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The 2003 release of the novel The Da Vinci Code created one of the largest literary crazes in recent history. With sales of almost 6 million in its first year, the novel gained a cult-like following. Author Dan Brown's ability to blend fact and fiction left many readers questioning what they really knew of the origins of Christianity. News is now out that we can expect to see the story in theaters in about a year. Certainly viewers will come away with many of the same questions readers had as to how much, if any, of the story line is factual, and how much is fiction.

Fortunately for those who want to sort out the facts, Amy Welborn has written decoding Da Vinci: the Facts Behind the Fiction of the Da Vinci Code. Welborn covers everything from the marketing of the book to the sources of information presented, and ultimately reveals a "startling number of blatant, glaring errors on matter great and small that should send up red flags to anyone reading the novel as a source of facts, rather than just pure fiction" (decoding Da Vinci p. 10). She also helps explain why this confusion over fact versus fiction is occurring when she states:

Historical fiction is a very popular genre, but in writing historical fiction, the author makes an implicit deal with the reader. He ... promises that while the novel concerns fictional characters engaged in imagined activities, the basic historical framework is correct. [Readers] trust the author is telling the truth about history. In The Da Vinci Code, imaginative detail and false historical assertions are presented as facts and the fruit of serious historical research, which they simply are not. (p. 21 italics added)

decoding Da Vinci is handily divided into a preface, a section entitled "How to Use this Book", an introduction which provides a plot synopsis, ten chapters (each addressing one key issue of the book), and an epilogue. The plot synopsis is thorough enough that you need not have read the novel to make use of this book. Each chapter also ends with further reading suggestions and questions for review and discussion. Readers can thus study particular issues in more depth on their own, or even use the material for a group study. The book is a quick read from cover to cover, but also organized so that each chapter stands on its own for easy reference.

Throughout her book, Welborn uses a tone readers will be familiar with from her Prove It series and other writings. Straightforward and to-the-point, she is never condescending or preachy. The book thus becomes a powerful tool to help counter the myths Brown has presented in his original work.

The up-coming movie release makes this book an important and timely choice for adults and older teens to read.

Here are two great resources for Catholic bookshelves everywhere. Written by a homeschooling dad named Paul E. Nowak, Guerilla Apologetics for Catholics and Guerilla Apologetics for Life Issues are wonderful resources for educated debates on Catholicism and pro-life concerns.

I first heard about these books because my brother, Paul A. Nowak, did the cartoons in the Life Issues book. So, I do have a bit of bias on these books. But I really like the clean, direct apologetics contained in both of these slim volumes.

The slim paperback, Guerilla Apologetics for Catholics, is packed with fabulous information that is easy to read and important for all Catholics to understand.Guerilla Apologetics for Catholics starts with the Bible -- refutes that the Bible is the only source of revelation and that it doesn't say faith or personal acceptance of Jesus is enough -- then goes on to talk about who founded the Church, teachings with the authority of Christ, leadership traceable back to Christ, uses certain individuals as examples of how we should live, forgiveness of sins, Purgatory, sanctity and inviolability of marriage, and the sacrament of the Eucharist. All of these are discussed within a three-four page analysis that is direct and irrefutable.

The conclusion of the book includes recommendations for further reading and almost a dozen lined pages for notes.

The Guerilla Apologetics for Life Issues is much the same in format except that it states each argument in the form of a question rather than a statement. When does life begin, can choices be wrong, and does legality mean right-ness are just the first three questions. The safety and life issues for the mom are the next concerns. The book continues with asking questions about the veracity of population control statistics, benefits of embryonic stem cell research and euthanasia. The final question is the traditional ultimate apologetics question -- "what if you're wrong" -- attributed to Pascal's famous "wager".

As with Nowak's earlier volume, Life Issues does not have many wasted words or pages. And, "ya gotta" love the cartoons done by my brother (although I do wish the prints had been a bit clearer)!

