deity in the fourth century,
>>>suppressed the "truth" about Mary Magdalene, and has covered up this
>>>truth throughout the centuries. The suppressed "truth" was maintained
>>>from generation to generation by a secret society known as the Priory
>>>of Sion that had some famous members, including Isaac Newton and
>>>Leonardo Da Vinci. These people passed along the "truth" by means of
>>>secret codes, the most famous of which is the alleged symbolism in Da
>>>Vinci's painting The Last Supper. According to Brown, the disciple
>>>sitting to the right of Jesus in this painting is not the apostle
>>>John but Mary Magdalene.
>>>
>>>Though the Da Vinci Code is a novel, it purports to be based upon
>>>historical facts. In an introductory note Brown writes that "all
>>>descriptions of documents and secret rituals are accurate." On an ABC
>>>News special Jesus, Mary, and Da Vinci (Nov. 3, 2003), Brown said
>>>that he believes the book's thesis. In an interview on Good Morning
>>>America that same day he said that if he were to write a nonfiction
>>>piece on these things he would change nothing about what he claimed
>>>in the novel (Darrell Bock, Breaking the Da Vinci Code, p. 3).
>>>
>>>Bible-believing Christians will not be deceived by The Da Vinci Code,
>>>but it has created confusion in the minds of many. A pastor's wife
>>>told me recently that a relative enthusiastically exclaimed to her
>>>after reading the book, "Now I know for a fact that the Bible isn't
>>>true." A survey taken in Canada in 2005 found that 32% of those who
>>>had read the Da Vinci Code believed its story line ("Canadian Readers
>>>Believe Da Vinci Code," The Ottawa Citizen, June 24, 2005).
>>>
>>>The Da Vinci Code is a unique opportunity to witness to people about
>>>the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A Zogby International poll that was taken
>>>in the first week of March 2006 found that after either reading or
>>>hearing about the Da Vinci Code, 44% of those surveyed said they were
>>>more likely to seek the truth by studying the Bible ("Most Americans
>>>Believe Bible over 'Da Vinci' Polls Shows," Baptist Press, March 8,
>>>2006).
>>>
>>>It is a good opportunity to explain to Da Vinci Code readers that
>>>while the Roman Catholic Church has taught many false things, it did
>>>not invent the New Testament account of Jesus Christ, and to
>>>challenge them to study the New Testament for themselves and to
>>>consider the claims of the Gospel.
>>>
>>>The following are some of the important questions that the Da Vinci
>>>Code raises:
>>>
>>>WAS JESUS MARRIED TO MARY MAGDALENE AND DID THEY HAVE CHILDREN?
>>>
>>>The idea that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had children is
>>>not only contrary to the Bible but is contrary even to the testimony
>>>of the gnostic gospels of the 2nd and 3rd centuries. There is not the
>>>slightest evidence of such a thing.
>>>
>>>First let's consider what the Bible says about Mary Magdalene. She is
>>>mentioned in nine passages, most of which are in reference to
>>>Christ's death and resurrection. She was healed of demon possession
>>>and was a part of the entourage of women that sometimes accompanied
>>>Jesus (Luke 8:1-3). She was present at the cross (Mat. 27:55-56; Mark
>>>15:40-41; John 19:25). She was at the tomb when Jesus was placed in
>>>it (Mat. 27:61). She returned to the tomb after Jesus' resurrection
>>>and was the first to see the resurrected Christ (Mat. 28:1; Mk.
>>>16:1-10; Lk. 24:10; Jn. 20:1-18). In the Bible Mary Magdalene is
>>>never mentioned as having any special relationship to Jesus other
>>>than as a disciple.
>>>
>>>Even theological modernists today admit that the four Gospels were
>>>written during the lifetime of the apostles. Paul was a former enemy
>>>of the Christian faith and after his conversion he wrote epistles to
>>>the young churches only two and three decades after the events
>>>described in the Gospels, when many of the eyewitnesses of the
>>>resurrection were still alive, and he supported their testimony with
>>>his own. For example, he wrote the following in the first epistle to
>>>Corinth:
>>>
>>>"Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached
>>>unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which
>>>also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you,
>>>unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of
>>>all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins
>>>according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose
>>>again the third day according to the scriptures: And that he was seen
>>>of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five
>>>hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this
>>>present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of
>>>James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me
>>>also, as of one born out of due time" (1 Cor. 15:1-8).
