Some see controversy, some see teachable moment in 'Da Vinci Code'

Published: 2004-02-17

CHICAGO (CNS) -- When Rosalind Hays first read "The Da Vinci Code," she didn't consider it as anything but entertainment. "When I read the book, I thought of it as fiction and a thriller," said Hays, a medieval historian at Dominican University in the Chicago suburb of River Forest. "It's not something I'm reading for information. I'm reading it for the plot." Dan Brown's book, a historical suspense novel full of bloodthirsty conspiracies and unorthodox theories about God, Jesus and Mary Magdalene, has been atop The New York Times best-seller list almost since its debut in March 2003. It's drawn fire from many scholars, who fear its assertions about everything from the personal prelature of Opus Dei to the Emperor Constantine will mislead Catholics and non-Catholics alike. But the more controversy it stirs, the more the copies fly off bookstore shelves. Hays and her colleagues at Dominican University decided to use the book's popularity as a chance to talk about the issues it raises, from the feminine aspects of God, to the apocryphal gospels and the consolidation of the biblical canon.

Copyright (c) 2004 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .