Renowned Author Josh McDowell Releases Books on Da Vinci Code, State of Christianity

Written by Staff

In an unprecedented move, internationally known author and speaker Josh McDowell has released two books simultaneously. The Da Vinci Code: A Quest For Answers and The Last Christian Generation, both published by Green Key Books, are two very timely new books aimed at equipping today's Christians to handle what many see as an alarming crisis.

"May 19, 2006 may well be the beginning of one of the most controversial periods the Church has faced in years," according to McDowell, because — as he points out — that is the day The Da Vinci Code movie will be released.

The Da Vinci Code book by Dan Brown and the upcoming movie both portray a gripping conspiracy story that brilliantly mixes fact with fiction. Both the book and the movie raise questions that even solid Christians will be challenged to answer — questions about the authority of the Church, the deity of Christ, and the authenticity of the Bible.

The Da Vinci Code: A Quest for Answers is aimed specifically at correcting distortions presented in The Da Vinci Code book and upcoming movie. Many church leaders believe that Dan Brown's best selling book and the corresponding movie have the potential to turn nominal believers into skeptics, discourage seekers from continuing their search for answers, and even cause many Christians to question their faith.

"Right now, we as the Church have a unique opportunity — if we take action immediately before the movie is released," McDowell says. "If we equip our churched adults and young people now with solid answers about Christ's deity and his Word, we can blunt the devastating effects The Da Vinci Code movie is bound to have."

Green Key Books president Pete Castor explains: "Both book releases by Josh give the Church the right tools to equip its people, especially its young people, so they can distinguish fact from fiction and discern truth from error."

Each of McDowell's new books speaks to a different facet of the same problem. While The Da Vinci Code: A Quest for Answers deals with the short-term effect of Brown's book and movie on young and old alike, The Last Christian Generation addresses a larger, overarching issue of how today's distorted cultural view of Christianity, truth, and reality has changed the way our nation's young people define faith and what it means to be a Christian.

"The problem is," states McDowell, "Dan Brown's book and the movie simply make a bad situation even worse. The Christian faith has been under attack in this culture for decades and because most believers haven't been equipped to know why they believe, the very foundation of Christianity within the Church has eroded. If trends continue, the next generation of the Church will not even be rightfully called Christian."

In The Last Christian Generation, McDowell challenges church leaders, educators, and parents to understand why the very foundations of the Christian faith have eroded and what must be done long-term to rebuild them.

In his research, McDowell has uncovered some startling statistics. For example, among churched youth:
* 63% don't believe that Jesus is the Son of the one true God.
* 51% don't believe that Jesus rose from the dead.
* 68% don't believe that the Holy Spirit is a real entity.
* It has been estimated that between 69% and 94% of churched youth are leaving the traditional church after high school, and very few are returning.
* Only 33% of churched youth have said that the church will play a part in their lives when they leave home.

In The Last Christian Generation, McDowell examines what it will take to correct these distorted views of God while offering ways to help the church and families rebuild the true foundations of the faith. The book provides a clear, urgent, and balanced blueprint that can help reclaim an entire generation of young people. It identifies a very real crisis that Christians must take seriously before it's too late.

In the book, McDowell outlines specifically how the church and Christian families can ground their young people in the true faith. It provides a tool to enable churches to do more than merely weather a temporary challenge brought on by The Da Vinci Code book and movie. It offers a long-term strategy to rebuild the foundations of the faith about Christ as God's Son and the Bible as the reliable revelation of God.

"What compelled me to get involved and the reason I released two books lies in the answers to two questions. How is it that a fictional novel can have such a mass influence in spreading seeds of doubt? And what must be done to equip a generation to discern fact from fiction?" states McDowell. "While I embrace the challenge and opportunity for clarifying distortions of the faith, Christian leaders want more than a Da Vinci Code question and answer sheet. They want to know how to rebuild the very foundations of our faith among our families, lest we become…the last Christian generation."

The Da Vinci Code: A Quest For Answers is available free with the purchase of The Last Christian Generation at participating retail outlets.

Share your thoughts with other readers:  Post Comments   Rate this Article