The Protestant doctrine of sola scriptura, simply put, is the belief that the Bible, the Word of God alone is the final authority in all matters of Christian faith and practice.  Where Popes or church councils have seemed to violate the plain meaning of Scripture on these matters, it is Scripture alone that has the power of veto, it does not stand side by side in authority with tradition.

The most common objection I have heard from Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox brothers to this doctrine is that it is not itself found in Scripture.  Nor is the list (canon) of books that ought to count as Scripture found in Scripture.  At first brush this seems rather embarrassing, if not outright contradictory.  But I feel this objection has been given far more attention than it deserves, and here I will attempt a brief response.

First, a simple but all too important point must be made:  There are many items of true knowledge to be found outside of the Scriptures, and we can know them.  My belief that the external world exists (including the Bible I'm holding in my hands) is one such item of knowledge.  But this belief, it could be argued, is found at least implicitly within Scripture.  Fair enough.  Another example would be the deliverances of modern Science, or of History beyond the date of the last New Testament book.  The Bible is neither a Science nor a History textbook.  But no one would attempt to argue that the doctrine of sola scriptura precludes Christians from engaging in and learning from these disciplines.  

Likewise, I see no reason why the list of books determined to be canonical or the doctrine of sola scriptura itself cannot be such items of knowledge, arrived at by sound arguments and the use of God-given reason.  

To illustrate the point, one need only study church history.  In the earliest days after the Apostles, there were a few books widely accepted as Scripture (such as the letters of Clement and the Shepherd of Hermas).  There was no single council convened to answer the question of which books belonged in the canon and which did not.  There were several, some with slightly differing opinions than others.  There were also prominent individuals who compiled their own lists (such as Athanasius, who was probably the first whose list comprised only and all of the 27 books we now call the New Testament).  What is important to note about all of these is that each group or individual offered arguments on behalf of their selections.  The church did not arbitrarily pick which books it liked and which it didn't.  Good reasons were given for including books like Revelation and excluding Clement and Hermas, and in the end, the best arguments won the day.  And very recently, such arguments came in handy once more, as many Christians, especially Catholics, had to rebut the claims of the best selling Da Vinci Code.  

If this was sufficient to convince the church at the time, why not now?  Why now must infallible church authority  be added to the mix in order for us to be confident that we have the right canon?  Catholic and Orthodox Christians readily admit that the church never sat down and self-consciously used its belief in its own infallible authority to declare the canon into existence by fiat.  So why is infallibility necessary to be confident in the reliability of the canon today?  This at least seems to lead us to the conclusion that the list of books belonging in the canon need not be in Scripture itself in order for sola scriptura to be coherent. 

But what of the original charge, that sola scriptura itself is not discovered by Scripture alone?  Again, this objection simply misses the point.  If I have good reason to believe, based on the best evidence (both historical and logical) that the Bible (in its final, canonized form) is the infallible Word of God, and moreover, if I likewise have good reason to believe, based on the best evidence, that no other earthly institution bears the mark of divine infallibility, then sola scriptura follows quite naturally.  It is a deliverance of sound argument and reason, and need not be found in Scripture itself (which would be circular anyway).  

***

As a side note, it's worth pointing out that whatever can be said in favor of church infallibility can likewise be said in favor of the infallibility of Scripture, and whatever can be said against the doctrine of sola scriptura can likewise be said against the infallibility of the church.  Consider, upon what basis does the church claim infallible authority?  If the basis is on either tradition or Scripture (which is really a written derivation of tradition anyway), then the argument is circular.  But if the basis is upon reason (or even faith...which are by no means opposed), then whatever can be said for church infallibility can be said for sola scriptura. 

(I recognize that my Catholic and Orthodox brothers have other concerns with sola scriptura, but in this brief post I meant only to deal with this one common objection). 

I noticed an interesting cultural indicator when I compared domestic and foreign box office totals last week, and I see today that it's still holding true.

 

I think people will have different reactions to the results for these two movies, but nobody can deny that they do say a few things:

 

X-Men 3 Box Office Totals (as of June 2)

Domestic - $151,731,000

Foreign - $84,673,662

 

The DaVinci Code Box Office Totals (as of June 2)

Domestic - $158,471,000

Foreign - $317,479,155

 

Believe it or not, I think the two are related.