>>>
>>>Paul's epistle to Corinth was written in the middle of the first
>>>century, almost 300 years before Constantine and the Nicene Council.
>>>
>>>History tells us that the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
>>>John) were accepted as authentic right away by the churches. We have
>>>a partial list of New Testament books that were accepted as
>>>authoritative that dates to the second century and its lists the
>>>traditional four Gospels. From the second century we also have
>>>quotations from Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and Tatian, proving that the
>>>four Gospels were in existence and that most Christians accepted them
>>>as authoritative. Irenaeus wrote against the false teachers of that
>>>day and in his work Refutation of all Heresies he lists all four
>>>Gospels and warned that heretics were trying to pervert the doctrine
>>>of Jesus Christ.
>>>
>>>This is irrefutable historical evidence of the historicity of the
>>>four Gospels. The Da Vinci Code claims that it was not until the
>>>fourth century that Jesus was depicted as the divine, virgin born,
>>>resurrected Christ, but this is pure nonsense. This testimony dates
>>>to the very beginning of the churches in the first half of the first
>>>century.
>>>
>>>The historicity and authority of the four Gospels is also evidenced
>>>by the Old Testament, which was completed 400 years before Jesus was
>>>born. The Old Testament writers delivered amazing prophesies that
>>>described every aspect of Jesus' life long before He came into the
>>>world. His birthplace was named in Micah 5:2. His virgin birth was
>>>described in Isaiah 7:14. His sinless life, in Isaiah 53:9; His
>>>miracles, in Isaiah 35:5; His wonderful speech, in Isaiah 50:4; His
>>>rejection by the Jewish nation, in Isaiah 53:2; His crucifixion, in
>>>Psalm 22:16; His burial in a rich man's tomb, in Isaiah 53:9; and His
>>>resurrection on the third day, in Psalm 16.
>>>
>>>The historicity of the New Testament is unimpeachable. Its writers
>>>suffered and died for their eyewitness testimony that Jesus was the
>>>only Lord and Saviour and that He had risen from the dead, which
>>>would have been a ridiculous thing to do had it been a fable.
>>>
>>>Not only do the New Testament Gospels and Epistles refute the idea
>>>that Jesus was married, so do the gnostic gospels that Dan Brown
>>>refers to in his novel. These alleged gospels were written in the
>>>second to the fourth centuries and present a different gospel and a
>>>different Christ than the New Testament writings, but even these
>>>gnostic gospels do not depict Mary as the wife of Jesus. The very
>>>best evidence of such a thing is found in the Gospel of Philip, which
>>>dates to the third century, but it is flimsy to say the last. It says
>>>Jesus "loved her [Mary] more than the disciples [and used to] kiss
>>>her on her [the rest of this passage has not survived]." Even if we
>>>were to accept the authority of this gnostic gospel (and we do not)
>>>it says nothing about Jesus being married to Mary Magdalene and
>>>bearing children by her. Authorities on gnostic gospels believe the
>>>passage is referring to a spiritual relationship and not a physical
>>>one. Even the liberal Harvard Professor Karen King does not believe
>>>it refers to a physical relationship. Another gnostic gospel, the
>>>Gospel of Mary Magdala, which dates to the second century, presents
>>>Mary Magdalene as the recipient of divine revelation but it says
>>>nothing about her being the wife of Jesus.
>>>
>>>There simply is no trace of evidence from the early centuries for
>>>this wild-eyed theory. It is a figment of someone's overactive,
>>>demon-inspired imagination.
>>>
>>>WAS JESUS FIRST DECLARED DIVINITY IN THE 4TH CENTURY IN THE DAYS OF
>>>CONSTANTINE?
