The Da Vinci Fraud

by Robert M. Price

Was Leonardo Da Vinci a member of the "Priory of Sion," a secret society reaching all the way back to the Crusades? Does his famous painting, The Last Supper, contain a hidden code about this society's most precious secret? Did Jesus father children by Mary Magdalene? What was the Holy Grail?

The best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown has stirred the popular imagination by cleverly interweaving theories about such questions with a fast-paced fictional narrative. Many readers have been so swept away by the drama of this murder mystery that they have accepted Brown's fictional reconstruction of Christian origins and medieval history as established fact.

New Testament scholar Robert M. Price, a member of the prestigious Jesus Seminar, examines the creative uses of history in Brown's novel, showing that, however intriguing Brown's fictional speculations may be, the real facts behind the novel are even more fascinating.

What does the best historical evidence say about the possibility that Jesus might have survived the crucifixion? How did the Gospels come to be accepted as the established accounts of Jesus' life and why were other Gnostic traditions suppressed? How did the Roman Emperor Constantine figure in the development of Christian dogma? What was Mary Magdalene's role in early Christianity and how was it adapted in later attempts to develop a "sacred feminine" element in Christianity? These are some of the important questions about Christianity that Dr. Price pursues in this engrossing discussion of Christian history.

Price combines sophisticated historical analysis with completely accessible and witty prose in this enlightening, factually based analysis of Brown's speculative bestseller.

Genres: Nonfiction

297 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2005

About the author

Robert McNair Price is an American theologian and writer. He teaches philosophy and religion at the Johnnie Colemon Theological Seminary, is professor of biblical criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute, and the author of a number of books on theology and the historicity of Jesus, asserting the Christ myth theory.

A former Baptist minister, he was the editor of the Journal of Higher Criticism from 1994 until it ceased publication in 2003. He has also written extensively about the Cthulhu Mythos, a "shared universe" created by H.P. Lovecraft.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 2 out of 5]

The biggest problem that I have with this book is that the author seems to have a major axe to grind with Dan Brown and spends an excessive time unnecessarily ripping apart The Da Vinci Code. It's almost like the author is treating The Da Vinci Code as if it is an academic work and not a work of fiction.

There are much better books out there that separate fact from fiction in the Da Vinci Code while still recognizing the book for what it is.

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite my antipathy of organized religion, I have always been fascinated by and read several works on New Testament research and scholarship. Robert Price's The Da Vinci Fraud uses the opportunity presented by Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code as a framework to try to engage a wider audience in a discussion of the origins and history of Christianity and the New Testament.[return][return]Price, a fellow in the Jesus Seminar, does not concentrate on whether Leonardo da Vinci or other notables were members of some secret society devoted to protecting the idea that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene married and their offspring gave rise to the Merovingian dynasty. Likewise, he does not explore whether da Vinci's "The Last Supper" actually contains clues as to this version of "history" and Mary Magdalene's role in Christianity. Instead, his book is a straightforward and generally very readable analysis of the theories espoused by Brown's characters and their viability in light of New Testament history and research.[return][return]Balance of review at http://prairieprogressive.com/?p=575

[Mirrordance · Rating 1 out of 5]

Confesso di avere molta poca pazienza ultimamente con i libri. Se non scorrono, se mi annoiano non mi faccio troppi scrupoli a mollarli. Di questo non sono proprio riuscita a superare pagina 50. Dopo aver letto il codice da Vinci ed essermi domandata quanto avesse il seppur minimo fondamento e quanto fosse piu'che fittizio ed accessorio per il costrutto narrativo, questo libro sembrava proprio quello di cui avevo bisogno. mi aspettavo una dissertazione se non proprio accademica, almeno discorsiva e documentata ma tutto quello che sono riuscita a leggere e'stato il continuo reiterare sugli "errori" (dolosi o meno) di Brown e su quanto la realta' sia piu' stupefacente del racconto. La sensazione che si ha leggendo e': "va bene, ok, brown si e' inventato tutto (infin dei conti stava scrivendo un romanzo non un trattato storico), possiamo passare al dunque?".

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't agree with all of Price's conclusions, but I found this book very thought provoking.