I read and reviewed 13 of the books responding to The Da Vinci Code in an effort to weed out the good from the poor. I acknowledge that I missed a few, but I’m out of time and motivation :) I graded each book according to 5 categories, as explained below: Readability- There are some technical textual, historical, and historical discussions revolving around the claims of the novel. How well are these adapted so that the reader can grasp them yet learn something? Is the author’s writing style clear and engaging? Arguments- Does the author provide sound evidence to back up his or her claims? How well are the arguments put together? Are they persuasive? Diversity- Does the author sufficiently cover all of the significant issues brought up by the novel? Resourceability- Is the book easily used as an informative resource? This would include indexes, references to websites and other books, study guides, glossaries, etc. Gnosticism/Sacred Feminine- Though The Da Vinci Code makes a number of serious claims, most serious is its promotion of the Gnostic worldview. How well does the author explain and critique Gnosticism and “the sacred feminine”?
Book	Review	Readability	Arguments	Diversity	Resourceability	Gnosticism	Total %
Breaking the Da Vinci Code by Darrell Bock	Review	8	8	8	7	6	77
The Truth Behind the Da Vinci Code by Richard Abanes	Review	9	9	10	3	3	68
The Da Vinci Code: Fact or Ficiton? by Hank Hanegraaff and Paul Maier	Review	10	9	10	9	6	88
Cracking Da Vinci's Code by James Garlow & Peter Jones	Review	10	10	10	8	10	96
Reinventing Jesus by J. Ed Komoszewski, M. James Sawyer, & Daniel Wallace	Review	10	10	8	10	6	88
Exploring the Da Vinci Code by Lee Strobel & Garry Poole	Review	10	8	7	10	6	82
De-Coding Da Vinci by Amy Welborn	Review	10	7	10	7	7	82
Truth and Fiction in the Da Vinci Code by Bart Ehrman	Review	9	7	7	3	6	64
The Gospel According to the Da Vinci Code by Kenneth Boa & John Alan Turner	Review	9	7	7	2	4	58
The Gospel Code by Ben Witherington III	Review	10	9	9	8	9	90
The Da Vinci Deception by Erwin Lutzer	Review	10	4	7	7	7	70
The Da Vinci CodeBreaker by James Garlow	Review	10	8	10	8	9	90
The Da Vinci Myth versus the Gospel Truth by D. James Kennedy & Jerry Newcombe	Review	9	6	7	3	4	58
Discussing the Da Vinci Cdoe DVD Kit	Review	10	9	7	10	6	84
The Da Vinci Deception Experience DVD Kit	Review	10	5	7	10	5	74

Of the books I reviewed, Cracking Da Vinci’s Code was by far the best. The authors understood the importance of dealing with the Gnostic worldview as well as the other issues. It provides a compelling defense of Christianity without going over peoples’ heads.

For those who are looking for a brief analysis of the novel, The Da Vinci Code: Fact or Fiction? is a short but quality critique and defense of Christianity. Being only $5.99, it works for the financially challenged as well.

Reinventing Jesus is perhaps the most academic response I reviewed, covering many technical details of textual criticism, history and theology. However, it’s also very accessible and is a good introduction to those areas for those who might be looking to dig deeper.

There are primarily two DVD curriculum’s available. One by Erwin Lutzer and one by Lee Strobel. While Lutzer’s has an excellent leader’s guide, Strobel’s Discussing the Da Vinci Code is far better in terms of content. Students will find it engaging and insightful as they learn from real scholars who skillfully defend the Christian faith.

The Da Vinci Code is “a broadside attack on the basic foundations of the Christian religion and Western civilation…” (10) So say D. James Kenney and Jerry Newcombe. In their book, The Da Vinci Myth versus the Gospel Truth, they seek to expose the problems with the novel and provide a positive case for Christianity.

The book consists of six chapters. The authors being with an explanation of the novel and an analysis of the claims it makes. In the chapter three, they seek to explain why The Da Vinci Code has been so popular. Next they offer arguments for why people should accept the Bible as God’s inspired word and historical evidences for the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. They close with an explanation of the Gospel message.

What’s unique about this book are the last three chapters. Though the arguments can be found in many apologetics books, the arguments are nevertheless quality reasons for believing in the divine inspiration of the Bible and the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. The rest of the book is not as noteworthy. Several points of sarcasm detract from the book’s quality, such as in discussing the votes at the Council of Nicea being 316 to 2,” Two! Now that is really a very close vote: only two voted against the Nicene Council. Gee! We may have to have a revote on that.” (22) There were also a few editorial errors.