>>>
>>>According to the Da Vinci Code, Jesus was not proclaimed as Deity
>>>until the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., three hundred years after He
>>>lived, but this theory is as ridiculous and non-historic as the one
>>>that says Jesus was married.
>>>
>>>The Council of Nicea was called by the Emperor Constantine to settle
>>>a doctrinal controversy that was raging. A church leader named Arius
>>>from Alexandria, Egypt, was teaching that Jesus was not God, and this
>>>doctrine had spread to many churches. Egypt was a hotbed of
>>>theological heresies and the home of most of the gnostic gospels. The
>>>Council voted to reject Arius' doctrine. The important point to
>>>understand about this Council for our purposes is that it did not
>>>invent doctrine; it merely affirmed the doctrine that had been held
>>>as orthodox by most churches since Pentecost. Constantine, by the
>>>way, was not a regenerate Christian; he worshipped the sun and was
>>>only a Christian nominally.
>>>
>>>The fact is that Jesus was worshipped as God by Christians from the
>>>very beginning. The four Gospels, which were written in the first
>>>century, present Him as God. The Gospel of John, for example,
>>>presents Him as the eternal Word. "In the beginning was the Word, and
>>>the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). The Pauline
>>>Epistles, written in the middle of the first century, also present
>>>Jesus as God. For example, in Philippians 2:6 Paul writes of Jesus,
>>>"Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal
>>>with God."
>>>
>>>WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER SO-CALLED GOSPELS?
>>>
>>>According to the Da Vinci Code, the Gospels in our Bibles were only
>>>four among 80 competing ones that circulated among the Christians and
>>>that were considered for inclusion in the New Testament and they were
>>>not proclaimed divinely inspired and canonized until the fourth
>>>century in the days of Constantine (Da Vinci Code, p. 231).
>>>
>>>In fact, as we have already seen, the four Gospels were considered
>>>authentic and apostolic from the very beginning of the churches. We
>>>have second century quotations from church leaders who defended the
>>>four Gospels against heretical writings. Irenaeus wrote, "It is not
>>>possible that the Gospels can be either more or fewer in number than
>>>they are" (Against Heresies, 3:11.8). He defended the four Gospels
>>>because they were written either by the apostles (Matthew and John)
>>>or by men directly associated with the apostles (Mark and Luke).
>>>
>>>As for the other "gospels," there were not many of them and they were
>>>never given serious consideration for inclusion in the canon of the
>>>New Testament Scripture. The Nag Hammadi Library, consisting of 45
>>>early gnostic writings discovered in the Egyptian desert in 1945 and
>>>published in English in 1977, contains only five works known as
>>>gospels: the gospel of Truth, the gospel of Thomas, the gospel
>>>according to Philip, the gospel of the Egyptians, and the gospel of
>>>Mary Magdalene. We also know about the gospel of Nicodemus, the
>>>gospel of Peter, and the gospel of Judas, which was recently
>>>translated and published.
>>>
>>>The reason that these alleged gospels were rejected by the early
>>>Christians was that they were not associated with the Lord's apostles
>>>and they taught doctrine that was contrary to the teaching of the
>>>apostles and that was even downright weird. The Gospel of Thomas
>>>contains an account of alleged miracles performed by Jesus when he
>>>was a child and depicts him as petulant and disobedient, so much so
>>>that Mary and Joseph's neighbors beg them to take him away. According
>>>to one gnostic gospel the child Jesus even kills a playmate and then
>>>raises him from the dead to avoid punishment. The Gospel of Judas
>>>presents Judas as the head disciple who received special revelation
>>>and who betrayed Jesus only because Jesus asked him to do so.
>>>According to Irenaeus, the Gospel of Judas was produced by the
>>>Egyptian Cainite Gnostics who claimed that Cain, Esau, the Sodomites,
>>>Korah, Judas, and other villains of biblical history were actually
>>>the enlightened heroes who valiantly kept the truth in a dark world.
>>>According to this cult, a god named Hystera created the world and
>>>another deity called "Sophia" allegedly assisted the aforementioned
>>>people (Refutation of All Heresies, book I, chapter 31,
>>>http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-01/anf01-58.htm#P6155_1380364).
