King James Bible
일요일 아침입니다. “A Few Good Men”의 다음과 같은 대사를 기억하는 사람이 많을텐데요…
Lt. Kendrick: I have two books at my bedside, Lieutenant: the Marine Corps Code of Conduct and the King James Bible. The only proper authorities I am aware of are my commanding officer, Colonel Nathan R. Jessep, and the Lord our God. (A Few Good Men)
많은 사람이 종교를 가지는 이유가 인생이 이렇게 간단하고 직설적인 프로토콜만 지키는 문제라면 얼마나 좋을까라고 생각해서인 것 같아요. 그런데, 댄 브라운은 이렇게 말합니다.
“And Sir Francis Bacon,” Peter continued, “the luminary hired by King James to literally create the authorized King James Bible, became so utterly convinced that the Bible contained cryptic meaning that he wrote in his own codes, which are still studied today! Of course, as you know, Bacon was a Rosicrucian and penned The Wisdom of the Ancients.” Peter smiled. “Even the iconoclastic poet William Blake hinted that we should read between the lines.”
Langdon was familiar with the verse:
BOTH READ THE BIBLE DAY AND NIGHT,
BUT THOU READ BLACK WHERE I READ WHITE.
“And it wasn’t just the European luminaries,” Peter continued, descending faster now. “It was here, Robert, at the very core of this young American nation, that our brightest forefathers—John Adams, Ben Franklin, Thomas Paine—all warned of the profound dangers of interpreting the Bible literally. In fact, Thomas Jefferson was so convinced the Bible’s true message was hidden that he literally cut up the pages and reedited the book, attempting, in his words, ‘to do away with the artificial scaffolding and restore the genuine doctrines.’ ”
Langdon was well aware of this strange fact. The Jeffersonian Bible was still in print today and included many of his controversial revisions, among them the removal of the virgin birth and the resurrection. Incredibly, the Jeffersonian Bible had been presented to every incoming member of Congress during the first half of the nineteenth century.
“Peter, you know I find this topic fascinating, and I can understand that it might be tempting for bright minds to imagine the Scriptures contain hidden meaning, but it makes no logical sense to me. Any skilled professor will tell you that teaching is never done in code.”
“I’m sorry?”
“Teachers teach, Peter. We speak openly. Why would the prophets—the greatest teachers in history—obscure their language? If they hoped to change the world, why would they speak in code? Why not speak plainly so the world could understand?” (Dan Brown, The Lost Symbol)
적어도 King James Bible에는 프랜시스 베이컨이 집어 넣은 코드는 있을 수 있겠네요… 그런데, 문제는 말이죠, 이런 코드를 이야기할 때는 언제나 (1) 코드를 만든 사림이 뭔가를 알고 있었고, (2) 그 코드는 깰 만한 가치가 있다(예를 들어 보물지도?)는 두 가지 중요한 전제가 충족돼야 하는데 말이죠… 난 이게 잘 안되는 것 같아요.
