Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code: A Historian Reveals What We Really Know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Constantine

Book Description

A staggeringly popular work of fiction, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code has stood atop The New York Times Bestseller List for well over a year, with millions of copies in print. But this fast-paced mystery is unusual in that the author states up front that the historical information in the book is all factually accurate. But is this claim true? As historian Bart D. Ehrman shows in this informative and witty book, The Da Vinci Code is filled with numerous historical mistakes. Did the ancient church engage in a cover-up to make the man Jesus into a divine figure? Did Emperor Constantine select for the New Testament--from some 80 contending Gospels--the only four Gospels that stressed that Jesus was divine? Was Jesus Christ married to Mary Magdalene? Did the Church suppress Gospels that told the secret of their marriage? Bart Ehrman thoroughly debunks all of these claims. But the book is not merely a laundry list of Brown's misreading of history. Throughout, Ehrman offers a wealth of fascinating background information--all historically accurate--on early Christianity. He describes, for instance, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (which are not Christian in content, contrary to The Da Vinci Code); outlines in simple terms how scholars of early Christianity determine which sources are most reliable; and explores the many other Gospels that have been found in the last half century. Ehrman separates fact from fiction, the historical realities from the flights of literary fancy. Readers of The Da Vinci Code who would like to know the truth about the beginnings of Christianity and the life of Jesus will find this book riveting.

Customer Reviews:

Affable, well-informed and devastating.......2007-09-10

Almost as amazing as the explosive phenomenon that was "The Da Vinci Code," is the explosion of books attacking its premises and conclusions. Bart Ehrman's book, "Truth and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code" is an able addition to the list.

Ehrman is a historian, a Protestant, with a mainstream viewpoint. His book examines 6 "codes" that appear in TDVC. These touch on the persons of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, the process of defining the canon or list of accepted books, the role of women in the early church and other topics germane to the discussion. Ehrman's examination and conclusions are logical, based on the evidence and (I thought) quite convincing. For instance, he discusses the supposed "fact" that since all rabbis had to be married, then Jesus (often called "Rabbi" by his disciples) must have been married as well. Ehrman demolishes this notion with easily-accessible facts. The apostle Paul himself was unmarried, as evidenced by his own letters. And the 1st-century Jewish historian Josephus speaks glowingly of the Essenes, noting that they do not marry. The term "rabbi" means "teacher," and can be applied to those who have undergone and official process as well as those (like Jesus) for whom the term is used as an honorific. And, unconvincingly to skeptics, the Gospels do not mention a married Jesus. Having made the case, Ehrman states that he has broken the code (that a married Jesus was probable) and moves on.

By far, Ehrman spends the most time with the so-called gnostic gospels, upon which the hopes of so many who attack the Church are based. These works of the early centuries of the current era were known mostly through the attacks upon them made by early Church Fathers like Irenaeus. Since the 1940s, with the discover of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi library, historians have had a field day studying the primary texts of the first, second and third centuries. Ehrman examines the texts themselves as well as the cosmology and theology they espouse. This section is long, confusing and hard to follow, not least because the texts themselves are contradictory and plain weird. Ehrman pays special attention to details that moderns have given special importance. There is, for instance the section in the Gospel of Phillip in which Jesus is said to have kissed Mary Magdalene often on the mouth. Ehrman shows how this text is a reconstruction, with key words missing, and that it is embedded in sections that have purely spiritual and symbolic significance. Those who see it as an example of a flesh-and-blood relationship often neglect these key aspects of the work. Not to mention that the text post-dates the canonical gospels by many decades.

"Truth and Fiction" is a careful and dispassionate critique of the fuzzy thinking of TDVC partisans. It is also an good-natured attack on best-selling authors like Elaine Pagels ("The Gnostic Gospels") who have gained prominence by championing the vision of the gnostics. But the book's ultimate attack is on the "code behind the codes" -- the attempt to make the doctrine of the gnostics equivalent to the orthodox view taught in the gospels. Ehrman's great contribution is in making clear that two gospels -- one that preaches a suffering, crucified and risen Lord, and another that preaches a Lord who did not suffer and die -- can not merely be considered alternatives of one another. They preach different realities and have different consequences for believers. One is a gospel for all, the other a gospel for the elite. One opposes the world, the other revels in it. One was passed down by those close the Jesus, the other was invented decades or centuries after his life.

Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" was more than a work of fiction. It was an attack on the truth and on the hard-won and hard-kept beliefs of Christians over the last 2000 years. Ehrman's book is an educated, entertaining and accessible rebuttal that is well worth the read.

Needs balance.......2007-02-04

This is a good book with a lot of historical information and quotes, but it is the usual kind of scholarly approach that one finds to Christianity (like few other subjects): An investigation for which the author already knows the answer. I would rather see something a bit more open-minded than the sort of "writing the facts to fit the opinion" that usually comes to religion. For instance the entire concept of Jesus's "Kingdom of God" has only one possible meaning to the author; suffice it to say this is not so for a great many scholars, theologists and spiritualists. Rather disappointing for something that came through the Oxford University Press.

Debunking Da Vinci.......2007-01-08

It can't really be said that a scholar of Dr. Ehrman's magnitude was needed to demolish the historical claims of Dan Brown's piece-of-garbage novel. Any 12 year old Sunday school student could have blown down half the arguments of the Da Vinci Code while any intelligent person with a history book could have knocked over the other half. The value that Ehrman provides is that he delves deeper into Brown's claims and, rather than merely pointing out Brown's whoppers, gives us a very detailed education on Early Christianity, Biblical exegesis, the Gnostics, Mary Magdalene, Constantine, and all the other issues touching on the Da Vinci Code. It is a real pleasure for anyone interested in the Early Church and historical truth. However, Christians should be warned- although the vast majority of the book is unobjectionable, the born-again apostate Ehrman does indulge his agnosticism and judges the relative historical truth of the Gospels. If you can disregard that, the rest of the book contains some very valuable information.

Expert demolition.......2006-12-14

Bart Ehrman is a well-known historian of Christianity and chairman of the Religious Studies Department at UNC-Chapel Hill. This short book (it can be read in one long sitting) debunks Brown's plot and purported evidence from top to bottom. Better yet, it contains a lot of interesting material about early Christianity, the development of the NT scriptural canon, historical Jesus, what Constantine was and wasn't trying to do at Nicea, etc. I've read some of Ehrman's other books, which is why this one caught my eye. This one was clearly done in a hurry by pulling together parts of those other books, and a it's a bit padded with repetition. But Ehrman knows his stuff, and this is a nice, boiled down rapid-fire overview of that whole area of scholarship, how it proceeds (in a word, skeptically), and what kinds of conclusions it tends toward. Well worth the investment of time, even beyond the specifics about 'Da Vinci Code.'