>>>
>>>The Gnostics denied the God of the Old Testament, replacing Him in
>>>some cases with two gods: the Pleroma, who is an eternal, spiritual
>>>god and has no connection with the material world, and the Demiurge,
>>>who is an evil god that created the physical universe. According to
>>>the Gnostics, the objective of salvation was to understand the
>>>mystery about the universe and to be freed from the prison of
>>>materiality. This required coming to the secret gnosis or knowledge,
>>>and only some special members of the human race could ever expect to
>>>arrive at this knowledge.
>>>
>>>The Gnostic gospels denied the Jesus' of the New Testament in a
>>>variety of ways. Some divided the eternal Christ from the man Jesus.
>>>When the man Jesus died on the cross the Christ spirit was separated
>>>from him and was "glad and laughing above the cross" (Apocalypse of
>>>Peter, 81:4-24; Second Treatise of Great Seth, 56:6-19). He was
>>>allegedly laughing at the world's ignorance. Other Gnostics said
>>>Jesus was a phantom or apparition. The Acts of John, for example,
>>>claimed that Jesus did not leave footprints.
>>>
>>>It was not any sort of conspiracy that caused the Gnostic gospels to
>>>be rejected by the vast majority of Christians for the past 2,000
>>>years. It was the simple fact that when we leave the four Gospels and
>>>enter the world of Gnosticism, we enter a world of make believe and
>>>nonsense. The Gnostic gospels were mostly created in Egypt, where no
>>>apostles ministered and where no part of the New Testament was
>>>written. (For more about the Gnostic writings and the canonization of
>>>Scripture see our book Faith vs. the Modern Versions, available from
>>>Way of Life Literature.)
>>>
>>>COULD THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH SUPPRESS THE TRUTH FOR 2,000 YEARS?
>>>
>>>According to the Da Vinci Code, the Roman Catholic Church invented
>>>the doctrine that Jesus is God and has foisted this doctrine upon the
>>>world throughout church history. Is this possible?
>>>
>>>The Roman Catholic Church was most assuredly a powerful institution
>>>during much of church history, and it did try to control people's
>>>thinking and foist its dogmas upon all men; but there were always
>>>large numbers of churches and individuals that did not bow to its
>>>authority. We could mention the Albigenses, the Waldenses, the
>>>Lollards, and the Anabaptists, for example. These were groups of
>>>Christians living in Europe throughout the Dark Ages who opposed the
>>>Roman Catholic Church and its doctrine. Multitudes of these
>>>Christians were put to death by Rome; entire towns were destroyed in
>>>an attempt to destroy them; but Rome was never able to silence them
>>>entirely. It is ridiculous to believe that these churches, which
>>>called Rome the Harlot of Revelation 17 and the Pope the Antichrist,
>>>would accept any of Rome's lies even if it were true that Rome were
>>>trying to hide the truth about Christ. In contrast to the Priory of
>>>Sion and the Knights Templars of the Da Vinci Code, who kept their
>>>alleged secrets alive through secret codes, the separatist Christians
>>>published and distributed their writings and New Testament
>>>translations, plainly stating their doctrine in the language of the
>>>common man.
>>>
>>>In the 16th century the Protestant Reformation broke out in all of
>>>its fury and Rome lost even more of its ability to control the
>>>people's thinking. By the 17th century, Rome had lost much of its
>>>former empire. Entire nations had thrown off the yoke, including
>>>Germany and England, and America was on its way to becoming a bastion
>>>of free thinking and complete religious liberty.
>>>
>>>Rome was never able to entirely dominate the world's thinking, but
>>>none of the separatist Christians (and non-Christians) who resisted
>>>Rome from the 4th to the 17th centuries held anything like the views
>>>promoted in the Da Vinci Code. (For more about the separatist
>>>Christians and the battle for truth during the Dark Ages see the
>>>Advanced Bible Studies Series A History of the Churches from a
>>>Baptist Perspective, available from Way of Life Literature.)
>>>
>>>WHAT ABOUT DA VINCI'S PAINTING?
