The Pendragon's Hall

Conspiracy theorists amuse me, but they can be very dangerous. Conspiracy theories spread fear and suspicion, and soon these very chancy emotions become the basis for any decision or any alliance. Conspiracy theorists tend to see cults behind every tree--I can't vote for a Mormon to be President; I can't associate myself with Freemasons. Yet it is not only religious nutjobs that fall prey to this. Following the fictitious imaginings of Dan Brown, art analysts are trying to convince people that there is indeed a woman with a child and a Knight Templar hidden in the background of Leonard Da Vinci's famous painting. Read about it here. The Pendragon is frustrated by the fiction's power over reality. As far as I am aware, even Dan Brown has not tried to sell his story as historical fact--although perhaps he has. Yet here are "scholars" trying to make it stick any way they can. A theology professor of my acquaintance brushed off "The Da Vinci Code" with the statement: "You don't ask a marine biologist to comment on 'Finding Nemo.' Enjoy the thrillers but when the lights come on, it's time to leave the cinema." This would have been a good response for the Christian world as a whole actually, but now that we've made such a big deal about it, I guess there's no going back. The secular world, having found something Christians hate with a passion, are more than willing to play it up, giving it all the legitimacy in its power. After all, blaming past events on an evil Christian cover-up is the kind of conspiracy theory they like the best.