Read the text of the Gospel of Mary, posted by the Gnostic Society Library.

Beliefnet’s package of stories summarizes contrasting views expressed by scholars Ben Witherington III and Karen King about the role of Mary Magdalene.

Stories in Newsweek‘s Dec. 8, 2003, issue explore new scholarship on the role of women in Scripture and discuss what is fact and what is fiction in The Da Vinci Code.

The New York Times reported Aug. 6, 2005, that Sony Pictures asked those associated with the Da Vinci film to sign confidentiality agreements.

Read a Aug. 8, 2008, Christianity Today article that breaks down and identifies fact from fiction in Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code.”

A Jan. 28, 2006, Orlando Sentinel article says that some Christians viewed the film as an opportunity to evangelize. It’s posted by the Washington Post.

Read a Feb. 7, 2006, New York Times article about the Catholic organization Opus Dei, portrayed as villainous in the novel, mounting a public awareness campaign to counter any potential negative portrayal in the film.

Ignatius Press, located in San Francisco, is the official publisher of all Benedict’s works in English, including all those he wrote as a priest and cardinal. The CEO of Ignatius Press is Mark Brumley.

Full text of the Vatican instruction entitled, “Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with Regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in View of Their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders.” The document’s aim is to bar gay men from the priesthood.