I know you guys have been waiting a long time for us to discuss this set of books. I haven’t forgotten about my promise to discuss them but I have to say this one was even tougher than the Twilight Series. I have researched and read the books. I have researched Dan Brown. I just can’t find an interesting angle on this set of books. It isn’t that I don’t find the subject matter interesting. I am a lover of mysteries and thrillers so technically I should love this set of books. I also have to say that I have seen the Tom Hanks movies on the first two books and enjoyed both of them very much. I read all the way through The Da Vinci Code and found myself enthralled by the end of the book. I had already seen the movie Angels and Demons before reading the book and so I couldn’t bear to finish the book because it was so close to the movie that it just seemed redundant. I liked the movie very much though. I have been trying to read The Lost Symbol for a while now and can’t seem to get past the first third of the book. I think part of the problem is that this book seems much more technical and scientific than the other two. I find my mind wondering when he first starts discussing what Catherine does in the secret pod she uses as an office. That said I would like to discuss some of the points I do find interesting in the series.
I think as a whole it is interesting to consider that the premise of these books could be true. I for one had read several books and done some research about Jesus as an adult before reading The Da Vinci Code. I found it hard not to consider the possibility that he would have had a wife and possibly a child. When you think about it he lived in a time when Jewish men were expected to be married and have children. It would have been a point of contention in his culture had he not been married or a father. In my mind it would not have lessened my belief in Him as the Christ of the Bible. However, I also considered and realized that he was born for a purpose. He may not have known that purpose as a child but I would think that by the time he was 33 he was well aware of what he was going to be doing. He would also realize that a wife and child or children would not only make his calling more difficult but it would also create a situation where he would have to leave this family. I don’t imagine that he would wish that on anyone. I think he knew what he was born for and what his Father had in store for him and he was tunnel visioned in his determination to complete his task. These are the reasons I can’t believe he was married and had children with Mary Magdalene.
I also find it interesting to consider the existence of anti-matter. I am not an avid scientist and quite frankly I am not that interested in how things work. I am however interested in how people work. I found the storyline of the Vatican covering up scientific strides to be one that is very believable. I loved the part of the book where the Carmelengo asks "But who is more ignorant? The man who cannot define lightning, or the man who does not respect its awesome power?" I loved the speech that Dan Brown wrote for the Carmelengo! I found so many parts of that speech that spoke to me. I love that he was able to blend the need for science and the church. I also loved the line "Show me proof there is a God, you say. I say use your telescopes to look to the heavens, and tell me how there could not be a God!" Amazing! This is the exact fight I have in my heart all the time. I think about the intellect of the existence of God and laugh at how silly it all sounds and then I see the intricacies of the human body and laugh that I could even question how it was made. I think that the issues that the Vatican faces in the modern world are because of their failure to embrace the fact that people long for information about God and in our modern world they will not just accept things as stated by the Vatican.
I guess in the end what I love about this series is that it makes people question what they believe, it makes them search for more information of proof one way or the other and it makes people realize that each person is responsible in the end for their own beliefs. We should never turn our faith over to any one church or church leader. These books help people to see that perhaps faith in a human, fallible leader to facilitate our relationship with God can only lead to hurt and let down. People are flawed and they often do things that are beyond the comprehension of others. These books show in interesting ways that point. I would still love to hear what you guys have to say about the books. I would love to know if you find them to be believable or simply works of fiction. What parts do you find most believable and what parts are just too outrageous to ever occur? Do you think that his books got progressively more interesting or do you think that he became too technical and scientific? Thanks for hanging on so long for this discussion. I really wanted to do more with these books but I just couldn’t get much out of them. I can’t wait to hear what you guys have to say! Enjoy!
