David Livingstone - Sun, 02/21/2010

ust finished reading Dan Brown’s latest. I don’t normally read fiction, but I read this just to stay in touch with the type of propaganda that is being disseminated.

This book is utterly ridiculous. It’s a great example of modern American kitsch. It takes all the sleazy ploys of American entertainment, and applies them to celebrate the lowliest aspect of modern civilization: secret societies, and all the pseudo-spiritual accoutrements of occultism.

This book takes an amazing turn however. It’s been at least 250 years since the occult underground has been concentrating their efforts on discrediting Christianity. It’s been consistent. Explore the teachings of occult philosophers, and you’ll find repeated and vociferous condemnations of the Christian religion. Brown’s last two works have been no different. Until now.

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The Lost Symbol by Dan Braun has shaken up the Masons. Their long-awaited reaction has been a fact since yesterday. The Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of Masons, Ronald A. Seale published his address to the Fraternity all over the world. The article was published in Scottish Rite Journal (ISSN 1076 - 8572). It is published every two months by the Supreme Council 33ø of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry from the Southern Jurisdiction of the USA. Because of the high interest to Dan Braun’s book, the Standart publishes the message of Seale.

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MAUREEN DOWD - September 30, 2009

It’s not so much the barbarous machinations of the villain, another one-dimensional, self-mortifying hulk, that sends chills down your spine. Or the plot, which is an Oedipal MacGuffin.

No, the terrifying thing about “The Lost Symbol” is that Brown — who did not flinch when the Vatican both condemned the “The Da Vinci Code” and curtailed the filming of “Angels & Demons” in Rome — clearly got spooked by that other powerful, secretive ancient sect, the Masons.

His book is a desperate attempt to ingratiate himself with the Masons, rather than to interpret the bizarre Masonic rites and symbols that illuminate — as in Illuminati! — how the ultimate elite private boys’ club has conspired to shape the nation’s capital and Western civilization ever since George Washington laid the cornerstone for the Capitol building in a Masonic ritual wearing full Masonic regalia, including a darling little fringed satin apron. If the Masons are more intimidating than the Vatican, if Brown has now become part of their semiotic smoke screen, then all I can say is, God help us all.

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“Debunking Dan Brown,” by the arrogant, fundamentalist-mocking pseudo-historian, the editor of Freemasonry Today, Michael Baigent; and “The Lost Symbol and the Browning of American Religion,” by Ben Witherington who offers a discerning look at Dan Brown’s own pseudo-history, and his twisting of the Bible.

Clair Barrus - September 21, 2009

Since 2003, Dan Brown’s book “The Lost Symbol” has been on the mind of many Mormons.

Rumors and clues on the dust jacket of The Da Vinci Code led some to believe that elements of the church’s relationship with Freemasonry would be emphasized in “The Solomon Key,” the working title for Dan Brown’s latest block buster book. The title was later changed to “The Lost Symbol.”

Dan Brown’s 2004 visit to Salt Lake and interest in Masonic symbols on the Salt Lake Temple elevated curiosity and speculation about his plans to discuss Mormonism’s curious relationship with Freemasonry. “He was, of course, very interested in the symbology on the Mormon temple…he was interested in the pentacles and the suns and the moons and the stars and all that. So, I gather his primary interest was to sort of see the Mormon embellishment of masonry as it exists, in his mind, of course…”[Aaron Wilhelm, tour guide]

An in depth discussion of Mormonism and Masonry was a cause of concern, as the history of Mormonism and Masonry is unique.

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New book should have been called “The Gospel According to Freemasonry”

Thomas Horn - September 17, 2009

SPRINGFIELD, MO – There’s a conspiracy, all right, and Dan Brown is in on it. “The Lost Symbol,” his follow-up to the 2003 best-seller, “The Da Vinci Code,” is out this week – and if you’ve read it, you know the Freemason’s have nothing to worry about. “Symbol” is about as threatening to The Brotherhood as a box of chocolates, two-dozen roses and a love card.

In fact, if you’re anything like me, you’ll come away from this overblown drivel with the curious feeling that we’ve all been had—that the “jitters” Freemasons were claiming to be experiencing in the lead-up to “Symbol” was really an elaborate sales gimmick between Brown and his occult buddies at 16th Street in Washington DC. The problem is, these folks are not just selling books. They’ve amassed under the guise of a “thriller” a profound apologetic for the occult aspirations of the Order of the Quest.

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By David Montgomery and Monica Hesse
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, September 10, 2009

Step right up, folks, no ticket necessary for this symbologic tour of the secrets of Washington.

All you need is the secret handshake. Don’t know the handshake? Never mind. Neither do we.

Just stand at the curb at Union Station and say in unison the ancient phrase of the Freemasons: “Is there no help for the widow’s son?”

Excellent. Come on board our vehicle today, the Esoteric Omnibus, painted black with golden stars, squares, crosses, triangles, pyramids and all-seeing eyeballs.

You know why we’re here. Six years after his blockbuster “The Da Vinci Code,” Dan Brown’s next novel, “The Lost Symbol,” will hit stores Tuesday with a massive print run of 5 million copies. The book’s contents remain a secret deeper than the whereabouts of the Holy Grail and the location of Christ’s genome, but the cover shows a blood-red Masonic seal and the sun glinting behind the Capitol dome.

Hmmm. Masons, Washington. Washington, Masons . . . .

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Erica Carle
August 15, 2009
NewsWithViews.com

THE SACRED FEMININE

The Da Vinci Code is a 596–page mystery thriller with very little story and lots of chasing, coding, deciphering, and hiding. I ignored it when it was first released. However, a dear friend was profoundly affected by reading this fictional contrivance, so I decided the time had come to check it out.

I did not read for pleasure since chase stories are tedious to me. Also, I resent fiction that is overly imaginative and not carefully researched when it is based on historical events.

Nevertheless, I leave to others the book’s questions about Jesus having been married to Mary Magdalene. To me the whole idea is ridiculous, as is the idea that the Catholic Church has been killing descendants of Jesus for centuries. Besides, there are plenty of well-researched articles on the internet that point out the historical errors behind these claims in The Da Vinci Code.

But I have seen nothing in The Da Vinci Code articles and reviews that called special attention to the elements of the story that have disturbed my sleep for the past several nights.

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See also: Davis Livingstone’s “The Agenda Behind the Da Vinci Code“

Freemason Mark Koltko-Rivera used to have a blog (now defunct) devoted to the forthcoming The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. There were a series of Tweet clues sent to fans - 42 in all - and Koltko-Rivera had skillfully analysed them all.

Here, from one of his other sites, is what he has concluded.