Were the Earliest Gospels Suppressed?
As we have seen, prior to Constantine, there was no centralized power declaring which gospels should be considered scripture and which should not. Instead, regional churches established their own lists of authoritative scripture based on their own experiences of the risen Lord. Despite some differences, there was incredible agreement on the gospels from the start. The four Gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John--were included in every major list. The gospels listed in The Da Vinci Code were not.

In Southern France before A.D. 181, Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons declared, "It is not possible that the Gospels can be either more or fewer in number than they are. . ." In North Africa around A.D. 206, church father Tertullian accepted only the four gospels. In Egypt before A.D. 254, scholar and teacher Origen accepted only the four gospels. Origen traveled extensively, noting which scriptures were read in various regions. Sometime between A.D. 244 and 254, he wrote that Matthew, Mark, Luke and John "are the only indisputable ones in the church of God under heaven. . .we have approved solely what the church has recognized, which is that only the four Gospels should be accepted."

Thus, the four gospels were chosen because they had already proven true to the dispersed churches, not because Constantine was attempting to consolidate power. If this had been the case, the differing perspectives of the four gospels would most likely not have been included. A true political cover up would have come up with a single party-line gospel to avoid apparent inconsistencies. The vast majority of scholars today are convinced that the rejected gospels mentioned in The Da Vinci Code were not written earlier than Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In fact, they were actually written much later. However, even if they had been written earlier, the vast majority of local churches and Christians had already rejected them as false prior to the time of Constantine.

Did Jesus and Mary Magdalene have a Child?
There is no historical evidence that Jesus was ever married or had children. But even if He had, there would be no theological reason to hide it. The council of Nicea, which Brown's characters claim invented Christ's divinity, is the very one that also pointed out his humanity. The Nicean Creed says explicitly that Jesus "was made man" or "became truly human." Jesus was not God in disguise--He had the full nature of God plus the full nature of humanity. In fact, if the cover up was to make Jesus look more divine, one would expect that the ecumenical councils that followed Nicea would have obscured Christ's humanity. Instead, they clarify and expand His humanness. For example, at the Council of Chalcedon in A.D. 451, the churches declared that Jesus was both God and man. He was "complete in manhood. . .truly a man. . .like us in all respects (apart from sin) . . . [because his] two natures [are] without confusion." There was nothing magical or special about Jesus' body or blood. He did not have a secret power running through his veins--He was the power. If He had married and fathered a child, it would have simply been a human child born of His human nature. It would in no way challenge or diminish His divinity. As hard as it might be for any of us to grasp how Jesus could have two natures, no one can deny that this is exactly what was believed by the creed writers--the very people The Da Vinci Code claimed were trying to cover up Christ's humanity.

Conclusion
So while the list of agreed upon scriptures developed over time, just as the church's understanding of Jesus matured over time, we can see a common thread running from the earliest Christians right up to this day. This shared belief is summarized in the Apostles' Creed and further refined in the Nicean creed. In other words, the truth that breaks The Da Vinci Code--the fact that Jesus was both fully God and fully human--has been hidden in plain sight all along. For almost 2,000 years it has been on the lips of Christians as they have repeated the ancient creeds of the church! Thus, there was never a reason to hide any aspect of Jesus' humanity. His humanity has never been a threat to the church in all of its history. However, His divinity has always been a threat, and an offense to those who do not accept the Gospel.

The Da Vinci Code Deception DVD

This docudrama answers the lingering questions and exposes the deceptions in Dan Brown's novel through interviews with book authors and leading experts. Contact Vision Video at 1-800-523-0226 or go to www.visionvideo.com.

Resources:

1. Bock, Darrell L. Breaking the Da Vinci Code.
2. Habermas, Gary R. The Historical Jesus.
3. Metzger, Bruce. The Canon of the New Testament.