With several great responses to The Da Vinci Code already available, The Da Vinci Myth versus the Gospel Truth is a book to pass by. It lacks a thorough critique of the pagan worldview issues involved with the novel and even its good points can be found in better apologetics resources.

The Da Vinci Code Breaker is the first reference style response to The Da Vinci Code. Formatted much like a miniature encyclopedia, it claims to provide information on over five hundred facts and terms.

Entries in this book range from one sentence to several paragraphs. They cover historical persons, church councils, and even contemporary writers and their critics. It also covers early church, Gnostic, and other apocryphal writings and concepts. Charts are provided periodically for help in breaking down complex topics, such as the content of the Nag Hammadi Library. For a few select individuals, timelines are constructed highlighting important points in their lives. At the back of the book are a few maps and advertisements for additional resources.

Not only is The Da Vinci Code Breaker unique in its format, it’s also unique in quality. It covers every issue, item, and person relevant to the subject in an accessible and informative manner. It helps delineate the facts from the fiction in an easy-to-use format, as it claims. Whether it’s used on its own or in conjunction with other responses to Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code Breaker is a necessary resource for those who seek to be informed about the truth.

“We are facing a serious revolution regarding some of the long-held truths about Jesus, early Christianity and the Bible.” (11) This understatement sets the framework for Ben Witherington III’s book, The Gospel Code. Thus, the book is divided into three parts focusing on Jesus in Part One, Mary and Gnosticism in Part Two, and the canon of scripture in Part Three.

Dr. Witherington recognizes that cultural context in which these ideas are being challenged, and reflects on them in light of it: “What counts in a postmodern culture is the power of rhetoric, not the accuracy of reporting or analysis.” (21) In each of the areas he covers, Dr. Witherington explains the current debates and interacts with the work of well-known proponents of opposing views; such as Elaine Pagels and Marcus Borg. At the end of the book is a glossary and subject and Scripture indexes.

I was pleasantly surprised with how good this book was. While there were a couple of points I disagreed with, for the most part Dr. Witherington takes sophisticated scholarly debates, makes them accessible to a lay audience, and convincingly defends the historic Christian position. He provides a quality analysis of Gnosticism and “the sacred feminine.” Overall, The Gospel Code is one of the better books that offer a serious response to The Da Vinci Code and recent critical scholarship.

Since large portions of the Da Vinci Code novel consist of one character sitting the others down for extensive lectures on the "facts" of history, I wondered how well the story would translate to the big screen.  Apparently, not well.

 

Just look at these quotes from the article "'Da Vinci Code' misses the mark for Cannes critics" about the recent screening in France:

 

"The Da Vinci Code" drew lukewarm praise, shrugs of indifference, some jeering laughter and a few derisive jabs Tuesday from arguably the world's toughest movie crowd: critics at the Cannes Film Festival....

 

The Cannes audience clearly grew restless as the movie dragged on to two and a half hours and spun a long sequence of anticlimactic revelations.

 

"I kept thinking of the Energizer Bunny, because it kept going and going and going, and not in a good way," said James Rocchi, a film critic for CBS 5 television in San Francisco and the online outlet Cinematical....

 

One especially melodramatic line uttered by Hanks drew prolonged laughter and some catcalls, and the audience continued to titter for much of the film's remainder.

 

A friend of mine has been predicting the movie's a stinker based on its ubiquitous advertising campaign.  If there's one thing the filmmakers don't need to spend money on, it's publicity...unless, of course, they know something we don't.

 

Now granted, the reaction of Cannes critics may be far from that of the person on the street, but maybe not.  We've been fighting it with truth, but it could very well be that this movie has enough weapons of cheese to bring itself down.  Which leaves us with this disturbing question…have we Christians now ensured that everyone will see this movie regardless of how bad it is?

People throughout recent history have questioned who Jesus really was. Erwin Lutzer believes The Da Vinci Code offers a Jesus that is contrary to the real Jesus. In The Da Vinci Deception, Lutzer seeks to set the record straight, showing how much fiction is really in the novel.