>>>
>>>According to the Da Vinci Code, Leonardo Da Vinci's famous painting
>>>The Last Supper contains a secret code promoting the supremacy of
>>>Mary Magdalene. The novel gives two "evidences" for this view: First,
>>>there is a V shape between Jesus and the figure to His right, and
>>>this, we are told, is not merely because Da Vinci depicted Jesus and
>>>the figure to His right leaning away from each other and thus
>>>creating a natural and innocuous V shape but is a symbol for the
>>>feminine. Second, the figure to Jesus' right has a feminine
>>>appearance and must therefore be Mary and not John.
>>>
>>>In fact, no reputable art historian believes that these are secret
>>>symbols or that Mary Magdalene is depicted in this painting.
>>>
>>>Da Vinci and other homosexual artists of that day, including
>>>Michelangelo, often painted feminine men. Da Vinci's painting of John
>>>the Baptist, for example, depicts a very feminine man with curly hair
>>>befitting a woman and a strange sensual expression. It is commonly
>>>believed that Da Vinci was a homosexual. He lived with a younger male
>>>artist and surrounded himself with handsome young male models. His
>>>biographer, Michael White, wrote: "He was a homosexual vegetarian
>>>born out of wedlock who received very little formal education and was
>>>excluded by birthright from almost all professions. ... It is
>>>possible that up to this time [the time of his arrest] he had felt no
>>>real guilt about his homosexuality, that it had either been natural
>>>to him, or else he accepted it as part of his self-image; after all,
>>>there were certainly plenty of role models [in other Florentine
>>>painters] for him" (The First Scientist, 2000, pp. 7, 72).
>>>
>>>In fact, the Jesus depicted in Da Vinci's Last Supper is also 
>>>feminine looking.
>>>
>>>WHAT ABOUT THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR?
>>>
>>>According to the Da Vinci Code, the Knights Templar of the Dark Ages
>>>was an organization that attempted to maintain the secret of Mary
>>>Magdalene, but there is not a hint of evidence to support this. The
>>>Knights Templar was a monastic order founded in 12th century to
>>>protect Roman Catholic pilgrims on crusades to the Holy Land. The
>>>Order was accused of heresy and dissolved in 1311, but the charges
>>>were dropped in 1314 after no evidence of heresy was found. There is
>>>not a shred of evidence to connect the Knights Templar to the Holy
>>>Grail. Their wealth came from rich people they helped. They "invented
>>>international banking," establishing an ingenious system whereby
>>>someone could deposit money in one place and receive it another. King
>>>Philip destroyed the Knights Templar for the simple reason that he
>>>wanted their wealth.
>>>
>>>MANY OTHER MYTHS IN THE DA VINCI CODE
>>>
>>>The Discovery Channel special "The Real Da Vinci Code," August 13,
>>>2005, exposed the error of all of the alleged facts upon which the
>>>novel's theories are based. Tony Robinson, who hosted the special,
>>>concludes: "The Da Vinci Code casts a spell that causes people to
>>>fail to discern between fact and fiction."
>>>
>>>Following are some of the facts brought out in this documentary:
>>>
>>>The idea that the Holy Grail is a secret that Jesus was married and
>>>left a bloodline first appeared in Holy Blood and the Holy Grail by
>>>Michael Baigent, Henry Lincoln, Richard Leigh (1982).
>>>
>>>Holy Blood and Holy Grail claims that the Priory of Sion was an
>>>organization that was founded in 1099 and that created the Knights
>>>Templar to maintain the secret Mary doctrine. Historians, though,
>>>have proven that this is a hoax and that the documents upon which it
>>>was based, such as a list of Grand Masters that includes the name of
>>>Leonardo Da Vinci, are forgeries. The Priory of Sion was actually a
>>>minor political organization set up in France in 1956 by a man named
>>>Plantard, who, in turn, denounced Holy Blood and Holy Grail's claim
>>>that he was a descendant of Jesus.
>>>
>>>The Institute of Theological Research at King's College is not an
>>>institute as such but a sort of theological "think tank" and a member
>>>of the institute said, "We don't have a database of any kind
>>>whatsoever."
