Book Review: The Da Vinci Fraud

Although cast in the realm of fiction, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code at least cracked open the door to discussion and thought about traditional views of Jesus of Nazareth. At the same time, it created the potential to obscure potentially legitimate ideas in the mire of a fictional mishmash. Robert Price is one New Testament scholar who seizes upon the opportunity Brown's work presents to try to engage a wider audience in a discussion of the origins of Christianity.

Price's entry in this field is The Da Vinci Fraud. The title may be a bit misleading as Price stays largely within his particular area of expertise. A fellow in the Jesus Seminar, Price's work does not concentrate on whether Leonardo da Vinci or other notables were members of some secret society devoted to protecting the secret that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene married and gave rise to the Merovingian dynasty of France. 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, The Da Vinci Fraud is a straightforward and generally very readable analysis of the validity of the theories espoused by Brown's characters and how they correlate with research into the evolution and history of New Testament.

Price, who occasionally goes by the moniker "The Bible Geek," writes with the nonspecialist in mind and takes a logical approach to the subject. He first deconstructs Brown's sources. His critical analysis of those works shows not only gaping holes but some of the leaps of logic — if not faith — they make to reach their conclusions. (Two authors of perhaps the leading work have sued Brown for plagiarism in a case set to go to trial this February). Then, because much of Brown's conglomeration of theories supposes the Holy Grail is a reference to Mary Magadelene carrying the child of Christ, he explores the history of the Grail legend and what it tells us about Brown's work and the concepts upon which it is based. It is only after laying this groundwork that Price gets to the meat of his topic — what history, the apocryphal works ultimately excluded from the Bible, and objective analysis of the content and evolution of the Bible tell us about Jesus and his life, Mary Magadelene and Christianity as a whole.

Article Author: Tim Gebhart

Tim Gebhart lives in Sioux Falls, SD, where he practices law in order to provide shelter for his family, his dogs, and his books. He is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and his blog de guerre is A Progressive on the Prairie.

Visit Tim Gebhart's author page — Tim Gebhart's Blog