Opus Dei

Dan Brown writes in his book about an organization of the Catholic Church called Opus Dei (“The work of God”). This organization really exists. In year 1928 Josemaría  Escrivá founded an organization called Opus Dei. The mission of Opus Dei is according to itself to follow Jesus and live in accordance with the gospel and make the gospel known also to other people.

According to Dan Brow’s book the members of Opus Dei are committed to make a vow of celibacy, to tithe, and they atone for their sins by whipping themselves and by using the cilice. 

Being a celibate is something that cannot be demanded from anybody when it means to stay unmarried. The Bible tells us clearly that e.g. Peter was married; Mt. 8:14. Neither does the Bible teach that any ministry demands celibacy. What comes to giving away one’s income that is out of one’s free will and cannot be demanded or forced from anybody; 2.Cor.9:7. Atoning for sins is and was the mission of Jesus Christ alone, and no man can atone for his sins in any way, not even by whipping himself. I cannot say for sure what motives does each member of Opus Dei have for whipping oneself, but if the motive for it is atoning for one’s own sins or seeking approval before God, then it is wrong. Likewise whipping one’s own body based on religious tradition, whatever the motive is wrong and unbiblical and has no biblical authority whatsoever; thus whipping oneself should be abandoned altogether. In reality, a part of the members of Opus Dei is married and a part is keeping the celibate (unmarried, having made a vow of celibacy).

The members of Opus Dei

There are many different kind of members in Opus Dei. Some of them keep the celibate and live in the houses of Opus Dei. They give up their money to Opus Dei and their incoming and outgoing mail is read by the directors of the house. They also use the cilice and the whip for mortifying their flesh. Some members can get married and live with their families; they give a large amount of their money to Opus Dei. Also they follow many of the same principals as the members living in the houses of Opus Dei. There is also a clergy in Opus Dei. They are the spiritual directors of the houses of Opus Dei; they also officiate at the masses and receive confessions of sin. Many priests of Opus Dei have a prominent influence in the Vatican. There are also woman members serving in the houses of Opus Dei who have accepted a vow of celibacy and whose task is cleaning and taking care of the houses of Opus Dei. Opus Dei has also members of cooperation fellowship who donate funds to Opus Dei. They do not need to belong to the Catholic Church.

Former members of Opus Dei:

- Robert Hansen

The Da Vinci Code tells about Robert Hansen, who was a well-known member of Opus Dei. According to the book Hansen was sexually perverted, which is true, and addition to that he was a FBI agent, who was sentenced for spying (on the Soviet Union’s, Russia’s account).

- Sharon Clasen

When Sharon moved in to the Opus Dei center (house), her finances got under the control of the organization, the same way as all the other there had to give up their money under it’s control. Sharon’s photos of her family were taken away there and the only pictures that were allowed by Opus Dei were the photo of the founder of Opus Dei and pictures of Mary and the prelates (prelate is the name for the officials of the Catholic Church). Sharon said that they taught in the center that using the cilice is self-denial and all the pain is worth it because using the cilice keeps the soul in order. According to Sharon’s testimony Opus Dei organization deceives and lies in a masterly way. Sharon said that the directors of the center controlled what they read (books, papers), what they watched on TV and listened to on the radio; they saw to it that that they had a “right spirit”. For all the above mentioned matters the directors’ permission was needed because everything in the organization was strictly watched over and controlled. In the centers the directors read the incoming and outgoing mail of the members. According to Sharon the members of Opus Dei were to get at least 15 new members to Opus Dei in their life time. Sharon said that the members of Opus Dei considered themselves to be the elite who were truly faithful to the Church and the pope.  According to Sharon they were taught that it was dangerous to read critique on the Catholic Church and Opus Dei. Sharon also said that the members of Opus Dei are to confess their sins to a priest once a week. The members of Opus Dei were often told that they go to hell and are excommunicated from the Catholic Church if they leave the membership of Opus Dei.

My comment on Opus Dei

Opus Dei is a severe and rigorous sect, which keeps hold of its’ members controlling them strictly in many ways. The methods that Opus Dei uses do not represent the faith of the Bible but rituals and patterns of behaviour defined by religious people through which they think they are serving God.

The Priory of Sion

In his book Dan Brown brings out also the Priory of Sion that he regards as an European secret society. Brown says that the Priory of Sion was founded in 1099. Dan also says that the secret society had famous members e.g. Leonardo Da Vinci.

When I myself studied the authenticity of the Priory of Sion I got hold of some sources of information that show that the Priory was founded in 1956. I also found some information that claims that the Priory was founded in the 11^th century to protect and guard the secret of the existing descendants of Jesus. It is also claimed that the Order of the Knights Templars guarded that secret, too.

The theory described above is the leading idea in Dan Brown’s book.