DaVinci Code: The Truth Behind the Fiction - Part 14

DaVinci Code Part 14 - The Vote at Nicea

Today, I’m going to answer the question, “Did the bishops at the Council of Nicea vote of Jesus’ deity in 325 AD? If so, was the vote close? These are the claims made by Dan Brown’s fiction novel the DaVinci Code. This one is pretty easy to answer because we have the record of the proceedings at the Council of Nicea. The council was convened for the purpose of gathering the 318 bishops of the Christian church to discuss doctrinal differences. The goal was to leave with agreement and unity among the church on important matters of faith. The Nicene Creed was the ultimate result.

There were several votes on doctrinal issues at the council, one of which had to do with Jesus. The question was, “Was there a time when Christ was not?” Each and every bishop viewed Jesus just as Jesus and his followers did – God in the flesh. So, there was no debate about Jesus being deity as Brown’s fictional characters assert in the DaVinci Code. These leaders were wrestling with the fact that there was one God but that he had reveals Himself in three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Some asked if it was not possible that Jesus was equal with God the Father in every way except one: some suggested that Jesus had not existed for eternity past, thus the question, “Was there a time when Christ was not?”

They never saw Jesus as merely a mortal man. Even the vote one the issue of his past eternality was not close. Of the 318 bishops at the council only five had questions about this and only two – that’s right two – dissenting votes were registered. The rest, over three hundred – voted that Jesus was and is fully God in every way and at the same time fully man.

Well, there you have it! Can you believe I wrote a short blog?

Think about what other topics you want me to address in my blog in the coming weeks and months and I’ll make every effort to write about them from a biblical worldview. Just message me about the topics you have in mind. We’ll have one, maybe two, more blogs on Brown’s book and then we’ll be done with the subject.

We’ll also ask the very important question – what does all this have to do with any of us in 2006? If you are reading my blogs as a person who is investigating Christianity, you probably want to know why Christians see Jesus’ divinity as essential to our faith. You may ask, ‘why can’t we just follow his teachings, seeing him as a good teacher and a good man?’ We’ll look at these questions in the next few blogs as well!


Until then…
Carpe Deum! (Seize God!)

Todd Phillips
www.toddphillips.net