Opus Dei and Priory of Sion..?

[HermitOfQuestioning]

Well I saw the DaVinci code movie finally, and it got me wondering. First off I tried to find evidence of Priory of Sion, but all comes to the 1956 group. What is your take on this group? real/fake? Was their a group that was created in the 11th century like what was stated in the movie?

Next is about Opus Dei. If they are part of the Catholic Church, how are they different from the Church itself/what makes them "special"? Why form the group? Also does Opus Dei cover up some of the things they do, do they perform secret affairs like in the movie?

I was just very curious about all this! Thanks to any answers!

 

[England my lionheart]

All i know of Opus Dei is a Catholic institution some of whome practice flaggelation

 

[fallingblood]

Well I saw the DaVinci code movie finally, and it got me wondering. First off I tried to find evidence of Priory of Sion, but all comes to the 1956 group. What is your take on this group? real/fake? Was their a group that was created in the 11th century like what was stated in the movie?

The idea of the Priory of Sion, as in the DaVinci Code was taken from a book called Holy Blood, Holy Grail. The book, in a scholarly point of view, was a major failure. They did very shoddy research, which was actually disproven before their book ever came out. The creator of the Priory of Sion, a man name by Pierre de Plantard admitted to have fabricating the entire organization.

It did in fact exist for a short period in the mid 1900's, but it was no where near what the Da Vinci Code portrays them as. They had no power, no influence, and really was of no importance.

Next is about Opus Dei. If they are part of the Catholic Church, how are they different from the Church itself/what makes them "special"? Why form the group? Also does Opus Dei cover up some of the things they do, do they perform secret affairs like in the movie?

I was just very curious about all this! Thanks to any answers!

There is a lot of bad information going around about the Opus Dei. In general, they are just a more conservative group of Catholicism. They may be bordering on fanaticism (a minority of their members), but the movie did not give an accurate portrayal of the organization.

 

[HermitOfQuestioning]

The idea of the Priory of Sion, as in the DaVinci Code was taken from a book called Holy Blood, Holy Grail. The book, in a scholarly point of view, was a major failure. They did very shoddy research, which was actually disproven before their book ever came out. The creator of the Priory of Sion, a man name by Pierre de Plantard admitted to have fabricating the entire organization.

It did in fact exist for a short period in the mid 1900's, but it was no where near what the Da Vinci Code portrays them as. They had no power, no influence, and really was of no importance.
There is a lot of bad information going around about the Opus Dei. In general, they are just a more conservative group of Catholicism. They may be bordering on fanaticism (a minority of their members), but the movie did not give an accurate portrayal of the organization.

First is on your point on the Priory. How do we know the Church didn't just silence Plantard by telling him to say it was all fabricated? It seemed like an easy thing for the Church to do, because many people are skeptical about a bloodline (doesn't mean it's false though). What would plantard gain from fabricating it anyway? Seems like he went through a lot of trouble to do so. It isn't like it got any real attention. No monetary gain, nothing.

Now to Opus Dei. But still, why form the group? I mean there are a lot of Christians who take the faith to the extreme, practicing every little detail to the "T", while others are a lot more liberal about it. There must be some real significance to it.

On a side note what are the requirements for joining Opus Dei? Do they hold services like regular Church? A little more detail about what they actually do would be appreciated.

 

[fallingblood]

First is on your point on the Priory. How do we know the Church didn't just silence Plantard by telling him to say it was all fabricated? It seemed like an easy thing for the Church to do, because many people are skeptical about a bloodline (doesn't mean it's false though). What would plantard gain from fabricating it anyway? Seems like he went through a lot of trouble to do so. It isn't like it got any real attention. No monetary gain, nothing.

There would be little reason for the Church to care. There are many groups out there like the supposed Priory that the Church doesn't care about.

If we just look at Plantard though, he is hardly a good source. More so, we have testimony from others who helped Plantard who also say that the whole thing was fabricated. More so, we can see when the actual organization came into being by papers filed.

Plantard did have something to gain, if his planned worked. Pierre Plantard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia It gives all of the information one even needs to know to see that it was nothing more than a hoax. Here is a pretty accurate portrayal of the organization Priory of Sion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The conspiracy theories are simply based on shoddy research.

Now to Opus Dei. But still, why form the group? I mean there are a lot of Christians who take the faith to the extreme, practicing every little detail to the "T", while others are a lot more liberal about it. There must be some real significance to it.

Different people need different ways to worship their supreme deity. That is why it was formed. Here is a good article: Opus Dei - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Also informative: Opus Dei - WHAT IS OPUS DEI? - Place in the Church

Simply, it is just one more way for people to worship.

On a side note what are the requirements for joining Opus Dei? Do they hold services like regular Church? A little more detail about what they actually do would be appreciated.

Here is how you join: Opus Dei - WHAT IS OPUS DEI? - Joining Opus Dei The site itself gives all the information you need.

 

[ZooGirl02]

You can learn a lot about Opus Dei from their website:

Opus Dei - Finding God in daily life