The bottom line on Brown's book is that it's a page turner, but largely a mess in terms of historical accuracy, and a book that unfortunately promotes some really fundamental distortions and errors. Probably the two foundational inaccuracies are (1) Constantine did not decide the NT canon, and (2) the books that were left out of the NT were not books that over-emphasized Jesus' humanity, quite the contrary. There is much more wrong with 'Code,' (for example, it badly misrepresents both the Dead Sea Scrolls and the content of the books found at Nag Hammadi), but those two falsehoods pretty much destroy all its plot premises. 'Da Vinci Code' is an entertaining book that should not be taken seriously.

After all, it is a novel!.......2006-11-03

While I appreciate Bart's scholarship and have devoured other books he has written, I was disappointed in the tone of this book. As much as I champion feminine spirituality, the novel in question is, after all, a novel, for goodness sake! Enough already!

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True to the original, and yet radically fresh
Only for Those With Prior Knowledge
Marked
A FRESH VISION OF THE GOSPEL OF MARK: RECOMMENDED

Marked
Steve Ross
Manufacturer: Seabury Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1596270020
Release Date: 2005-11-01

Customer Reviews:

Get Extra Copies.......2007-08-11

Give this to the people in your life who would not normally sit down and read a book.

True to the original, and yet radically fresh.......2007-02-16

Readers familiar and unfamiliar with the Gospel according to Mark will both find much to appreciate in Steve Ross's retelling. He really internalized the story and then retold it from his perspective. This version will surprise many readers who have no interest in the Gospel, or who think they understand it and have dismissed it. It will also be of great use to people who love the Gospel, but need to re-learn some parts of it. Either way, I suggest reading Marked on its own, and then read through it again alongside a more widely used translation (like the New International Version of the Gospel of Mark, to see the parallels. This is a remarkable work. I hope to see more retellings of Scripture in the future.

Only for Those With Prior Knowledge.......2006-02-16

As someone who is not Christian and only knows the basics of the New Testement (and doesn't know the difference between any of the gospels), I came into Marked with a lot of expectations. Having read about it in Newsweek, I expected the story of an outsider and to learn about a religion I don't know about. The book is without a doubt meant for Christians. No background is given on the characters, we're supposed to know that Jesus is who he is, that Simon is Simon, and the land is corrupt. I was left confused and slightly frustrated at several moments. Also, a lot of the drama just wasn't there for me. Since this is an adaptation, I guess the reader is supposed to be waiting for certain moments. It just didn't work for me.
That being said, there were some moments I enjoyed. The devil is great, and the pages that lead up to the crucifixition are better than The Passion any day of the week.
Recommended for the Christian graphic novel fan.

Marked.......2006-01-19

As an author who has tackled Gospel translation into the graphic novel format, I commend Steve Ross on a heart-felt effort to bring the book of Mark to life with a contempory feel. It's not an easy task by any means. But Marked is slightly problematic in a couple areas. One, if it was designed to be used as an outreach to the unchurched, I felt like the narrative was not very easy to follow, (if you were not "very" familiar with the work it was based upon, I.E. the Gospel of Mark, and in some places even if you were)! It was the same kind of feeling I had when I first saw the movie, 2001. Secondly, the artwork I would say drifts more toward abstraction in many parts of the story, more than solid storytelling...which is fine and works wonderfully in soome parts of the book, but leaves the reader wondering too much in others, (what the heck just happened there?).

If Mr. Ross's intention was to merely convey how this story personally speaks to him, then he succeeded wonderfully. If he intended to bring those not familiar with the story along for the ride, I'm afraid he might have left more than a few scratching their heads, (which could be good, if it leads them to the original work to find their answers).

Robert Luedke is the author of "Eye Witness: A Fictional Tale of Absolute Truth" and "Acts of the Spirit".

A FRESH VISION OF THE GOSPEL OF MARK: RECOMMENDED.......2005-12-18

With my newly revived interest in old and new, well-done comic books-slash-graphic novels (think ASTONISHING X-MEN, think SANDMAN, think WATCHMEN, think SUPREME POWERS), I had to rush here to amazon.com for a copy of MARKED. I first saw it featured at novelist Chris Well's nifty blog. This re-imagination of the gospel of Mark sounded like something I should "taste and see."

It arrived on a Friday. I read it the next Saturday, in one sitting. Loved it.

Why?

MARKED is clever. It's got attitude. It's got gentle moments of compassion. It's got strong visuals that mix a bag of emotions together and toss them at you. It's got humor. It captures the essence of what the evangelist wrote: a very active Son of God, a very troubled world, imperfect followers, even more imperfect antagonists, wisdom, courage, mercy, grace, death, and victory over death.

I recommend it.

I dare you not to laugh at mad-eyed John the Baptizer and the running headlines that cover the main events of that prophet's activities--even as you'll be horrified (rightly so) by the front page spread of his demise and its timeliness given some of our recent front page news. I dare you not to be thrilled at some really fine creative moments, such as the Gadarene's encounter with the Christ or the incident of transfiguration on the mount. I dare you not to feel ferklempt over the incident of Christ's meeting with the leper. I dare you not to holler, "Cool!" every few pages. And do tell me if you've seen the resurrection handled anywhere quite like this, ever. I haven't. I had to actually stop and ...STOP. No, really, I had one of those blank moments of, "What?" And I had to think. I like when creative folk make me stop and think. I like when creative folk stir things up. Steve Ross achieves this with MARKED.

The Mir's thumb is way up.

Side Note: You can also play, "Find the famous person" with this. Can you find a great black leader? Can you find the is-he-dead-or-isn't-he rocker? Anyone else?

Shameless Gift Suggestion: Christmas is upon us. If you have a comic book lover in your family, of if you know a reader who needs to be slapped with a zingy graphical gospel that will whet their appetite for a visit to the original, or if you just love someone and want to thrill them, get this as a gift for that person.

A slightly different version of this review with helpful links to an article with Steve Ross and to Chris Well's Nifty Blog may be found at: http://mirathon.blogspot.com

Mir

Testament Vol. 2: West of Eden (Testament)

Average customer rating:

Just as good as the first volume

Testament Vol. 2: West of Eden (Testament)
Douglas Rushkoff
Manufacturer: Vertigo
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1401212018

Book Description

From the imagination of best-selling author Douglas Rushkoff,one of the most icono-clastic and acclaimed minds of our era, comes agraphic novel series that exposes the "real" Bible as it was actuallywritten, and reveals how its mythic tales are repeated today. Young Alan Stern may have created life -- inside his laptop. Now, he'sabout to discover the terrible consequences of playing God.

