A Path to the Future/The Da Vinci Code

#1 · February 20, 2004, 1:44 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on February 20, 2004, 1:44 pm
Posted by: ba <ba@...>

Forthright Magazine
www.forthright.net
Straight to the Cross

COLUMN: Heavenly Connections

A Path to the Future
by Tim Hall

I recently received an e-mail with a very tough
report: A preaching colleague had just learned he
may have cancer. He's a fairly young man with a
wife and children, but his future is suddenly not
so clear. To make matters worse, the family has no
health insurance; they just can't afford the
premiums. What now?

Dr. Jerome Groopman is the author of the book,
"The Anatomy of Hope". As one who deals with
cancer patients, he knows the important role hope
plays in people overwhelmed with trials. When
asked to define "hope", he responded: "Basically,
I think hope is the ability to see a path to the
future" (U.S. News & World Report, January 26,
2004).

That's a metaphor that makes sense. Sometimes we
find ourselves at a dead end with nowhere to turn.
We see no options before us. Such a situation can
lead to despair. It's a crushing feeling when we
have no hope.

You know very well that Christians are not immune
to life's problems. The fellow I mentioned above
demonstrates that. But Christians have one thing
that others don't: Faith in a God who promises to
open for us a path.

He did it for Israel as they were fleeing Egypt.
They had come to a dead end, the shores of the Red
Sea. As they surveyed their situation, they heard
hoofbeats behind them. Their hearts sank as they
searched in vain for a pathway of escape. But God
had not forgotten His people. He opened a path
through the sea where there had been none before.
Just a few hours later they were singing songs of
victory. (Read Exodus 14 and 15 for the stirring
account.)

Israel's almighty God is our God. He still has the
power to open pathways. Paul wrote of that
promise: "And we know that God causes all things
to work together for good to those who love God,
to those who are called according to His purpose"
(Rom. 8:28, NASV). "All things" in this verse may
include bad events, as well as good. But these do
not represent dead ends, for God is always present
to open up a path. We can't see that path to the
future, but we know without any doubt that God is
there.

When a person is convinced there is no hope, life
becomes dark and miserable. Thanks be to God that
we never have to reach such a conclusion!

"For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is
for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy
comes in the morning" (Ps. 30:5, NKJV).

----
Read this article online, tell us what you think,
see who"s commenting, click here:
forthright.antville.org/stories/698916/
----

COLUMN: Outlines of Faith

The Da Vinci Code
by Greg Tidwell

Dan Brown's best-seller, The Da Vinci Code is
delightful as a novel. His compelling plot and
quick vignettes move along effortlessly in a story
cast upon a backdrop of Western History. The
cultural allusions which punctuate the narrative
provide intellectual stimulation without
overburdening the story with unwelcome
sophistication.

Heretical Fiction

For Christians, however, The Da Vinci Code
presents a real challenge, in spite of its
literary merits. Brown casts his story as
historical fiction, based on the Gnostic Gospels,
early heretical writings unearthed over the past
century. Using these Gnostic texts as a starting-
point, Brown claims that Jesus wed Mary Magdalene
and had children by her who were hidden away in
France, the early church leaders keeping these
details under wraps because they would discourage
worship of Jesus as God.

According to the novel, this truth about Jesus has
been preserved by an underground movement called
"The Priory of Sion". Many great figures of
ancient and modern history, ranging from Leonardo
da Vinci to Walt Disney, were allegedly members,
placing symbolic clues concerning the truth about
Jesus in works of art ranging from medieval
cathedrals to modern cartoons.

Brown's popularity is largely due to his skillful
presentation of feminist themes. He depicts Mary
Magdalene as a woman slandered by the early church
leaders as a prostitute, but who was actually
married to Jesus, bore his children, and served as
a leader in the early church. She is put forward
as validation of the feminist claims that women
have been repressed and dominated by the authority
of men throughout history.

Perhaps for Christians the most disturbing
assertion of the book is that Emperor Constantine
maneuvered the editing of biblical texts to
fabricate the doctrine of Christ's divinity at the
Council of Nicea in 325. "Until that moment in
history, according to the novel, Jesus was viewed
by His followers as a mortal prophet ... a great
and powerful man, but a man nonetheless." (p.233)

Art versus Truth

The skill with which Brown weaves his tale is what
makes The Da Vinci Code so dangerous. Undiscerning
readers may well become so drawn into the intrigue
of the narrative that they forget to critically
consider what is being put forward as historical
fact. Tragically, our society since the 1960s has
tended to embrace anything that positions itself
as an attack on the status quo. The Da Vinci Code
plays into this liberal bias.

For Christians, The Da Vinci Code represents the
best example of a movement which is threatening
the church on many fronts, the confusion between
that which is emotionally compelling and that
which is actually true. Much deviant theology is
presented today in music, drama, and literature.
This approach is at the heart of narrative
preaching, which has largely eclipsed the
presentation of Scripture in many pulpits.
Packaging error artistically in an appeal to the
emotions, heretics are able to get their lies into
the hearts and minds of people with little
resistance.

To be faithful to God, Christians must learn to
look beyond the emotional appeal of the packaging.
We must develop the strength of character to look
beyond the superficial and ask the central
question, What has God told us in His word? As
God's children, we must stand firmly in God's
truth.

