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

Bock has written a very fair and balanced treatment of Dan Browns The DaVinci Code. He does not exhibit any anger at all toward Browns book or Brown himself. Bock simply seeks to explain the questionable (at best) history behind The Da Vinci code and make readers of the book understand that it is wonderful fiction and should be appreciated as such (a direct quote from Bocks book), but thats all it is, FICTION. Bock quotes from several first and second century primary sources, most outside of the books that make up the current Bible, to support his contention that there is very little good history to support Browns claims in his book. In contrast to many reviewers who have dismissed this book as a hatchet job on Brown with a preconcieved idea to dismiss his claims, Bock has no problem with affirming in part a couple of Browns claims, such as the role of women in the early Church. This is the mark of a fair and balanced historical treatment. Bock fully explains that many of the facts presented as contained in actual historical documents in The DaVinci Code, including some of the gnostic gospels, simply do not support the ideas contained in Browns book. Basically, even his own sources dont even support his arguments. Therefore, many of those arguments, such as the contention that Mary Magdelines reputation was denegrated as prostitute in order to suppress her real importance to Jesus. The real historical fact is that the ONLY reference to Mary Magdeline as a prostitute was made by a Pope in the fourth century, and this is most likely due to a misreading of the first Bible passages where Mary appears. Bock explains that that passage actually speaks of another Mary as a possible prostitute but that passage introduces Mary Magdeline as a distinct seperate person from the Mary who annointed Jesus feet and was most likely a former prostitute. Mary Magdeline, most likely followed Jesus after he exercised demons from her in one of his many miracles. Mary was a disciple just as the other 12 were disciples. She also served as a disciple to the disciples in telling the story of the resurrected Jesus. No more, no less. Bock also puts the contention that Jesus as a holy Jew couldnt have been single in historical context. In fact, many strict holy Jews in the first century were single, based upon their reading of Gods instructions to them in the Bible. Bock wonderfully addresses the issue of Jesus divinity and conclusively proves, again using first century sources, some of them outside the Bible, that Jesus was definitely thought of as devine several hundred years before Nicia took place. There was no vote on Jesus divinity as Browns characters contend because that was already a well accepted fact among Christians from the first century forward. Bock does not specifically address DaVincis painting because there is no need to. Once Browns other codes are broken, which Bock does with historical precision and impeccable sources, there is no need to address DaVincis possible role in a secret society. Once the other more important codes are broken, its readily apparent that without the foundation of the book, the details of DaVincis alleged membership in a secret society (which was in fact founded in the 1960s by a French con-man, it is not an ancient society at all) simply arent worth addressing because its apparent by Bocks main argument against the other codes that these details on the face of them have no historical basis. After reading or listening to Bocks very wonderfully sourced treatment of Browns history no one can go away still convinced in The DaVinci Codes history only that it is a wonderfully written novel by a wonderfully creative author, unless they specifically choose to remain blind to well researched historical facts.

This is yet another attempt to cash in on Dan Browns brilliant thriller The Da Vinci Code. It is as dull and uninteresting a book as you will find this year. Bocks book is a bust. It may appeal to the PH.D. crowd, but if you are seeking a book that enhances the information in The Da Vinci Code, this one is a pass. Save your money unless you have trouble sleeping at night.

As a conservative evangelical Christian, I was eager to read a scholarly refutation of The Da Vinci Code. Regretfully, this book was a dreadful disappointment. It was so poorly written and painfully simplistic. The contents were terribly disorganized and lacked any coherent structure. It is obvious that the publisher sought to capitalize on the success of the The Da Vinci Code by publishing this waste of paper. Readers, beware! Dont be fooled by the enticing description on the books cover! This book is a waste of ones time and money. I wish I could get my money back!

Anyone who has read Dan Browns novel knows that he is presenting more than just well written fiction. In fact, I believe that The Da Vinci Code may be one of the biggest attacks on modern Christianity ever. But its also one of the weakest. Dan Browns arguments are absurd beyond belief. But because he has sold over 40 million copies, evangelical Christians and even some liberal scholars (i.e. Bart Ehrman) have felt compelled to refute Dan Browns erroneous claims. When I began to look into Dan Browns claims, I went to the nearest Christian bookstore to find scholarly material that refuted his novel. I was shocked to find literally 10 books refuting The Da Vinci Code. Which was I to choose? I had already read Hanegraaffs work and was somewhat disappointed at the lack of depth presented. And some of the other authors didnt seem to have the right credentials to answer Browns claims. It was then that stumbled across Darrell Bocks masterful work, Breaking the Da Vinci Code. He had impeccable credentials as well a lot of experience in writing on these issues. First, Ill start with the good. I enjoyed each and every chapter by Dr. Bock. My favorite chapter dealt with the Gnostic Gospels. I was surprised to find that most of Bocks arguments were historical rather than theological. This was a good thing as someone reading Bocks book might suspect a bias on his part. Not so with this work. Bock examined the Gnostic works in great detail, showing how little they had to do with historic Christianity. Now with the bad. I didnt think that Bock dealt with the truly important issues. While he thoroughly refuted Browns claims on Jesus marriage, the conspiracy at the council of Nicaea, and the canon of Scripture, I dont feel that Bock refuted Brown as well as he could have. What are the important issues? 1. Is the Bible corrupt? 2. Did Christians believe in the deity of Christ before Constantine? While Bock touched on these subjects, he should have written entire chapters dealing with textual critical issues and things of that nature. Perhaps Bock wanted to focus on the main topics of the Da Vinci Code? I do not know. But if that if that is your primary concern; whether or not Jesus was married, then Bocks work is the perfect choice. But if your primary concern is Biblical inerrancy and things of that sort, then look elsewhere. Overall, I enjoyed the historical nature of Breaking the Da Vinci Code and look forward to reading more of his books in the future.