Customer Reviews:

Just as good as the first volume.......2007-07-06

If you liked where the first volume was going, pick this up. It is a great read.

Average customer rating:

Innovative and yet not quite awesome.
good job
Worth Checking Out.
Check It Out, this changes everything...

Testament: Akedah (Testament)
Douglas Rushkoff
Manufacturer: Vertigo
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1401210635

Book Description

From the imagination of best-selling author Douglas Rushkoff, one of the most iconoclastic and acclaimed minds of our era, comes a graphic novel series that exposes the "real" Bible as it was actually written, and reveals how its mythic tales are repeated today. Grad student Jake Stern leads an underground band of renegades that uses any means necessary to combat the frightening threats to freedom that permeate the world. They employ technology, alchemy, media hacking and mysticism to fight a modern threat that has its roots in ancient stories destined to recur in the modern age.

Customer Reviews:

Innovative and yet not quite awesome........2007-02-13

Testament feels good. You end up knowing the take is different than anything you've read. It's propositive and gets you thinking about new ways to handle the myth. However, it fails to close completely. It's like it's a great concept behind, but the implementation is somewhat not as good. The storytelling is good, but characters aren't so fleshed out.

In other words, read it, though it could've been much more polished.

Haven't seen the second part, maybe it shouldn't be split.

good job.......2007-01-21

good job on the sending of the book. sorry for the late review!

Worth Checking Out........2006-12-11

The Good: Intellectually challenging, and very intriguing. I really want to read more and find out what where this story is going. The writing is definitely literate. The art is excellent as well.

The Bad: It feels too much like the first third of a story. Primarily set up. Which is perfectly fine, since it's a collection of an ongoing comic book. However, after reading the entire thing there were more questions than answers, and my concern is that it might be unsatisfactory and turn off readers. It was kind of confusing. If I didn't know the Bible stories, I would be even more confused. The premise requires that you be familiar with the background material to begin with, and the hard balance is not having too much exposition to compensate. It's definitely high concept.

The Bottom Line: Ultimately, the question is, is it entertaining? I would say yes, so I definitely recommend this new book from Vertigo and hope that you would support this book as well. If it gets the chance to continue, I think the payoff will be well worth it.

Check It Out, this changes everything..........2006-09-12

"the most assured and original project to emerge from Vertigo since SANDMAN." - Comic Buyer's Guide

"Make no mistake, The Greatest Story Ever Told continues right here?" - Grant Morrison

"A stunning, richly entertaining book!" - Robert Anton Wilson, co-author "The Illuminatus! Trilogy"

"Rushkoff is one of the great thinkers - and writers - of our time!" - Timothy Leary

"Impossible to put down... chock full of cool, forward-looking ideas. Grade: A" - VARIETY.COM

"Intriguing! Well worth the time to check out." - AIN'T IT COOL NEWS

Testament is a book about Humanity and Gods and the struggle between Evil and Good. The book moves seamlessly between three different times and planes of existence, which are Modern Present time (but it is set slightly in the future), Past Historical Biblical time, and the supernatural Realm of the Gods.

In the modern/future present time there are three major events taking place. One being the fact that the government requires that people have computer chips implanted in their bodies. The second is the emergence of artificial intelligence that has been created by a computer scientist but unfortunately has escaped from his computer into the Internet. The third event is a major corporation is beginning a move to usurp power by changing currency/money into a new very different form that I don't believe has been revealed yet but it sounds very spooky.

So basically there are college aged radicals who have refused to have the chips implanted and are living outside the law. One of these is the son of the creator of the computer chips, who when creating them had no notion that the government would actually use the chips beyond what he or most others believed was acceptable in a way I'll just say reminiscent of the Kent State Massacre on May 4 1970.

So what is taking place in the present events is a reflection of what had taken place in the Bible. Rushkoff does a few things here that I feel need mentioning, he shows us stories from the Bible but he doesn't either show them as or disregard their being sacred events, obviously he believes they are important because they are illustrations of the Gods attempts to influence humanity, but he tells both the modern and those past in a way that makes them both entertainingly modern, relevant, and human.

Basically the story jumps back and forth between what is happening "Now" and what happened in the Bible. Instead of Just God and Satan Rushkoff has Krishna the Hindu God on the side of good along with the Christian God or more specifically the Jewish God (because the comic only has to do with the old testament) and the Evil Gods I think are Egyptian, Hindu and third is Jewish. Like every character in the story the Gods are thankfully multidimensional that is to say they don't come across as 100 percent pure good or pure evil.

Douglas Rushkoff, uniquely qualified to write such a book, outside of comics might be consider a Futurist or a Media Guru, at least an expert on such topics in addition to Judaism, which he wrote a book on called "Nothing Sacred: The Truth About Judaism" I've seen him on panels on CNN and speaking at Disinformation counterculture conferences, he is a what most would considered a modern day Renaissance Man. He writes books on Ecstasy eating Ravers, advises the United Nations, plays keyboards in the radical group Psychic TV, and writes comic books.

A Great story that makes one think about what these stories may actually be and makes one question what is the current real world's spiritual significance.

My review is based on the first 9 issues I've read only once but am looking forward to rereading them again.

Apocalypse and the Writings on Revelation (The Cambridge Edition of the Works of D. H. Lawrence)

Average customer rating:

An occasional beautiful passage in a generally sterile and fanatic polemic
D.H. Lawrence's revelation
Great Last Work and Testament
Fascinating Lawrence "diversions-on-a-theme".

Apocalypse and the Writings on Revelation (The Cambridge Edition of the Works of D. H. Lawrence)
D. H. Lawrence
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521007062

Book Description

Apocalypse is D. H. Lawrence‘s last book, written during the winter of 1929–30 when he was dying. It is a radical criticism of our civilisation and a statement of Lawrence’s unwavering belief in man’s power to create ‘a new heaven and a new earth’. Ranging over the entire system of his thought on God and man, on religion, art, psychology and politics, this book is Lawrence’s final attempt to convey his vision of man and the universe. Apocalypse was published after Lawrence’s death, and in a highly inaccurate text. This edition is the first to reproduce accurately Lawrence’s final corrected text on the basis of a thorough examination of the surviving manuscript and typescript. In the introduction the editor has discussed the writing of Apocalypse and its place in Lawrence’s works, its publication and reception, and the significance of Lawrence’s other writings on the Book of Revelation.

