DA VINCI CODE TRIAL UPDATE:

Blessing of Da Vinci date error

By Alan Hamilton (The Times)

Dan Brown's mistake over the Crusades could prove a weapon in his defence against plagiarism

DAN BROWN got a date wrong in The Da Vinci Code. The error may well prove to his advantage.

According to him the Priory of Sion, alleged keeper of the secret of Christ’s wife and children, was founded in Jerusalem during the Second Crusade in the reign of Baldwin II. But according to the authors of The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail, who are suing Brown for stealing their plot, the Priory was founded in 1099 during the First Crusade, and Baldwin did not ascend the throne of the ancient city until 1118.

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It should be most amusing to hear Dan Brown testify next week that he alone should get credit for all the mistakes in his book.

Also, there are these interesting statistics at the end of the article:

Sales of The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail, first published in 1982, have increased sevenfold since the hearing began last week — 3,000 copies — and a few days ago British sales of The Da Vinci Code passed 4 million to add to worldwide sales of 40 million.

Almost makes getting sued sound okay.

On a more serious note, the Catholic Church continues to gear up for the movie release with lots of multimedia material refuting The Da Vinci Code and defending the Catholic viewpoint. Zenit has a press release.