Cardinal: 'The Da Vinci Code' Proof Of 'Anti-Catholic' Prejudice

[AC/DC]

VATICAN CITY -- If you aren't among the millions who have already read the popular book "The Da Vinci Code," an Italian cardinal hopes you'll neither buy it nor read it.

 

[AMP]

"Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, of Genoa, who previously was a high-ranking official of the church's office on doctrinal orthodoxy..."

Well, there is the problem right there. Doctrine versus research. Gotta take issue with a religion (even if it is mine) that invented purgatory and then is going to tell me what to read becasue it might be incorrect.

 

[Tonio]

Why isn't the cardinal attacking the scholarly research that Dan Brown's characters cite in the novel? I've almost finished "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," and although the authors take a while to get to their point, they make a good case.

I think it's wrong for Bertone and other church leaders to equate criticism of the Catholic Church with prejudice against Catholics. No institution should be above criticism. Bertone sounds like Al Sharpton.

A Catholic friend once told me that when Masons ascend to the highest degrees, they're told, "By the way, we hate Catholics." If the research and hypotheses in "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" are correct, what my friend said may simply be the Catholic party line.

 

[Tonio]

Well, there is the problem right there. Doctrine versus research. Gotta take issue with a religion (even if it is mine) that invented purgatory and then is going to tell me what to read becasue it might be incorrect.

Excellent point. Me, I'm anti-doctrine and anti-orthodoxy, in the sense that I don't like institutions and organizations trying to imposing limits on what people believe.

 

[Railroad]

Here's another good question for your great minds to gnaw on: Why is the Catholic church so disturbed about this work of fiction, but not about any of the many books about Satan and devils and upside-down crosses and the like? What separates this particular story from all the rest?

 

[AMP]

Why isn't the cardinal attacking the scholarly research that Dan Brown's characters cite in the novel? I've almost finished "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," and although the authors take a while to get to their point, they make a good case.

I think it's wrong for Bertone and other church leaders to equate criticism of the Catholic Church with prejudice against Catholics. No institution should be above criticism. Bertone sounds like Al Sharpton.

A Catholic friend once told me that when Masons ascend to the highest degrees, they're told, "By the way, we hate Catholics." If the research and hypotheses in "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" are correct, what my friend said may simply be the Catholic party line.

There is too much scholarly research to refute or even attack anymore, much as the Catholic Church might want to. And I think you have a valid point as well - criticism does not equate prejudice.

I just finished the Second Messiah, it was interesting. Am going for Messianic Legacy as a follow up. For a nice read, try Rosslyn - Gardian of the Secrets of the Holy Grail. Been on a Templar/Mason kick for the last 2 years, read whtever I could get my hands on.

I know i said this in another thread, but did you get the anagram of Lee Teabing in DaVinci COde = Leigh & Baigent, authors of Holy Blood Holy Grail?

 

[renegadeslave]

Here's another good question for your great minds to gnaw on: Why is the Catholic church so disturbed about this work of fiction, but not about any of the many books about Satan and devils and upside-down crosses and the like? What separates this particular story from all the rest?

Mebbe because it's true?

I heard an interveiw with Dan Brown recently. Maybe it was in response to the Vatican's actions. Anyway, he said that he was expecting to disprove the Mary Magdeline theory as he was researching the book, but instead, he found more evidence of it.

 

[AMP]

Here's another good question for your great minds to gnaw on: Why is the Catholic church so disturbed about this work of fiction, but not about any of the many books about Satan and devils and upside-down crosses and the like? What separates this particular story from all the rest?

Cause it's too close to the truth? Other than the book being mass market enough to make Catholics raise questions, they seem to be paranoid with the actual substance of it. If it was just blasphemy they were concerned about I think the reaction would be different. Pretty much, if Jesus was married and had issue, they'd not have much of a religion...

Yeah, DaVinci Code is fiction, but when you go digging around out there (and Catholics are not even taught to dig around in their Bible, much less anti-Catholic-dogma-related-research, although you can dig around in the Catechism of the Catholic Church second edition as much as you want) as Brown did, put pieces together, you start to really think.