Customer Reviews:

An occasional beautiful passage in a generally sterile and fanatic polemic .......2006-06-04

The greatness of Lawrence as a writer is not in question. But in this final work of his , we see a 'visionary ' side which involves a neo- Neitzschean and almost Fascist reading of ' the Book of Revelations'. Lawrence may as other reviewers claim be here most interested in defying a pagan life- affirming tradition against a spiritually dehumanizing Christianity. But the main thrust is in his condemnation, a very strange one indeed, of the poor of the world for their envy of those higher people, the true aristocrats of life. Borrowing a page from Nietzsche's conception of re-sentiment morality he condemns the poor and sees their anger as barren and empty. So too his reading of John of Patmos condemns him for dessicating the life in a false and distorted spiritual vision.
Lawrence's work comes most alive far from theory, in his novels especially but also in his poems.
In terms of pure ideas his contribution , at least in this work, is more negative than anything else.

D.H. Lawrence's revelation.......2000-03-09

Written in response to widespread condemnation of the sexuality and libertine lifestyles presented in his books, Apocalypse was the final attempt by D. H. Lawrence to make himself understood. The modern reader will probably detect a full throttle blitz against the puritanical deacons of the Church of England and his establishment tormentors. Launched from the most contentious and abstruse of the Bible's books, Revelations, Lawrence levels his antipathy at a rigid, superficially moral, life denying exposition of Christian thought. He argues that the confining nature of living the 'good' life in expectation of reward in Heaven cuts to the root of an immensely rich potential for experience and passion presented in the world. He continuously falls back on opaque codices-- of arcane civilizations that he states more fully explored the metaphysical realm. Lawrence divines a heroic age where apparent creation and destiny were seen as integral and complete. Robert Graves's 'The White Goddess' comprehensively analyzes the same mythological, magical architecture, but Lawrence uses it in a much more targeted and critical way.

Lawrence saw the aesthetic brilliance of Revelations as a bridge to a more mysterious, immediate, compelling theology. At the same time he condemns the apocalyptic churches who interpret the book as the evocation of Hell and Judgement, rather than in its potent poetic symbolism. He goes so far as to accuse John of Patmos of not presenting a revelation at all, but of appropriating a truer, more ancient historiography for eccliastical and political reasons. Not above placing his own eccentric opinions of government in this tract, he could be accused of mounting his own pulpit, if with literary distinction. His claim of an affirming devotion to the visible universe as the only 'true' route to the holy can be countered by reading some of the lively writings of Christian ascetics. This treatise, however, is not about them. It is aimed squarely at the convention seeking, socially regulating, sanctimonious attitudes that had censored and prosecuted him. Not surprisingly it did not raise his stock much among his critics, but it is an essential text in understanding the underlying motives behind his works.

Great Last Work and Testament.......2000-02-03

Attacks everything blindly and madly promoted by the dominant ideas of the dominant socio-economic classes and strongest institutionalized influences in the current civilization of inauthenticity and death.

The power of money must go, according to Lawrence, as the power of the sun must return--as it indeed has always been the power of life whether we recognize it or not. Also, the power of blood must be reasserted. As human beings we are connected to all things. However, this perspective is suppressed as it constitutes a threat to the status quo.

Lawrence here sees no salvation in either democracy or western monotheism; but solely in human beings connecting up once again to the universal forces of nature from which come life's vitality.

Fascinating Lawrence "diversions-on-a-theme"........1999-06-28

Although Lawrence's writings are noted for more earthly activities, he shows a surprising knowledge of Biblical matters. In this book he analyzes the last book of the Bible-- Revelations-- and not too favorably at that. I cannot argue with his facts because I am not as familiar with them as as he is. What I find fascinating about this essay-book are his observations on democracy, and especially about life.

The last page or two contain one of his most remarkable and inspiring observations about the individual and his soul. Lawrence often argues that you cannot "save" you soul; you must "live" it. Near the end of this book he writes:

"What man most passionately want is his living wholeness and his living unison, not his own isolate salvation of his "soul." Man wants his physical fulfilment first and foremost, since now, once and once only, he is in the flesh and potent. For man, the vast marvel is to be alive. For man, as for flower and beast and bird, the supreme triumph is to be most vividly, most perfectly alive. Whatever the unborn and the dead may know, they cannot know the beauty, the marvel of being alive in the flesh. The dead may look after the afterwards. But the magnificent here and now of life in the flesh is ours, and ours alone, and ours only for a time. We ought to dance with rapture that we should be alive and in the flesh, and part of the living, incarnate cosmos....I am part of the great whole, and I can never escape. But I can deny my connections, break them, and become a fragment. Then I am wretched."

The most poignant phrase in this passage is "...and ours for a short time only." Lawrence lived a shorter time that most of us will, but in his lifetime his output was as perceptive and prodigious as any author who has ever written. Scattered throughout this book are irritating but illuminating thoughts like: "But a democracy is bound in the end to be obscene, for it is composed of myriad disunited fragments, each fragment assuming to itself a false wholeness, a false individuality. Modern democracy is made up of millions of frictional parts all asserting their own wholeness."

Some people have taken that statement as proof that Lawrence is against democracy. But I consider it a valid danger for democracy, one that is being played out in the press every day. To preserve democracy, the best of all possible forms of government, we have to analyze and try to correct its failings and weaknesses.

Amazon.com

Distinguished author, Holocaust survivor, and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel continues his exploration of guilt, innocence, history, and memory, but with a new twist. Wiesel moves the battle for the human soul from the Holocaust to the rarefied setting of a Connecticut parlor. There, five strangers, stranded during a snowstorm, find themselves manipulated by a sadistic host who calls himself the Judge and declares that one of them will die before morning. Through the long night, the characters take stock of their lives and indentify what inspires them to cling to life. There is George, the archivist who has discovered a dangerously revealing document and whose "ambition it is to evoke the memory of memory"; Yoav, the Israeli commando who believes that "each man was his own executioner and his own victim"; and Razziel, who lost the memory of his childhood to torturers and was on his way to meet the man who could unlock his past. While the characterizations are uneven (Bruce, the playboy, is stock stuff and the Judge's deification of evil is not entirely convincing), Wiesel's philosophical fable is powerful and thought provoking, and increasingly relevant in an age concerned with terrorism and the questions of good and evil. --Lesley Reed

Book Description

From Elie Wiesel, a gripping novel of guilt, innocence, and the perilousness of judging both.