>>>
>>>There is no evidence from the history of the Cathars that they held
>>>any sort of Da Vinci Code doctrine.
>>>
>>>The Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland appears in the Da Vinci Code as a
>>>place where the Knights Templar hid their secrets. Built by William
>>>Sinclair in 1440, there is no evidence that it has ever been
>>>associated with the Da Vinci Code myth. Historian Robert Cooper
>>>testified, "As far as I am aware there is no connection between the
>>>Knights Templar and Rosslyn Chapel." The embroidery there that
>>>supposedly depicts Solomon's Temple actually depicts the Tabernacle
>>>in the wilderness, as any Bible student will recognize, and since it
>>>is based on the coat of arms depicted on the same embroidery it
>>>cannot be older than the 17th century and thus does not date from the
>>>time that the chapel was built and the time when the alleged secrets
>>>were hidden in it.
>>>
>>>The Da Vinci Code's theory that Mary Magdalene went to France with
>>>her child that was fathered by Jesus has no historic basis
>>>whatsoever. Margaret Starbird, who authored The Woman with the
>>>Alabaster Jar: Mary Magdalene and the Holy Grail, points to a legend
>>>in southern France that is re-enacted each year of a boat arriving
>>>with women and a girl. Starbird claims that the boat contained Mary
>>>Magdalene and her daughter by Jesus named Sarah, but in fact the
>>>locals claim that Sarah was the Egyptian servant of three Marys, Mary
>>>Magdalene, Mary Salome and Mary Jacobi, and not Mary's child.
>>>
>>>One of the authors of Holy Blood and the Holy Grail was asked by on
>>>the Discovery Channel documentary if he and his fellow authors had
>>>found any evidence that Jesus had a child. He replied, "None
>>>whatsoever. It was purely a hypothesis on our part."
>>>
>>>The things described in the Da Vinci Code in relation to St. Sulpice
>>>Church in Paris are so grossly inaccurate that the church distributes
>>>a paper listing them. For example, the candlesticks mentioned in the
>>>novel weigh about 200 pounds each and could not have been used as a
>>>weapon for one man to kill another.
>>>
>>>The same is true for the things mentioned in the Da Vinci Code in
>>>reference to Westminster Abbey in London. The abbey, one of London's
>>>top tourist attractions, has issued tour guides with information
>>>sheets to correct the factual errors that are stated in the novel.
>>>
>>>WHAT IF THE DA VINCI CODE IS TRUE?
>>>
>>>If the premise of this novel is true the Bible is a lie and the four
>>>Gospels are a myth; Jesus was not the virgin-born Son of God; He did
>>>not rise from the dead and did not ascend back to heaven.
>>>
>>>If the premise of this novel is true there is no Gospel and no hope.
>>>It would mean that Jesus Christ did not die and shed his blood on the
>>>cross for man's sin and did not rise again for the justification of
>>>those who believe.
>>>
>>>The reader has a clear choice between the Gospel of Jesus Christ as
>>>it is found in the New Testament and the teaching of the Da Vinci
>>>Code. If the Da Vinci Code is true, there is no gospel and no need of
>>>a gospel and it really doesn't matter what one believes because there
>>>is no lost condition and no Saviour. The Jesus of the Da Vinci Code
>>>was a mere man who taught a message of peace and unity and feminism
>>>and then died.
>>>
>>>On the other hand, if the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true, those who
>>>die without faith in Christ spend eternity in Hell. This was the
>>>testimony of the apostle John who sat at Jesus' right hand at the
>>>Last Supper:
>>>
>>>"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and
>>>this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that
>>>hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written
>>>unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know
>>>that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the
>>>Son of God" (1 John 5:11-13).
>>>
>>>I thank God that The Da Vinci Code is fiction and that I can testify
>>>with the apostle Paul:
>>>
>>>"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am
>>>not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that
>>>he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that
>>>day" (2 Timothy 1:12).
>>>
>>>"But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom
>>>the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe
>>>not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the
>>>image of God, should shine unto them" (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).
>>End of forwarded message text:
>>
>>John
>>
>
>

John