The DaVinci Code book and now the movie present a very false picture of Jesus and the Catholic Church. It has the danger of misleading people and even shaking the faith of those who don't have a knowledge of Church history. However, it also can present the opportunity of showing someone the truth, if done in a non-confrontational way. Here's some suggestions from Phil Cooke, a media consultant and President & Creative Director of Cooke Pictures:
"How you discuss the film reveals a great deal about your own
relationship with God. Communication researchers know the non-verbal aspects of a
conversation say much more than the words. Therefore, our attitude and perspective
communicates just as much as the information you’re sharing. When the subject comes
up, are your hostile? Defensive? Superior? Frustrated? Or do you react out of love,
looking for the opportunity to share the real story of your faith? That doesn’t mean
compromise, but it does mean sensitivity."...
"Before you speak, consider how your non-Christian friends will respond to the
message. They don’t operate from our playbook. They don’t understand and
therefore respect what the Bible says, so they don’t share our worldview. It’s
about PERCEPTION. In a media driven culture, “perception” is just as important
as “reality.” How an audience perceives our message is critical to the
successful communication of that message."...
"Know what you’re talking about. It’s interesting that the crowd’s
reaction to Jesus in Matthew chapter 7 wasn’t about how anointed He appeared, his
speaking skills, or even the content of His message. They remarked that Jesus spoke as
“one having authority.” We could do well to make sure we have our facts in
order, and speak from a position of expertise, so that regardless of whether the audience
agrees with us, they have to concede that our argument has authority and
“works.” "
Resources to help in understanding and countering the DaVinci Code:
Here's a summary of some of the errors in the DaVinci Code.
Catholic Exchange, Ascension Press, and others have a good page of outlines, study guides, etc.. together with suggestions for what to do.
The Catholic
Bishops' page has a good deal of information (Click on sections in the heading to go
to other parts), including
What do you say to a Da
Vinci Code Believer?
with specific suggestions for talking to someone about it.
Here are essays by the co-authors of The Da Vinci Hoax: Exposing the Errors in The Da Vinci Code (see the link
for a description of the book )
Carl Olson on 3 of the most significant theological
distortions.
Sandra Miesel on 5 key historical inaccuracies.
A Catholic Exchange letter noted that Protestants had been combatting the DaVinci Code long before Catholics got involved. The CBN DaVinci page is a good example with much useful material.
A writeup in the style of C.S.Lewis Screwtape Letters Screwtape-On-The-DaVinci-Code-by-Eric-Metaxas