A plane en route from New York to Tel Aviv is forced down by bad weather. A nearby house provides refuge for five of its passengers: Claudia, who has left her husband and found new love; Razziel, a religious teacher who was once a political prisoner; Yoav, a terminally ill Israeli commando; George, an archivist who is hiding a Holocaust secret that could bring down a certain politician; and Bruce, a would-be priest turned philanderer.

Their host—an enigmatic and disquieting man who calls himself simply the Judge—begins to interrogate them, forcing them to face the truth and meaning of their lives. Soon he announces that one of them—the least worthy—will die.

The Judges is a powerful novel that reflects the philosophical, religious, and moral questions that are at the heart of Elie Wiesel’s work.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

Found Wanting.......2007-02-25

Through numerous novels, Elie Wiesel has proven himself to be a master storyteller. He is able to intermingle the fictional world with the all too real memories of the Holocaust that haunt almost every piece of writing he produces. While "The Judges" has an intriguing premise, it is not among his better works.

When a plane en route to Tel Aviv is forced down by a snow storm, five random passengers find themselves offered refuge in a nearby house. What at first appears to be a safe haven quickly turns into a nightmare when the host, who simply refers to himself as the Judge, tells them of the 'game' at hand. All five of those present will be judged and the one who is the least worthy among them must pay the ultimate sacrifice. The five strangers have trouble believing the Judge at first, simply thinking his pronouncement a farce, but when they discover that they are locked within the room, they quickly realize the seriousness of their predicament. They must try to work together to fight their way out, or decide who should be the sacrificial lamb for the others.

"The Judges" has many characteristics that trademark a Wiesel novel. There is the shift in narrative between various characters, and between past and present times. Yet unlike his other works, the narratives here have little cohesiveness - there is no thread that ties them all together and even though the five characters are forced to spend one night together under one roof, that is all that unites them. There may be commonalities among their pasts and their reasons for wishing to remain alive, but beyond that, this story is about disconnect. The ending is far too rushed for the story that is offered and the conclusion to the host's 'game' is trite and predictable. With that being said, "The Judges" is still a fine read, thanks in large part to Wiesel's intellect and his poetic use of language.

excellent book.......2006-03-21

first of all, i am not a kid, i am simply a person without a bunch of time floating around to fill out all that crap simply to write a review. second, this book was utterly facsinating and i was genuinly disappointed when i came to its end. i love how real elie wiesel makes his characters and really enoyed getting to know the five passengers as well as the judge and his little hunchback. a great read for anyone not afraid to think.

Elie did it again.......2003-11-08

First I must say that Mr. Wiesel's other books including Night, Dawn, and the Accident are all wonderful books.

Second, someone who is reading for action should not read the book. It doesn't have action in the book, but it does allow the reader to dive deep in philosophy.

Third, some say that it doesn't have a "realistic" plot. Can I ask, which fiction book truly has a realistic plot? I think Mr. Wiesel was trying to get the reader to "get" more out of the characters than the way the characters ended up in the cabin. I think we could all learn something from reading this book. I know I did.

I must say that this book was a good read and I recommend it to all. I would also like to recommend the other three books I mentioned earlier--Night, Dawn, and the Accident. Great books from a great writer!

Mr. Wiesel should have just had "Q" show up........2003-08-20

Mr. Wiesel is pretty good at developing characters, however he doesn't pay attention to the reality of details. It is not just implausible for the characters to end up at the cabin it is virtually impossible. The events getting the characters to the cabin is simply not realistic. It would have been a better story and a more reasonable if "Q" (Star Trek) had showed up and transported them there.

I am a cowgirl from Arizona and I would have put up with the Judges nonsense for about 15 minutes max. Then I would have acted. Mr. Wiesel spend why too much time on thought and not enough on action. Whatever.

Like nothing I've read before.......2003-02-18

The plot seemed so real. While reading the book, my dad had told me my aunt had once had to stay overnight at someone's home because of a simlar event like the one in the book, the book kinda hit close to home. I never had read any of Elie Wiesel's books before, but checked the book out of the library after reading the inside cover and deciding that the plot would be interesting and make a good story. However, I was disappointed. I really felt that Wiesel could have expanded a lot more on the plot. I didn't feel like I knew the charcters well enough. I didn't understand why the ending ended the way it did. It wasn't the best book I read, but it wasn't the worst.

Average customer rating:

Amazing - Use This Instead of Your Regular Megillah!
Wonderful

Megillat Esther
J. T. Waldman
Manufacturer: Jewish Publication Society of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0827607881

Book Description

Megillat Esther is commonly referred to as the Book of Esther: but there is nothing common about JT Waldman's interpretation of this Biblical story. In what may be the world's first religious, scholarly comic book, Waldman tells the epic tale of exile and redemption in graphic form.

When Esther, a Jewish woman, is made Queen of Persia she must keep her identity hidden, all the while maneuvering to save her people from annihilation. This is a story familiar to many Jews who have heard it recounted every year on the holiday of Purim. But readers of all backgrounds will be entranced by what artist Waldman depicts in his interpretation of the text. At once traditional and groundbreaking Megillat Esther will challenge secular assumptions about the Bible.

Each page of Megillat Esther is a visual tour de force and features the Hebrew text with original English translation, as well as opulent drawings depicting the story of the Persian Queen. Traditional interpretations of the story are woven throughout the panels.

Megillat Esther presents the reader with a topsy-turvey world in which fortunes reverse and nothing is what it seems. This vibrant, edgy retelling of a classic Biblical tale is sure to amaze and intrigue scholars and laypeople of all religions and comic book lovers alike.

Customer Reviews:

Amazing - Use This Instead of Your Regular Megillah!.......2007-03-26

This book is not only exquisite, but it also adds a whole new dimension to your Megillat Esther reading experience.

How often have you sat through Megillat Esther and lost track of where the reader was? Instead, use this book to follow along and you will be fully engaged to the story and its many allusions.

The full Hebrew text runs continuously through its pages, though you'll need to review at least once, to get keep up with the narrative/graphical flow.

Once you do this, you'll never want to go back to a text-only megillah.

Wonderful.......2006-02-04

Really just wonderful - the art, the story, the concept, the imagination -- for an old comics fan this is an amazing modern interpretation of a book of the Hebrew Bible. I think it maintains the spirit of the original book - after all, the original Hebrew text is included and fully translated into English - and makes it come alive!

