The Catholic Church begins a campaign against a book "denouncing it as logically and historically flawed".

Where do we begin with this...

CULTURE: Work Of Fiction Is, Er, Fictitious: "The Da Vinci Code is described as 'an intelligent and lucid thriller'. I haven't seen anyone describe it as an accurate account of history so it's confusing to see some people take it so seriously.

THE Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales begins a campaign today against Dan Brown’s bestselling The Da Vinci Code, denouncing it as logically and historically flawed and a risible hoax.



A new Catholic website aimed at Da Vinci fans is timed to coincide with today’s feast of St Mary Magdalene, depicted in the book as the sacred vessel, or Holy Grail, who bore Jesus Christ’s children. The site, designed by the Catholic Enquiry Office (CEO), a national office of the Church, includes biographies of St Mary, Bible extracts, prayers, articles, web links, images and a cake recipe.



It includes question-andanswer sessions listing alleged historical, artistic and religious errors in the book, such as its depiction of the Catholic organisation Opus Dei.

Wait, did someone say cake?



The source article has some quotes from Catholics who hate the book.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the prelate appointed by the Vatican to defend the Church’s reputation, has described the novel as a ‘castle of lies’ that ‘distorted’ the truth.



Cardinal Bertone, the Archbishop of Genoa, says that the novel is a deliberate attempt to discredit the Catholic Church through absurd and vulgar falsifications.

The article then goes on to interview Monsignor Keith Barltrop (the director of the CEO), and he contradicts the article's earlier claim that he's campaigning against the book.

‘We are not trying to take on The Da Vinci Code.’ Rather the Church was ‘shameless’ in availing itself of the chance to evangelise, he said.



He added: ‘There is huge interest in the book. It poses as the truth but it clearly is not. It is a damn good read but it is a long way from the truth.



‘People are engaged in a lot of things, from aromatherapy through to tarot cards to this sort of thing. Rather than be negative about it, we see it as symptomatic of a seeking mentality that, for whatever reason, does not get channelled to organised religion.’

I really hope that's just a front and that they've dispatched monk assassins.

(Written by: dem_z)

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(Via SuicideGirls: News Wire.)