This is a really beautiful little book about morality and the Catholic Faith. It would make a great supplement for high school age or excellent reading for an adult. It's not too difficult to understand, but also interesting and really makes you think.

The author has this to say about the purpose of this book:

A traveler through life gets vivid – sometimes extremely vivid impressions of things near at hand: confused impressions of things seen at a distance or only heard of: but of the whole plan of life, no idea at all. In his mind will be a jumble of facts, tossed about in any order – God, sin, church-going, disease, sacraments, suffering, the treason of friends, hostilities, death and the fear of death, money and the loss of it, God-made-man – and so on without end. But which of these things are big things and which of them are little, he will not know with certainty: the things that have come nearest to himself will seem big things: the remoter things will seem small.

And of the relations of these things one to another – how one thing agrees with, or conflicts with, another – of all this, merely by dint of living, he will have only the most confused and uncertain impression. In fact it may easily happen that a man who merely lives, and neither reflects nor is taught, does not even suspect relationships, but thinks of all things as accidents with no reason in themselves save that they happened, and no connection with each other save that one cam earlier and one came later. Because of this confusion, I propose to try to make what may roughly be called a map of life.

This is a great book to use for a group teen discussion. When I was being homeschooled for high school, a friend of the family guided us in discussions of one chapter every month. We found it very engaging and helpful.

The clever, user-friendly layout of this book makes it very practical! In the introduction, author Dave Armstrong explains that he hopes to empower Catholics to be able to defend their faith with the aid of this book: I believe the book is capable of doing just that!

Starting a with a Protestant objection to a Catholic teaching, each double page provides a solid explanation of the problems with each objection, supported amply with bible verses. Then a common Protestant follow-up argument follows under the heading A Protestant Might Further Object, followed by the author's counter-replies. At the end a supporting quote, usually from a protestant author, is added.

High School students would benefit from this book when studying Apologetics! Topics are divided into sections such as Scripture, the Sacraments, the Church, Salvation, Mary and the Saints, and more.

Plot overview: After the tragic death of Mick O'Shea, a Catholic fireman from Philadelphia, his widow Tammy and their children are invited to spend the summer at the Kentucky farm of Tammy's brother Les and his family. The catch? Les is the fundamentalist pastor of a small homegrown "Bible-only" church. He believes it is his duty to "save" his sister and her family from the Catholic Church. The story centers on 17-year-old Michael, who is chosen as the preferred point of contact. At first, Michael is very uncertain about Scripture and feels that his uncle's explanations are right; however, Mick has given him a solid grounding in the Faith, so he seeks the answers in Mick's library.

The author does a fine job of portraying the characters with their struggles and motivations. For example:

• Michael's search for truth is realistic, keeping us guessing how it will turn out.
• Tammy allows her son to face the challenge, realizing that he is too old to just be told the answers. I love the way the author shows the impact of her prayerful support.
• Fundamentalists are beautifully shown to be motivated by charity, while at the same time the weakness of their sola scriptura position is exposed.
• I also enjoyed the contrast between the reactions of the characters who were seeking Truth and those who felt threatened by it. (As a convert, I can appreciate both positions!)

Not only is much excellent apologetic material included in a natural, enjoyable, and engaging format, but it is done with charity and even humility. Topics covered include the Inquisition, the papacy, the role of Mary, and the authority and interpretation of the Bible.

The richness of the Faith comes through in other ways as well. I especially loved the way the author portrays the uniqueness of the Sacrifice of Christ even as it is extended through time in the re-presentation of that Sacrifice in the Mass. Other elements woven into the story include questions of what is really important in life, the support of the Christian community, and the power of prayer.

All in all a very satisfying Catholic novel.

Highly recommended.

Father Mateo was the pen name of a Catholic priest who was also a professor at a prominent university. From 1987 until his death in 1996, he hosted the “Ask Father” forum on Catholic Information Network.