Vera Brittain: Testament of Youth: An Autobiographical Study of the Years 1900-1925 (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics)

Average customer rating:

Heavy handed prose weakens work
Indispensable autobiography
Deserves Wider Readership
Testamony
Great WWI Living History

Vera Brittain: Testament of Youth: An Autobiographical Study of the Years 1900-1925 (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics)
Vera Brittain
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0140188444

Amazon.com

When war broke out in August 1914, 21-year-old Vera Brittain was planning on enrolling at Somerville College, Oxford. Her father told her she wouldn't be able to go: "In a few months' time we should probably all find ourselves in the Workhouse!" he opined. Brittain had hoped to escape the Northern provinces, but the war seemingly dashed her plans. "It is not, perhaps, so very surprising that the War at first seemed to me an infuriating personal interruption rather than a world-wide catastrophe."

Her father eventually relented, however, and she was allowed to attend. By the end of her first year, she had fallen in love with a young soldier and resolved to become active in the war effort by volunteering as a nurse--turning her back on what she called her "provincial young-ladyhood." Brittain suffered through 12-hour days by reminding herself that nothing she endured was worse than what her fiancé, Roland, experienced in the trenches. Roland was expected home on leave for Christmas 1915; on December 26, Brittain received news that he had been killed at the front. Ten months later Brittain herself was sent to Malta and then to France to serve in the hospitals nearer the front, where she witnessed firsthand the horrors of battle. When peace finally came, Brittain had also lost her brother Edward and two close friends. As she walked the streets of London on November 11, 1918--Armistice Day--she felt alone in the crowds:

For the first time I realised, with all that full realisation meant, how completely everything that had hitherto made up my life had vanished with Edward and Roland, with Victor and Geoffrey. The War was over; a new age was beginning; but the dead were dead and would never return.

First published in 1933, Testament of Youth established Brittain as one of the best-loved authors of her time. Her crisp, clear prose and searing honesty make this unsentimental memoir of a generation scarred by war a classic. --Sunny Delaney

Book Description

Much of what we know and feel about the First World War we owe to Vera Brittain's elegiac yet unsparing book, which set a standard for memoirists from Martha Gellhorn to Lillian Hellman. Abandoning her studies at Oxford in 1915 to enlist as a nurse in the armed services, Brittain served in London, in Malta, and on the Western Front. By war's end she had lost virtually everyone she loved. Testament of Youth is both a record of what she lived through and an elegy for a vanished generation. Hailed by the Times Literary Supplement as a book that helped “both form and define the mood of its time,” it speaks to any generation that has been irrevocably changed by war.

Customer Reviews:

Heavy handed prose weakens work.......2007-09-13

I clearly am in a minority here but I did not like this book. A peer of other notable young British writers like Robert Graves and Wilfred Owen, Britton's book stands out among the male writers of the period as giving a woman's view of the war. The problem, at least for me, is that Britton is so over come with bitterness that she flogs the reader with it from the start.

An early feminist Britton had strong views and supported her male friends and family going off to the First World War but as they fell to the german guns she, like many of her generation, became disillusioned. This is understandable but in writing her book, Britton cannot set aside her bitterness and it makes the reading ponderous and heavy. For example noting a fete in her early childhood and the bunting and flags put out she says "If only I knew then it was all meaningless." we are taken from a little girl's views to a bitter adult in the blink of an eye and it just gets too much.

By comparrison the autobiography of Robert Graves, Goodby to All That, starts out with the childish illusions being enjoyed as a child and slowly the bitterness slips into the writer's world view as he matures and is exposed to the horrors of the war. this is far more subtle and easier to read, meaning you are guided to the ponit he wants you to reach, instead of trying to bludgeon you into the mindset as Britton does.

Indispensable autobiography.......2007-03-24

The word "classic" gets thrown around a lot these days. Many so-called "modern classics" are not that important, but "Testament of Youth" deserves this reprint as a Penguin Classic. Brittain tells of her early life in the north of England between 1893 and the start of World War I in 1914 in beautifully clear prose, and her clarity of thought and powers of observation make the bulk of the book, dealing with the war's impact on her, painfully vivid without ever lapsing into self-pity. Like too many others of her generation (and the next and the next) Vera Brittain learned almost unimaginable lessons about life and her own inner strength. To that extent, "Testament of Youth" can serve as both example and inspiration.

Vera Brittain came from an upper-middle-class background shared by millions of young women in late Victorian England. One thing that made her different was her great intellectual curiosity and determination to escape a truly suffocating existence that few of today's Western women can easily imagine. What made her like most citizens of the time (and of later times)was her complete ignorance of the meaning of "war." Patriotism, her social conscience, and a desire to take part in the bigger world led her to volunteer as a nursing sister with the British Army. Her grueling hospital experiences were a revelation to her. Her personal losses are even more powerfully revealing of the human condition. Brittain was a "survivor" in every sense of the word.

"Testament of Youth" is just as fresh and moving today as it was when it was written 75 years ago and Vera Brittain tells a story that must be told and retold to each generation. For every reader who finds the book "too long" by current standards (its almost 700 pages), there will be two who wish they could follow the author even further. But even if you find yourself skipping ahead, particularly in the early part, you will not be able to forget Vera Brittain or her story. "Testament of Youth" is one of the great autobiographies of the past 100 years.

Deserves Wider Readership.......2006-06-03

This is a fascinating, insightful book that it would behoove many of us modern folk to read. Learn about the harder times of the past, while sipping latte in a comfy chair. You'll be thankful for today's comforts -- and today's modern attitudes towards the capabilities and intelligence of women -- after you read what it was like for one woman early in the 20th century. Simply a great book.

Testamony.......2006-04-23

Vera Brittain enrolled in Summerville College, Oxford, in a time before degrees were granted to women. This was just before The First World War changed almost everything for almost everyone. When it was over, her best friends, her fiance and her brother had all been killed. She also personally witnessed the agony of thousands in the surgical wards where she worked as a volunteer nurse.

In response, she became a suffragette, a feminist and a liberal writer and lecturer. She sought to prevent such tragedy from reoccurring.

The answers to the political and social questions with which she struggled elude us still. But Vera Brittain's autobiographical account of her generation's trials, Testament of Youth, remains both a stunningly-honest portrait of a courageous young woman and a vivid chronicle of a time almost out of living memory. Through her words we see what we might have thought, felt and believed, had we been born into her era.

Great WWI Living History.......2005-11-26

A real sleeper - I'm surprised after reading it that the book isn't more well known. Very well written and compelling. The author juxtaposes the war and it's history with the daily life of the people living it. She's a keen observer of both history and human nature. She does, I think, leave out some history that seems important now but maybe they weren't to her at the time. Highly recomended.