Before analyzing the novel, Lutzer provides a summary of the narrative. The following six chapters address the Council of Nicea, the Gnostic Bible, Jesus’ relationship with Mary Magdalene, the New Testament canon, the “Historical Jesus” debate, and the accusation that Christianity borrowed from pagan mythology. He concludes with a presentation of the Gospel based on the real Jesus and what He did. At the end of the book is a short list of resources and some discussion questions for each chapter.

Erwin Lutzer’s book, The Da Vinci Deception, covers the most of the major problems with Dan Brown’s novel, including Gnosticism. It is very accessible, but also very simplistic. This is a good book for those who just want the basics, but readers should look elsewhere for a more in-depth critique of The Da Vinci Code.

The Da Vinci Deception Experience is a media curriculum kit that consists of three items: the book The Da Vinci Deception by Erwin Lutzer, a leader’s guide, and a DVD-ROM. Since the book is primarily marketed independent of this curriculum, I will be reviewing it separately.

The DVD curriculum follows the material of The Da Vinci Deception book. Thus, it is primarily divided into the seven chapters of the book, each forming a session on the DVD. The first session is a 17-minute introduction to the material. The following six sessions are six minutes each addressing the Council of Nicea, the Gnostic Bible, Jesus’ relationship with Mary Magdalene, the New Testament canon, the “Historical Jesus” debate, and the accusation that Christianity borrowed from pagan mythology. The airtime in these sessions is given almost completely to Erwin Lutzer who addresses the concerns in each of these areas.

The leader’s guide provides a thorough schedule for working through the material. For each season, it includes suggested group questions, games, handouts, chapter summaries from the book, teaching material, homework assignments, and lists of additional resources.

On one hand, the material covered is very simplistic. It may work for people not very familiar with the academic discussions, but will probably not do for dealing with some of the more thoughtful critics. Though the DVD is very accessible, it’s also tedious. On the other hand, the leader’s guide is exceptional. I don’t think there’s anything more a leader could ask for in a curriculum.

The Da Vinci Deception Experience will be useful for those church or small group leaders who want to educate their people will the very basics of responding to Dan Brown’s novel. Though the leader’s material isn’t as good, I recommend Lee Strobel’s curriculum (Discussing the Da Vinci Code) as a richer educational experience.

Most of the responses to The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown deal strictly with facts (or the lack thereof). But what about the big picture? What does the novel communicate and how has it impacted our culture? As Christians, how ought we to respond? The Gospel According to the Da Vinci Code by Kenneth Boa and John Alan Turner seeks to answer these questions.

While the novel is actually fiction, our culture is such that many people treat it as non-fiction. “What Dan Brown says he believes is fundamentally incompatible with historic, orthodox Christianity. However, in a pluralistic society such as ours, millions of people seem to think you can pick and choose your beliefs like toppings on your pizza.” (2)

Through their introduction and 12 chapters, Boa and Turner analyze the problems The Da Vinci Code presents in our current culture and how Christians should respond. “So what is the gospel according to Dan Brown? Simply put, ‘Everything you’ve ever heard about Jesus is wrong.’” (23) They discuss postmodernism, truth, and history, while pointing out Brown’s problems and errors.

The authors ask, “What Would Jesus Do With Dan Brown?” (90) They essentially boil down the proper Christian response to “We’ve got to stop being foolish. We’ve got to stop being tacky. And we’ve got to stop being mean.” (118) Though they deal a few of the errors in Brown’s novel, they point to Darrell Bock’s Breaking the Da Vinci Code for a more thorough critique.

There are a number of great points throughout the book, such as, “Saying that Dan Brown’s book is about Christianity is like saying Finding Nemo is about marine biology. We have just as much evidence to suggest Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene as we have that clown fish talk.” (25) The authors also get points for using Jack Bauer as an illustration (102-103).

Unfortunately, these good points are counterbalanced by poor ones. In at least one case they esteem a cheesy slogan as good methodology: “people do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.” (106) The book doesn’t appear to have a logical structure and often switches focus without reason. The authors make some brief points about Gnosticism and “the sacred feminine,” but no thorough analysis of those topics is offered.

The Gospel According to the Da Vinci Code has periodic good points to offer, particularly in regards to the status of our culture. In that sense, it succeeds in dealing with the big picture. However, readers would be better off reading a book responding to the historical claims and pagan worldview of The Da Vinci Code.