“In 1987, Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical Mother of the Redeemer (Redemptoris Mater), asked all Christians, ‘Why should we not all together look to Mary as our common Mother, who prays for the unity of God’s family?’ Stung somehow by the Pope’s friendly words and bothered by ‘a campaign to revive Marian devotion in the Church,’ CRI [the Christian Research Institute] goes on the attack. ‘The time has come for a Protestant response. Just as surely as a man cannot ‘take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned’ (Prov. 6:27), Catholics cannot renew their emphasis on Mary without injuring ecumenism.’” (from the Introduction)

This 101 page book is a detailed response to a two-part article from the Christian Research Institute, but also an excellent, engaging introduction to Marian apologetics and a beautiful confirmation of Church teaching – even using Protestant sources to help refute CRI and to back up his arguments!

When I first considered converting from a "mere Christianity" form of Protestantism to the Catholic faith, I had several issues to deal with. I believed that "Scripture alone" was the rule of faith. I thought that the Catholic Church had added several non-Biblical doctrines throughout the years -- for example, praying to Mary and the saints and the existence of Purgatory. Though I knew that Jesus had given the apostles and particularly Simon Peter the power to bind and loose sins and to heal the sick, I couldn't see how Catholics could consider priests, bishops and the Pope to have inherited these powers. I was scandalized by evil people and actions in the Church's history (some real evils and some that were exaggerated).

I vividly remember my surprise and increasing respect for the Church as my husband and I read and discussed a Catholic apologetics book in which these questions were specifically dealt with from a Scriptural and historical perspective. Once I could see intellectually that Catholic doctrines were not just pious accretions and institutionalized hypocrisy, my road to conversion became a lot more direct.

Beginning Apologetics is written to help Catholics dialogue with sincere Protestants like I was, and to help them convey a Catholic perspective on these major issues using support from the Bible, from the writings of the Church Fathers and with the help of logical reasoning from common ground. The book is a simple 8 1/2 by 11 format, inexpensively paper bound, but has a lot of substance packed into its 40 pages. Its tone is reasonable and unconfrontational "Apologetics fulfills the command of St. Peter: Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence..(1 Peter 3:15-16)".

It begins with an introductory section on method: how to be an effective, charitable apologist for our Faith, and how to read and mark your Bible. The body of the book is laid out topic by topic. The Eucharist, the role and origin of the Bible, and the primacy of the Pope have first priority, because it is from these central points that most of the central divisions of Christendom proceed. For instance, if a Catholic can convince a Protestant that Jesus in John 6 meant His words about His Body and Blood to be taken literally -- which indeed is the plain sense of what He said -- that in itself is a huge stumbling block removed, because that is a doctrine held only by the Catholic and Orthodox Church. If he can further convince the Protestant that "Scripture alone" is not a Scripturally supported doctrine, and thus contradicts itself, then he has significantly narrowed the separation between the Catholic and the devout and sincere Protestant.

The book goes on to address other questions and misconceptions that a sincere Bible-believing Christian may have about the Catholic Faith. Do Catholics really "worship" Mary? (the answer is no, and our reasons for "venerating" or honoring her are carefully supported from Scripture). Isn't it "necromancy" to pray to the saints in heaven? (again no, and again reasons are laid out proceeding from doctrines that Catholics and Protestants have in common). The manual closes with some briefer questions and answers like "Why do Catholics baptize infants?" and gives a list of recommended resources for further reading and study. Among these are the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Karl Keating's Catholicism and Fundamentalism which is the apologetics book that first helped me to consider conversion seriously.

This book is one of the resources used by Mother of Divine Grace School for high school religion. It could be profitably read by anyone from 6th or 7th grade up to adulthood. It is a handy reference tool because it lays out the basic issues so simply and concisely, and because it puts the Scriptural references and key terminology in bold font so they are easily located. The book is #1 in a series that now includes 7 books.

See below for a separately sold Study Guide for this book.

This is the Study Guide for Beginning Apologetics 1, reviewed above. It can be used in a discussion group setting or by families or individuals, and contains questions which can be answered by references to the Catechism or to Scripture (the specific passages are cited so students can research them).