----
Read this article online, tell us what you think,
see who"s commenting, click here:
forthright.antville.org/stories/685130/
----

You can help us get the word out. Here"s how:
forthright.antville.org/stories/340415/

Posted by: ba <ba@...>

Forthright Magazine
http://www.forthright.net
Straight to the Cross

COLUMN: Heavenly Connections

A Path to the Future
by Tim Hall

I recently received an e-mail with a very tough
report: A preaching colleague had just learned he
may have cancer. He's a fairly young man with a
wife and children, but his future is suddenly not
so clear. To make matters worse, the family has no
health insurance; they just can't afford the
premiums. What now?

Dr. Jerome Groopman is the author of the book,
"The Anatomy of Hope". As one who deals with
cancer patients, he knows the important role hope
plays in people overwhelmed with trials. When
asked to define "hope", he responded: "Basically,
I think hope is the ability to see a path to the
future" (U.S. News & World Report, January 26,
2004).

That's a metaphor that makes sense. Sometimes we
find ourselves at a dead end with nowhere to turn.
We see no options before us. Such a situation can
lead to despair. It's a crushing feeling when we
have no hope.

You know very well that Christians are not immune
to life's problems. The fellow I mentioned above
demonstrates that. But Christians have one thing
that others don't: Faith in a God who promises to
open for us a path.

He did it for Israel as they were fleeing Egypt.
They had come to a dead end, the shores of the Red
Sea. As they surveyed their situation, they heard
hoofbeats behind them. Their hearts sank as they
searched in vain for a pathway of escape. But God
had not forgotten His people. He opened a path
through the sea where there had been none before.
Just a few hours later they were singing songs of
victory. (Read Exodus 14 and 15 for the stirring
account.)

Israel's almighty God is our God. He still has the
power to open pathways. Paul wrote of that
promise: "And we know that God causes all things
to work together for good to those who love God,
to those who are called according to His purpose"
(Rom. 8:28, NASV). "All things" in this verse may
include bad events, as well as good. But these do
not represent dead ends, for God is always present
to open up a path. We can't see that path to the
future, but we know without any doubt that God is
there.

When a person is convinced there is no hope, life
becomes dark and miserable. Thanks be to God that
we never have to reach such a conclusion!

"For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is
for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy
comes in the morning" (Ps. 30:5, NKJV).

----
Read this article online, tell us what you think,
see who"s commenting, click here:
forthright.antville.org/stories/698916/
----

COLUMN: Outlines of Faith

The Da Vinci Code
by Greg Tidwell

Dan Brown's best-seller, The Da Vinci Code is
delightful as a novel. His compelling plot and
quick vignettes move along effortlessly in a story
cast upon a backdrop of Western History. The
cultural allusions which punctuate the narrative
provide intellectual stimulation without
overburdening the story with unwelcome
sophistication.

Heretical Fiction

For Christians, however, The Da Vinci Code
presents a real challenge, in spite of its
literary merits. Brown casts his story as
historical fiction, based on the Gnostic Gospels,
early heretical writings unearthed over the past
century. Using these Gnostic texts as a starting-
point, Brown claims that Jesus wed Mary Magdalene
and had children by her who were hidden away in
France, the early church leaders keeping these
details under wraps because they would discourage
worship of Jesus as God.

According to the novel, this truth about Jesus has
been preserved by an underground movement called
"The Priory of Sion". Many great figures of
ancient and modern history, ranging from Leonardo
da Vinci to Walt Disney, were allegedly members,
placing symbolic clues concerning the truth about
Jesus in works of art ranging from medieval
cathedrals to modern cartoons.

Brown's popularity is largely due to his skillful
presentation of feminist themes. He depicts Mary
Magdalene as a woman slandered by the early church
leaders as a prostitute, but who was actually
married to Jesus, bore his children, and served as
a leader in the early church. She is put forward
as validation of the feminist claims that women
have been repressed and dominated by the authority
of men throughout history.

Perhaps for Christians the most disturbing
assertion of the book is that Emperor Constantine
maneuvered the editing of biblical texts to
fabricate the doctrine of Christ's divinity at the
Council of Nicea in 325. "Until that moment in
history, according to the novel, Jesus was viewed
by His followers as a mortal prophet ... a great
and powerful man, but a man nonetheless." (p.233)

Art versus Truth

The skill with which Brown weaves his tale is what
makes The Da Vinci Code so dangerous. Undiscerning
readers may well become so drawn into the intrigue
of the narrative that they forget to critically
consider what is being put forward as historical
fact. Tragically, our society since the 1960s has
tended to embrace anything that positions itself
as an attack on the status quo. The Da Vinci Code
plays into this liberal bias.

For Christians, The Da Vinci Code represents the
best example of a movement which is threatening
the church on many fronts, the confusion between
that which is emotionally compelling and that
which is actually true. Much deviant theology is
presented today in music, drama, and literature.
This approach is at the heart of narrative
preaching, which has largely eclipsed the
presentation of Scripture in many pulpits.
Packaging error artistically in an appeal to the
emotions, heretics are able to get their lies into
the hearts and minds of people with little
resistance.

To be faithful to God, Christians must learn to
look beyond the emotional appeal of the packaging.
We must develop the strength of character to look
beyond the superficial and ask the central
question, What has God told us in His word? As
God's children, we must stand firmly in God's
truth.

----
Read this article online, tell us what you think,
see who"s commenting, click here:
forthright.antville.org/stories/685130/
----

You can help us get the word out. Here"s how:
forthright.antville.org/stories/340415/