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Finding Words Among the Silent
The Testament - A Weisel Sleeper

The Testament: A novel
Elie Wiesel
Manufacturer: Schocken
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0805211152
Release Date: 1999-04-27

Book Description

On August 12, 1952, Russia's greatest Jewish writers were secretly executed by Stalin. In this remarkable blend of history and imagination, Paltiel Kossover meets the same fate but, unlike his real-life counterparts, he is permitted to leave a written testament. From a Jewish boyhood in pre-revolutionary Russia, Paltiel traveled down a road that embraced Communism, only to return to Russia and discover a Communist Party that had become his mortal enemy. Two decades later, Paltiel's son, Grisha, reads this precious record of his father's life and finds that it illuminates the shadowed planes of his own.

Passionate and fierce, this story of a father's legacy to his son revisits some of the most dramatic events of our century, and confirms yet again Elie Wiesel's stature as "a writer of the highest moral imagination" (San Francisco Chronicle).

Customer Reviews:

Finding Words Among the Silent.......2007-06-30

Elie Wiesel has proven himself to be a master storyteller, taking real life accounts and events, and turning them into haunting literature. While the focus of "The Testament" is not the Holocaust, as is the focus of many of his other works, Jewish history and what happens to the Jews in WWII plays a large role. "The Testament" bears Wiesel's trademark stylings, the shifting back and forth between time, that brings past and present together, and a son trying to come to terms with his father's life, a father he was never able to know.

"The Testament" is the 'confession' of sorts of the main character, Palatiel Kossover. Palatiel was a Russian-born Jew who traded in his faith for communism while he was a teenager. He devoted his life to words to stir the party to action, taking part in the fighting in Spain and Russia, fighting against the Nazis. Yet upon returning to Russia after the war, he finds the party isn't what he once believed in, and soon finds himself a hunted man because of what he has said and printed. It is while he is in prison that he writes out his testment, a long letter to a son he shall never see again. Palatiel's story is intersected with that of his son Grisha, a young mute estranged from his mother and desperate to learn of his father. When a mutual friend informs him of his father's past, Grisha knows that it is his task to tell people of his father, to bring his father back to life.

Normally the stylings of Wiesel's novels work for him - the shifts back and forth between time in "The Testament" get too bogged down with characters, who because of espionage related reasons, have more than one name. This can make it difficult for readers to follow all of Palatiel's movements and associations during the war. Yet despite that, "The Testament" is as powerful of a work as any Wiesel has written. It explores and exposes what is really at the heart of human nature, and how in the midst of desolation, hope can live on no matter how desperately it is being crushed.

The Testament - A Weisel Sleeper.......1999-12-26

Weisel delved deep into the complex nature of humans and the human attempt to deal with society's constantly changing moral/ethical guides. I know I will be thinking about this book for a long time to come. Although the topic can be depressing, Weisel finds the beauty in the way his characters deal with the problems in front of them.

The Gospel Code: Novel Claims About Jesus, Mary Magdalene and Da Vinci

Average customer rating:

It boils down to the history
dan brown debunked
Excellent Overview of the Issues
Maybe the best book on this subject I read
Thoughtful Response

The Gospel Code: Novel Claims About Jesus, Mary Magdalene and Da Vinci
Ben, III Witherington
Manufacturer: InterVarsity Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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Moleskine Pocket Ruled Notebook

ASIN: 083083267X

Book Description

Dan Brown's international bestseller The Da Vinci Code has raised many questions in the minds of readers.

Was Jesus really married to Mary Magdalene?
Did he father a child with her?
Did Constantine suppress the earliest Gospels and invent the doctrine of Christ's divinity?
Do the Gnostic Gospels represent the true Christian faith which the early church sought to supplant?

The Da Vinci Code, in blurring the lines between fact and fiction, popularizes the speculations and contentions of numerous more serious books that are also attracting wide attention. How should we respond to claims that we now have documents that reveal secrets about Jesus, secrets long suppressed by the church and other religious institutions? Do these new documents successfully debunk traditional views about Jesus and early Christianity? Ben Witherington III confronts these claims with the sure-footedness of a New Testament scholar, yet in the plain language that any interested reader can follow. He takes us back to the early centuries after Jesus' death and tells us what we can really know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, the canonical Gospels and their Gnostic rivals.

Customer Reviews:

It boils down to the history.......2007-03-16

I am not going to say a lot because in all honesty, I need to finish the book. But there is an important statement here I would like to make. So much boils down to what an individual believes is the history of the church. Ben Witherington the III seems to be of the opinion that the gnostic scriptures do not come until later. This is certainly not my understanding of history. And in order to take this view, this stance, of history one must be somewhat apologetic of the Roman Catholic Church, even if one is a protestant. It is stated in the book something to the effect that Constantine became a Christian and presided in a kindly manner over the council of Nicaea. It is certainly questionable whether Constantine ever was a convert in anything more than name. His only conversion was one of convenience to keep Rome from falling apart. It is my understanding of history, that in presiding over the council, Constantine consistently used the power of the sword whenever his view of what Christianity should be was challenged, and Bishops who opposed his point of view were removed from the council by force, and a revote was taken. Can I prove this? No. Not any more than I think anyone can prove otherwise, but the weight of the actions of the church over a 1000 year reign, I think, proves incontroversably, that the church was not interested in truth, but in control. It is without question, over the next 1000 years of the reign of Rome via the church, that multitudes of individuals who questioned the church in any way were tortured horribly and killed. They were furthermore, tortured and killed even if they recanted and admitted they were in error. I don't think anyone can deny this aspect of history. It is too well documented. So why would the church care about preserving the truth? It is also, without question, that the church over the next thousand years, sought out any documents they considered detrimental to the churches rule, and burned those documents. It has been well established that the church added and deleted text from the supposedly cannonical scriptures. Can anyone therefore, affirm incontrovertibly, that the scriptures that have come down to us are the inerrant words of God regardless? I think this is a very dangerous position to take.

It is also questionable whether the gnostic documents came earlier or later. Throughout history there have been God man saviors who were surrounded by a mythology, so to speak, almost identical to the story of Jesus. Is it still therefore reasonable to believe in a literal and only literal interpretation of the Bible? Why then did Jesus speak in parables? Why was it that even when he interpreted the parables, he claimed that the disciples still did not understand? Even without gnostic texts it becomes apparent that there was a secret doctrine. And when one delves into the secret doctrine, they find they can no longer go back to that literalness, it is no longer of import to them, not because they are ignorant or deceived, but because they now have the "inner light" of gnosis, something Ben Witherington apparently knows nothing about. When one attains a deeper understanding, one realizes unquestionably the futility in believing in a literal god man savior. It, folks, just aint so. But prove it? Each person will have to decide for themselves.

