The Christian Century

At first glance, it might seem that The Da Vinci Code and the Left Behind series occupy opposite poles of the cultural spectrum. The former’s effort to reaffirm the “sacred feminine” with the claim that Mary Magdalene was Jesus’ wife is the sort of reworking of tradition that presumably appeals to far-out liberals.

The long-lost apocryphal Gospel of Judas, published with Easter season media fanfare, begins: “The secret account of the revelation that Jesus spoke in conversation with Judas Iscariot.”