DaVinci Code Questions

DAVINCI'S MONA LISA, CENTRAL TO DAN BROWN'S DAVINCI CODE

Catholics made a conspiracy to cover up Jesus' kid! The Bible was falsified! Is this about the papal black helicopter and the cardinal with the umbrella in the Magruder transcript and the magic nail?

Oh wait, that's mixing my conspiracy metaphors.

Dan Brown has written an engaging and fun work of fiction. I put as much credence in it being of truth as I do the Star Trek movies. It's fiction folks! I do recommend the read because its well written, I also liked the preceding story about the same character. However, it isn't true because there is no conspiracy and no super-children of Jesus out there walking on water.

There are conspiracy theorists within Christ's followers as well. There are those that assert that anything but the KJV (that's King James Version)

is sacrilege.

Apparently God himself gave the good king the best seven manuscripts that were available and his monks gave us the great translation from ancient Greek to more modern 17th century English in the King James Version.

There are those of us who don't particularly like the KJV and use a more modern translation. The hardliners decry: "They changed stuff! They left out stuff! It's Satan's corruption of God's Word! It violates Deuteronomy 2"You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.""

What exactly is true?

Archaeologists have uncovered literally hundreds of stored trascriptions dating to within 35 years of Christ's time. These older scrolls/newer finds have shown some discrepancies in the KJV but logic says that they are (first:) reliable due to their dates and the direct translations. (Second:) even with the discrepancies the message is virtually unchanged. If Thou desire reading the version of King James thouest may certainly do so if it so pleases. The rest of us can read the NASB or NIV without fearing that we are being misled and are going to hell.

Here is a great site that lays out some of the verses and how text is different across

several translations.

If you are like me, after reviewing this comparison you find yourself asking, what exactly is the big deal here? Clearly there have been positions taken by the individuals and groups when translating Greek to English. Its a translation across two or more languages. There will always be some loss of data when this happens.

Is that quote from Deuteronomy about translation errors or is it about someone like the Mormons adding the "Third Testament of Ancient Americans" to the Bible?

The core of Biblical pursuit is Colossians 2:2 and Luke 24:25 where it takes more than simple perception of the word to understand it. Some have argued to me that not liking the KJV version means I am not blessed to understanding the word? I think I understand just fine, thank you. I also happen to think that Jesus is capable of overcoming some language barriers through translation seeing as how he defeated death itself.