I just saw Darrell Bock this week as he shared some of this information in a radio broadcast regarding The Da Vinci Code. A rare blend of grace and scholarly wit, Darrell precisely targets the key Christian information conflicting in the novel. This book will be especially useful for those seeking quotes from the ancient sources that prove the truthfulness behind church history and Christianity. The books only weakness is that its actual dialogue with the text of The Da Vinci Code is limited. Like some of the other Christian-related Da Vinci Code titles, he spends the vast majority of his time demonstrating the weaknesses of the controversial topics rather than picking the specific points of the novel that reveal the controversies. In the end, Ive found it one of the better reads in this area. Having researched this topic heavily (see my The Da Vinci Code Controversy book), I can definitely recommend this as an added tool in defending Christianity in response to Da Vinci Code issues.

This book thoroughly addresses the claims about Jesus made in The Da Vinci Code. The buzz on the street is that the Da Vinci Code is based on texts found in Egypt half a century ago. But thats not true. Thats not true at all. As Darrell Bock explains, these texts (the new gospels a.k.a. gnostic gospels) dont even hint that Jesus and Mary Magdalena had a romantic relationship. They dont even hint that Jesus escaped crucifixion. Thats all made up. The author also addresses the claims of a cover up at Nicea by exposing actual historical documents and records. Again, the Da Vinci Code is an interesting, exciting novel. Thats where it ends. The author also addresses the content of these new gospels or gnostic gospels. Some say that the discovery of these new texts call for a re-evaluation of the Christian religion itself and that these new texts can perhaps tell us more about Jesus. Darrell Bock looks at some of the doctrine found in these new texts, and he eloquently shows how these new texts are NOT compatible with the Christianity of the New Testament. These new texts describe a completely different Jesus and have a completely different description of creation, the fall of humankind and salvation. You either believe these new texts or you believe the New Testament. You cant believe both. Theyre not compatible. Finally, the book is easy to read. It is not saturated with technical terms and deep theology that can only be understood by seminary graduates. This book is written for the casual reader.

All one need do is read the blurbs at the beginning of the book to realize that this book isnt so much about refuting anything presented in The Da Vinci Code so much as is its about doing damage control for what they perceive to be an attack upon the validity of their faith. One cannot refute the accuracy, or lack thereof, of any historical reference by summing it all up with faith, as I feel this book does by way of the last chapter. The mere mentioning of the word faith in a book claiming to deal with historical accuracies, quite frankly, removes all threads of credibility.

Good read at great price

In spite of the impression one might get from popular discussions, shooting holes in the scholarship behind The Da Vinci Code is not a difficult task. The target is too big. Bocks book is not my favorite, but is near the top of the books I have read on this subject. THE BOOKS STRONG POINTS Bock stays on target. He actually addresses questions that are being asked and doesnt stray as far as others. Bock is from Dallas Theological Seminary. His foreword was written by Francis J. Moloney from The Catholic University of America (not exactly bunk mates in the dormitory of theology). This shows an attempt to speak from a broad perspective. Although he doesnt exactly pull off the attempt as well as he could. The book is easy to read. THE BOOKS WEAK POINT It isnt very exciting. After reading the exciting The Da Vinci Code this is a little like sitting down for a lecture. A BETTER BOOK I think this is probably the best first book one can read on the subject. IF one is intrigued enough to dig a little deeper I suggest Cracking Da Vincis Code by James L. Garlow and Peter Jones. But if you do, read it after this book.

I bought this book because I thought it was further research into the subjects covered by the original Da Vinci Code Book. The book is a rip-off on the name and contains some of the worst religious hypocrisy and dogma I have read. The Catholic Church demeans women by not allowing them any position of authority and relegates them to minor helper roles, i.e., the mother or helpmate of someone. This book attempts to refutes this accusation by claiming the church does look up to women and cites two examples: 1) Martin Luthers MOTHER who was a great influence on him. Martin Luther could not have started the religion he did without her influence. 2) The woman, who in CONJUNCTION with her husband started the Salvation Army. A mother and a help-mate. These look like helper roles to me. And yet according to these authors these examples absolve the church of their demeaning treatment of women. What about Joan of Arc, Saint Margaret of Scotland, or Eleanor of Acquitaine? Eleanor was one of the wealthiest women alive and barely 20 years old. She supported the Crusades financially and she and her other female friends marched onto the battlefield as nurses during the crusades. After that the Pope no longer allowed women to participate in the Crusades under any circumstances and in any role. If the authors have their way the status quo will continue. Women will be relegated to helper roles and allowed only minimal and non-authoritative participation. This is not what Jesus intended. According to the early Bible (the Bible we know was not formed until the third century A.D.) Christ allowed women to preach the gospel and to be fully involved in the church in any way they chose. It was not until 300 years after Christ died that women were relegated to mothers and help-mates. The authors of this book would like to continue this shameful policy. Truth means little to these authors. They are more concerned with maintaining the status quo of third century religious dogma.