Friday, October 9, 2009

Ben Witherington Reviews The Lost Symbol

It doesn't appear that Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol is creating as much of a stir as The DaVinci Code did. That doesn't mean it is any better in treating history or theology. Ben Witherington has provided an excellent review. Why does a scholar of Witherington's caliber take the time to review a book like this? Listen carefully to what he says:

"You may well ask--- why do I get so upset with Brown's novels and their 'novel' misrepresentations of the NT and Jesus? The answer is simple.

We live in a Jesus haunted culture that is both Biblically iliiterate [sic] and at the same time is an entertainment culture. In this sort of environment which is increasingly less Christian, anything can pass for truth or knowledge about Jesus or the Bible.

When I did my book tour for the Gospel Code, one of the often recurring themes during the Q+A sessions was the question---- Do you mean to tell me Dan Brown is not giving us the facts about the Gospel, Gnostics, etc.? I thought of writing up a chronicle of some of the naive reactions and questions I got and calling it 'Gullible's Travels'. The reason and the need for a thorough critique of a novel like The Lost Symbol is because it is offering up a Koolaide that, while quite palletable today, is by no means genuine communion wine from the Gospels." (emphasis his)

He's right and I am glad he took the time to write the review.

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