Church History Expert to Discuss the Da Vinci Code
Dr.
V. Bruce Rigdon, president of Ecumenical Theological Seminary in
Detroit and professor of church history, presents an examination and
dialogue surrounding the controversial novel The Da Vinci Code
by Dan Brown. His free talk is scheduled for Tuesday, February 15, at
8:00 p.m. in the Remick Heritage Center, Presbyterian Hall.
The Da Vinci Code is a murder mystery that has generated a great deal of interest in the early Christian Church, Mary Magdalene and a conspiracy to keep truths about the Gospel of Jesus Christ from being revealed.
"My talk will take a look at the popular book The DaVinci Code in terms of the author's historical assertions and claims and to what degree they do or do not hold water," Rigdon said.
For instance, Rigdon disputes Brown’s claim that there is historical evidence that Jesus married Mary Magdallen and sired a child. The talk is designed to place the novel of secret societies and Roman Catholic conspiracies into the proper perspective of fiction.
Rigdon said he does not bash the author, rather uses the popular culture appeal of the book to shine a new light on religion.
"He has actually done a great service to the church by raising interest in questions that no one has bothered to address before," Rigdon said.
Rigdon has served on the Alma College Board of Trustees since 1989. He received his B.A. degree from the College of Wooster in Ohio and studied at the University of Hong Kong for one year during his undergraduate studies. He received his Master of Divinity, M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University, where he specialized in church history and the history of theology. In addition, he is an author, a consultant and narrator of films on the Russian Orthodox Church that were produced for NBA and ABC television.
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Posted: Thu, January 27th, 2005 at 2:07PM
