Twenty-five years ago I read Elaine Pagels’ The Gnostic Gospels in order to understand the inroads made by Gnosticism in early church history. The seeds of Gnosticism can be found in the first century, although the full-blown system would not develop until the second century. At the time I was studying this early enemy of Christianity, little did I know that within a few years Gnosticism would mount a major resurgence. That very few could identify any of the teaching of Gnosticism, or even define it, is irrelevant. Gnosticism has sneaked in the backdoor of our culture’s consciousness and nowhere more effectively than in Dan Brown’s novel, The DaVinci Code.
The DaVinci Code is a full-scale attack on the person of Jesus and, in turn, the Christian faith. To diminish the effects of this attack Erwin Lutzer has written a helpful little book giving, as he says, “Credible answers to the questions millions are asking about Jesus, the Bible, and the DaVinci code.” In The DaVinci Deception you will find the basic plot and agenda of Brown’s book, the source used by Brown to develop his agenda and a biblical and historical defense against Brown’s claims and accusations. Along the way the reader will learn much about some of the early church councils and the canonization process of both the Old and New Testaments. You will find that Brown has not “played fair” with the historical data and that many of his claims are pure fiction. In addition, Lutzer presents the true gospel message. All of this in a mere 117 pages.
I believe this is an excellent book to give to those who might be troubled by the fabrication of The DaVinci Code—or, better yet, as an evangelistic tool for those who have read the novel and want some answers.