At any rate, if one is of a fundamentalist disposition, one will tend to believe the so called scholars who are also of that persuasion. If not, one is more inclined to believe those scholars that are more critical of the church. There is no proof one way or another that one set of doctrines came earlier than another. To many of us who study these things it appears very strongly that both sets of doctrines were preached at the same time. The more literal set was preached for those who were not ready for the higher mysteries. There is ample evidence in the cannonical gospels themselves that there was a set of doctrine for the masses and another for the elite.

So which version of history do you believe in? It is up to each individual to decide. But I am very unattracted, though I once found refuge in, a literalist church that in one way or another was created and/or strongly influenced by Roman Catholicism. I find it very, very hard to believe in a God whose attitude is that those that don't believe the way he prefers they do should be burned at the stake as heretics. Even as the book of Revelations says, "Mystery Bablyon,(Roman Catholicism) mother of harlots, (protestant churches) and abominations in the earth."

When you wear Rose colored glasses, you tend to see religion, as well as everything else, in a perverted way. Is there a savior outside of ourselves? A deeper understanding of the hidden meanings of the parables and sayings of Jesus, with the alternate and deeper meanings of the Greek and other language words, would indicate there is not. In fact, the gospels begin to sound a lot, and I mean a lot more like a Bhuddist or Taoist text than a god savior manuscript. I will even go further. A deeper understanding shows a text full of meanings that mirror and parallel quantum physics, and the way we can related to the "Divine Matrix," as some would call it.

Nothing more at this time, but I do feel that Ben Witherington, not to critisize, he has written and excellent book, needs to look deeper into the material that he himself presents, unprejudiced by a fundamentalist eye.

dan brown debunked.......2007-01-18

As I write, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code ranks number one on the New York Times best seller list. My wife read it to our kids, liked it, and passed it on to a friend. My pastor preached a sermon on it. My neighbor asked me what I thought about it. Now a cottage industry of books debunking it has emerged. That is what happens when your book is on the best seller list for 72 weeks and counting.

It is a little more than ironic that Brown's book is on the fiction list, because on his first page he gives the impression that much if not most of what he has written is based in fact. In reference to Darrell Bock's similar book (below), John Miller of the Wall Street Journal concluded that Brown's "central contentions are based on evidence so thin that calling them conjecture would be a compliment." As Witherington and others have shown, The Da Vinci Code is a mishmash of historical errors of fact, oddball interpretations of the sources, and philosophical or theological assumptions that are interesting but unorthodox to say the least. Toss in great writing, a conspiracy theory about church power brokers who did us dirt, and a biblically illiterate reading public that is nevertheless deeply attracted to Jesus, and you have a recipe for a blockbuster book.

Witherington focuses on seven "deadly historical errors of the book." (1) The supposedly suppressed Gnostic Gospels are earlier than the four canonical Gospels. (2) Jesus was a normal human being who was only much later made out to be divine. (3) The emperor Constantine suppressed the Gnostic gospels and imposed Christian orthodoxy on the masses. (4) Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene. (5) As an early Jew Jesus must have been married. (6) The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi documents are our earliest Christian documents (Witherington: "so false it's what the British would call a howler."). (7) Various philosophical and theological presuppositions. For a shorter version of Witherington's material see his article in Christianity Today (June 2004), "Why the Lost Gospels Lost Out." Other book-length treatments include Darrell Bock, Breaking the Da Vinci Code, James Garlow and Peter Jones, Cracking Da Vinci's Code, and about a dozen similar titles.

Excellent Overview of the Issues.......2006-08-15

Very enjoyable and informative book, with a lot of personality and background. This is a great overview of the issues surrounding the authenticity of the Bible and the challenges leveled by Gnostic thought. My only desire was for more elaboration on the Gnostic writings, and a more complete examination of Cannonization. However, these issues are probably beyond the scope of a quick read.

Maybe the best book on this subject I read.......2006-06-13

Witherington is a professor of New Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, KY and the author of numerous books. This book, The Gospel Code, was written specifically to address the issues raised by the popular novel The Da Vinci Code. Witherington really does a very good job of supplying historical evidence and context for the reader to understand the false and misleading claims of Dan Brown's novel. The book really does a good job of exploring and uncovering the real issues and the real problem of Brown's novel, which really is an attack on traditional Christianity and the divinity of Jesus Christ.

The Gospel Code begins by exploring the hidden messages within Brown's book - a subtle suggestion that there is new wisdom, new information, new revelation that person can discern regarding the concept of their own identity especially as it relates to the divine. Witherington points out that Brown carefully named one of the primary characters in the book Sophie Neveu, which means "New Wisdom" - and Ms. Neveu's character "represents the modern public seeking insider knowledge (gnosis) so she can understand the secret of her own identity. ...In other words, the religious quest ultimately leads us back to our own self, an exercise in pure narcissism." Witherington hits the main problem of The Da Vinci Code right on the head - that true religious pursuit leads a person back to the god within them, not the transcendent and timeless God of Scripture.

Witherington continues in the book to address the fallacies of The Da Vinci Code looking at the assumption that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and other issues that Witherington addressed dealt with the Gnostic gospels. A very interesting point that Witherington addressed that I had not read in any other book was that the Gnostics believed that matter was evil and were very much ascetic in their lives (opposed to marriage). He points out how odd it is for Brown to use the texts of the Gnostic writings to make a point about the marriage of Jesus, something that in fact would contradict much of the teachings of the Gnostics themselves.

The book ends with an examination of the canonization process of the biblical gospels followed by a postscript commentary by Witherington about the loss of truth in today's society and its impact on our culture. The book was a very interesting read - Witherington is clearly a very gifted scholar and writer and I look forward to reading some of his other works after finishing this one.

Thoughtful Response.......2006-05-29

This book covers the differences between the New Testament documents and the Gnostic documents, between heresy and orthodox doctrines, and how we know what we know about the New Testament. The book is a thoughtful response to the assertions in the "Da Vinci Code." It covers how the books in the New Testament became canonized. The book is not intended to cover all the misinformation in "The Da Vinci Code." The author stays pretty close to his expertise and does a good job of explaining his points. The book is a little dry in the middle, but overall it was a good presentation of conservative/evangelical views of who Jesus is and why an accurate historical view of Jesus and Mary Magdalene is important.

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