But hey, things ebb and flow. Just think, we didn't celebrate the assumption of Mary until the 1950's. And it used to be a sin to miss mass on Ash Wednesday; it's not now. And worship of Mary as ever-virgin exists (and is proclaimed in the Creed), even though we know Jesus had brothers.

Then again, this cardinal may just be a tad leftwing. Perhaps he is a secret member of Opus Dei.

 

[Lenny]

Here's another good question for your great minds to gnaw on: Why is the Catholic church so disturbed about this work of fiction, but not about any of the many books about Satan and devils and upside-down crosses and the like? What separates this particular story from all the rest?

. . .because this specific act of fiction implies that the early Catholic authorities conspired to negate the Mary Magdelene portion if its history. If only the Church had let this slide, the book would have sliden into obscurity on its own.

If you read all of Dan Brown's works, they're all based on urban-myth conspiracies and presented in a compelling way. Only two deal with the Catholic Church. The most recent makes NASA the villin.

 

[willie]

This book has supposedly been on the best seller list for two years. How come it's been causing such a stink just now? It was a great read.

 

[Tonio]

This book has supposedly been on the best seller list for two years. How come it's been causing such a stink just now? It was a great read.

That was my question as well.

 

[Lenny]

That was my question as well.

This book gets a complaint form one group or another every six to seven months which bumps it back up the bestseller list. This is the first time someone from the Vatican has been quoted as objecting.

 

[vraiblonde]

So should I put this book on my list? Someone got me The Bible Code and it sucked.


What's the book about?

 

[AMP]

So should I put this book on my list? Someone got me The Bible Code and it sucked.
What's the book about?

http://forums.somd.com/showthread.php?t=36643
Might take some wading thru to the second page of posts. Movie coming soon. Also see www.danbrown.com.

I thought the book was very good, although more than a little contrived because of all the information Brown has to get across. Much better than ANgels and Demons, and Digital Fortress, his others. MUCH much better than the Bible Code, and much different. Get it, perhaps splurge for the edition with the full color pics of the different masterpieces, or borrow a copy. It is an intruiging read.

 

[Railroad]

http://forums.somd.com/showthread.php?t=36643
Might take some wading thru to the second page of posts. Movie coming soon. Also see www.danbrown.com.

I thought the book was very good, although more than a little contrived because of all the information Brown has to get across. Much better than ANgels and Demons, and Digital Fortress, his others. MUCH much better than the Bible Code, and much different. Get it, perhaps splurge for the edition with the full color pics of the different masterpieces, or borrow a copy. It is an intruiging read.

I concur - although I plan to read Angels and Demons soon. The DaVinci Code is an oustanding work of fiction that seems quite realistic.

 

[Lenny]

I concur - although I plan to read Angels and Demons soon. The DaVinci Code is an oustanding work of fiction that seems quite realistic.

I downloaded both of them to listen to in the car. All it cost was the expenses to burn them to CD. Great for a cross-country trip!

 

[Railroad]

Good idea!

 

[Lenny]

Good idea!

And Brown gets no royalties for the effort (if you're one who believes his book is a hatchet job).

 

[Christy]

So should I put this book on my list?

It's good, but I prefer his other book "Angels and Demons".

 

[Tonio]

Pretty much, if Jesus was married and had issue, they'd not have much of a religion...

I don't agree. Why should Jesus' message have more (or even less) validity if he was celibate?

The last section of "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" has some great research on the accuracy of the Gospels. The authors use the available evidence to make some educated suggestions about what really happened back then. Here's one example...

The book suggests that the Pharisees and Sadducees had nothing to do with Jesus being crucified, that it was all the doings of Pilate and the Romans. As the theory goes, the events leading up to the Crucifixion were rewritten so as not offend the growing community of Roman Christians. If Jesus was a threat to the Jewish elders, they would have simply had him punished and stoned themselves and not bothered the Roman authorities. Palestine was very resistant to Roman rule in the 1st Century. Jesus represented a threat to the Romans because he had a legitimate claim to being "King of the Jews" and was most likely working to restore Jewish self-rule.