THE HOLY GRAIL

The Holy Grail—what is it? I invite you to come with me as I pull the threads of mystery, myth, false clues and finally what the Grail is, and what its purpose is. For centuries, people have written about the Holy Grail. Many assume it represents the cup that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper. Others allege Joseph of Arimathea used the Grail cup to catch Jesus' blood when he was placed in the tomb. Now if we were to reason this, the crucifixion occurred over two thousand years ago and at that time Jesus had not been declared a Christ, because it was Paul who gave him the title of Christ and the books of the New Testament were not written until some years after the crucifixion. Somehow, I find it a challenge to think that someone would save his cup, chalice, the lance that pierced his side, a portion of the cross or any other artifact. I do not think that anyone at that time would give importance to those. There are stories that Helene, the mother of Emperor Constantine I reportedly brought back the first relics from Jerusalem and this was the beginning of placing relics of Jesus, Mary, Mary Magdalene and other saints in churches to be venerated. Why? To keep the populace's attention focused on someone or some being outside of them to worship.

I question these, because the birth year of Constantine I is questionable. Some allege it was in 272 A.D. while others say 271 or 273 A.D. If his birth year is a big hazy event, then why accept that these stories of the Grail and other relics are factual? Having done extensive research, I am always open to new information. In either 323 or 325 A.D., Constantine convened the Council of Nicea and thus was born the Catholic Church although it may not have been given that name at the time.

To place events into a perspective, the first four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John of the New Testament were written between 65-95 A.D. Actually it is alleged that the Book of John was written in 100 A.D. at Ephesus. It is alleged that Jesus was crucified in 30 A.D. and this date perhaps is not the actual date. The next 15 books after John are attributed to Paul with the first written in 50 A.D. and continuing through 67 A.D. The Book of Acts is purported to be the biography of Paul's life. The research of Ralph Ellis, Jesus Last of the Pharaohs, indicates that the life of Paul and Josephus, an often-quoted ancient Jewish-Roman historian are almost identical according to the autobiography of Josephus. There are 20 points that indicate the possibility that Paul and Josephus were the same person Could it be that Paul was a character Josephus created and never existed? It is something to consider.

During the Roman-Jewish War of 70 A.D., the Romans totally destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. It is doubtful that any artifacts pertaining to Jesus or Mary Magdalene survived. Perhaps some of the scrolls and writings survived and were taken to the Great Library of Alexandria. Even though a major portion of the Library had been burned by Caesar in 42 B.C., some of the documents were housed in the Serapeum. In 391 A.D., the Christian Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria destroyed almost all of the Serapeum and anything remaining was destroyed by the Muslims in 642 A.D. Therefore, must of ancient history was destroyed and numerous myths have been created.

What does this have to do with the Holy Grail? It is background information leading up to another belief that Mary Magdalene was the Holy Grail, having given birth to the children of Jesus and thus was born the bloodline. The Knights Templar enter the picture with it being created after the First Crusade around 1119 A.D. by Hugues de Payens of France with eight of his knight relatives.

Nine knights spent nine years in Jerusalem supposedly digging for Solomon's Temple and when they left, they became known as Knights Templar. They became wealthy and also responsible for the architecture of the beautiful Gothic cathedrals in France, including Chartres. Chartres is filled with symbology for those who have the eyes to see. They also were responsible for venerating Mary Magdalene. Some have written that it was due to her being the mother of Jesus' children and therefore the bloodline. What if there was another reason?

I am going to backtrack a bit to the Library at Alexandria. When the Serapeum was destroyed by the Patriarch of Alexandria, the great teachers of the mystery schools began dispersing to other places with one being Constantinople and another Baghdad. The mystery schools of great knowledge went underground. It was from these teachers that the Arabs learned mathematics and science, while in Europe the Church suppressed knowledge. What if, the nine knights traveled to either Constantinople or Baghdad and studied under the great teachers? Where else would the knowledge of geometry and the truth about Mary Magdalene come from? It is my assertion that these nine knights spawned their own secret order to carry forward the knowledge they had gained from the great mystery schoolteachers who perhaps were called Magi.

I do not subscribe to the theory that the Knights Templar were perpetuating and protecting the bloodline handed down through royal bloodlines. It does not make sense if one truly reads history. I have already written about the Merovingians and why I do not think they were a main conduit to carry the bloodline. Bishop Gregory of Tours gave the Frankish Merovingian chieftain Clodion the title of king. Before that they were a warring tribe with brother killing brother and the brothers having different mothers. An excellent book to read on the Merovingians is The Birth of France by Katherine Scherman.

There is also the theory that the Grail bloodline was taken to Scotland to the Sinclair's. Rosslyn Chapel is filled with esoteric clues. Several books have been written about Henry Sinclair sailing to Nova Scotia and on down to Massachusetts where there is evidence of the Knights Templar presence. William E. Mann's book The Knights Templar in the New World gives the possibility that the mysterious code left at Rennes le Chateau points to Acadia, Canada, which includes Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. There is evidence according to Mann that Sinclair left clues that have yet to be fully deciphered.

Mann uses in his book the tarot cards as a heading for each chapter with the first chapter being The Fool. By looking at the symbols on the cards, I have realized that these are cards for an initiate of the Great Work. The Fool is the initiate and each succeeding cards indicate various stages of the Journey into full self-realization. I will get back to this, however I want to address what I surmise is the great Secret that the Church did not want revealed and has covertly promoted the myth of the bloodline. Jesus left clues and one is his saying that we can do greater things than he did. He also said, Don't you know your scriptures that you are gods? (Psalms 82:6 and John 10:34.)

What if each of us is a part of the bloodline? What if Henry Sinclair sailed to Acadia to make known an unknown, and he with his other knights did that, and left clues that they had been there? What if Mary Magdalene was a greater teacher than Jesus and, the Knights Templar knew that? What if knowledge of her great works has been eradicated because she was a woman? What if this is all about the individual journeys that each of us must make at one point in time or in another lifetime to realize that we are gods connected to the Source? Religions are the prisons that bind us to beliefs that God is outside of us and that a mortal man can only interpret what the man or men want us to do with do's and don'ts.

What is the Journey? What is the Great Work? It is the discovery that God resides within every human being and each of us is a part of the tapestry of the Source. We have given our power away over eons with one reincarnation after another. Isn't it time we began looking inward and allowing our own Holy Spirit to come forth? How does one begin? There is a saying, when the student is ready, the teacher appears. Ask for the teacher. This is what life is all about. Welcome to the Journey.