Young People Buying Conspiracies About Jesus

Some Americans give credence to suggestions that Jesus of Nazareth married Mary Magdalene and had children, the central ideas in the novel "The Da Vinci Code."
But a much larger number - 40 percent of the 1,031 adults interviewed in a Scripps Howard/Ohio University poll - say it's possible that early church leaders withheld important details about Jesus' life. Dan Brown's book suggests that the Christian church's hierarchy for nearly 2,000 years has suppressed the complete story of Jesus' life, including the fact that he raised a family whose offspring exist into the present day. One of the novel's central characters discovers she is a direct descendent of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. "The power of this story had more to do with the conspiracy theory than with the actual data concerning the life of Jesus," said the Rev. Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. "The book gave people who are looking for a conspiracy theory and people who are interested in an imaginative reconstruction of Jesus some new material to work on." The survey tested whether Brown's theories have resonated with the public. Participants in the poll were asked, "Do you think it is likely that Jesus was married or do you think Jesus never married?" Eighteen percent said they think it is likely that Jesus married, 58 percent consider it unlikely and 24 percent are undecided. The survey also asked, "Do you think it is likely that Jesus fathered a child or do you think Jesus did not father a child?" Twenty-three percent said they think this is likely, 56 percent said it's unlikely and 21 percent were uncertain. Even though people who believe the major claims of "The Da Vinci Code" are in the minority, religious scholars said they are still surprised by the figures. "I'm stunned that there are this many," said theology professor Eric Plumer of the University of Scranton, a Catholic school. "With regard to 'The Da Vinci Code,' the Roman Catholic Church and the Vatican have adopted a philosophy of just ignoring the subject. That was a mistake, especially in a time when there is so much ignorance. This could have been an opportunity for teaching, but the church hasn't taken it."
The poll found young people 18 to 24 are especially likely to be open to new interpretations of Jesus' life. Nearly a third say they think it's likely that Jesus had children, compared to only one in eight of Americans 65 or older.