Da Vinci Code Author Dan Brown Discusses Science and Religion in Istanbul

December 11, 2009

Dan Brown at Boğaziçi University

US Consulate General Istanbul organized a talk by bestselling American author Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, The Lost Symbol) in Istanbul on December 11, 2009. Mr. Brown, who was visiting Turkey's cultural capital to promote his latest novel, led a fascinating 90-minute conversation with about 450 Turkish alumni of U.S. universities as well as Robert College and Bogazici University alumni and faculty. The program was held at Bogazici University, one of Turkey's most prestigious state universities, which was founded as Robert College by American missionaries in 1863.

Dan Brown's talk to a packed auditorium on an especially cold, rainy and windy night in Istanbul, provided a wonderful opportunity for Turkish alumni of U.S. universities to have an indepth discussion with one of the most popular American authors on the thoughtprovoking issues he raises in his writings (particularly his most recent bestselling novel The Lost Symbol), his philosophy, and the interrelationship of religion and science. Members of the audience (who included authors, academics, doctors, lawyers and other professionals) were totally engaged in a lively discussion of some of the most important issues to mankind -- the existence of a higher power, the power of faith, the existence of souls and life after death, the politics of organized religions, and the interrelationship of science and religion - just to name a few. As Mr. Brown himself told the audience, he writes fiction not to promote a certain ideology, but to provoke serious examination and discussion of important issues. There's no doubt that Mr. Brown did just that at this talk. Everyone left the hall that night thinking. Mr. Brown, a former teacher whose father was a famous mathematician at Exeter Academy, concluded his talk by giving the audience a homework assignment on religious tolerance: "Try to truly understand other people's symbols and share an understanding of your symbols with the world."