Three Brigham Young University Ancient Scripture professors have examined the factual assertions of the Da Vinci Code in a new book released this month and have determined that the book is bent on rewriting the past.  Commentary abounds among Catholics, Protestants and even Baptists about the controversial theories postured in the book The Da Vinci Code and the upcoming movie, but this is the first close examination of the book by LDS scholars.

"Readers are being exposed to a revisionist view of Jesus of Nazareth.  The Da Vinci Code draws heavily upon radical New Testament scholars who have dedicated their lives to redefining who Jesus was and what he did," says Thomas Wayment, BYU professor of ancient scripture and co-author of the new book What Da Vinci Didn't' Know: An LDS Perspective (Deseret Book, Softcover, $13.95).  "This fringe of radical scholars is bent on rewriting the past."

Wayment, along with fellow BYU colleagues and co-authors Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Andrew Skinner, believe that Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown crossed the line from fiction to unbridled speculation when he added statements such as "All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in this novel are accurate." (The Da Vinci Code, p. 1).

When The Da Vinci Code is regarded as anything more than fiction it changes the discussion – and not for the better.  "When it states categorically that Jesus is married, it also claims that the Roman Catholic Church covered up the facts about that marriage to protect the divinity of a very human Jesus," states the authors.  "Celibacy was never a requirement for divinity," they add.

What Da Vinci Didn't Know addresses a multitude of questions, such as:  Did Christ marry and have children? Did Jesus intend, as the novel contends, that Mary Magdalene, instead of Peter, be the head of His church?  Or has there been a long-standing conspiracy among religious leaders to portray Jesus of Nazareth as divine when he was actually a mere mortal?  And what exactly does Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting The Last Supper tell us about these matters?

In the book, these three respected, take a hard look at the historical evidence and evaluate Brown's controversial and often inflammatory points of view.

As one example, on the question of whether Christ was married the authors point out that there is simply no evidence to confirm one way or the other. Other than the discussion that Christ visited the temple as a twelve-year-old boy, there is actually no information in the four Gospels about the first thirty years of Jesus' life, so any argument about His life during this period is an argument from silence.

The Da Vinci Code cites references from the Gospel of Philip and the Gospel of Mary as a place of historical verification of Jesus' marriage. The original cited passage from the Gospel of Philip, however, has so many problems with preservation and gaps in sentences that the true meaning of statements found therein cannot point to any definitive statement of fact.

The authors also remind us that the Holy Grail was actually a set of virtues, values, principles, and concepts that were the ideal in medieval Christianity and epitomized the pure, perfectly moral life of the true Christian warrior and not a cup on a shelf.

Holzapfel, Skinner and Wayment appear to think that The Da Vinci Code completely reorients the quest for the Holy Grail. Original Grail legends discuss the search for and communion with God and the desire to kneel before Him with pure hearts. In The Da Vinci Code, "the quest for the Holy Grail is literally the quest to kneel before the bones of Mary Magdalene." (The Da Vinci Code, p. 257)

As to the question of whether Mary Magdalene is portrayed in The Last Supper, Holzapfel, Skinner and Wayment are bold in their position.  Mary Magdalene was not included in Da Vinci's rendition of "The Last Supper."  "The Da Vinci Code's uniquely outlandish idea about something art historians universally agree upon [is a] bizarre interpretation to blatantly misrepresent, distort, and completely fabricate the past," they say.

The authors claim that Dan Brown's interpretation of the painting is completely speculative. They continue, "What is certain is that we cannot accept the possibility that anyone can simply look at the painting and offer his or her own conjecture without some controls because, on certain points, we have no way to prove or disprove a speculative interpretation."

Ultimately Holzapfel, Skinner and Wayment appreciate the discussion and interest The Da Vinci Code has sparked in religion. They, with millions of other readers, enjoyed the suspense of the novel, the complex character development and the intricately woven plot. However, they have been concerned about the popular treatment of sacred subjects and so present the reader with a careful historical analysis that will help dispel some of the intrigue surrounding the finer points of the book.

In short, these authors seem to allow the reader some room to speculate, but debunk clearly erroneous matters. The book of fiction has been carefully crafted to include some fact, but as with all good stories, there is always a requirement to stretch the truth to improve audience appeal.

About the Authors:

Richard Neitzel Holzapfel is the managing director of the Religious Studies Center publication office and professor of church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University. He received his Ph.D. in Ancient History at the University of California Irvine, and his current research focuses on ancient and modern scripture and Church history. He is the author or co-author of several books about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Andrew C. Skinner serves as the director of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship and professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University. He holds a master's degree in theology from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in history from the University of Denver and is the author or co-author of numerous books on the New Testament and Jesus Christ.


Thomas A. Wayment is an assistant professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University. He received his Ph.D. in New Testament Studies from Claremont Graduate University, and continues his research on the life of Jesus and the formation of the early Christian Church. He is the co-editor of three books on the ministry of Christ and the editor of The Complete Joseph Smith Translation of the New Testament: A Side-by-Side Comparison with the King James Version.

About the Book:

What Da Vinci Didn't Know: An LDS Perspective
By: Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Andrew C. Skinner, and Thomas A. Wayment
Published by Deseret Book
Paperback, 124 pages
Price: $13.95
ISBN 10: 1-59038-608-6
ISBN 13: 978-1-59038-608-8