[Cicero]

Ah, there seems to be some confusion here. The Holy Grail was the chalice Jesus used at the Last Supper, which was thought to have been brought by Joseph of Arimathaea to England or Wales, probably to Glastonbury. The object found by Indiana Jones was the Ark of the Covenant, probably removed from the Temple of Jerusalem by the Emperor Titus when he destroyed the Temple in 70 AD. Two quite different objects, one Jewish--as would be appropriate to Spielberg--the other Christian. Hitler, of course, was essentially what we would now call a New Age pagan, although he had been raised as a Catholic (education that obviously never took). Whatever he was looking for, he thought of as essentially a magical means to gain power, not as the goal of a religious quest.

[Doctor Doom]

You didn't see "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?"

The Grail is precisely what he went after.

Well, that and the hot Nazi blonde chick.

[freedomcrusader]

Yeah, but the third Indian Jones movie was about him looking for the Grail. Although I don't remember the Nazi's playing as prominent a role as in the first movie.

[Aquinasfan]

Whatever he was looking for, he thought of as essentially a magical means to gain power, not as the goal of a religious quest.

Right. What I found most interesting in the History Channel special was the assertion that Hitler and his inner circle of 12 SS men "channeled" on a regular basis in Wertzberg (sp?) Castle.

The photo of the circular, basilica-like meeting room with a round central stone table and twelve stone chairs was truly eerie.

There seems to be hard evidence that Himmler was deeply involved with the occult. There doesn't seem to be any direct evidence conclusively linking Hitler with specific occult practices, although it's not hard to imagine.

[Aquinasfan]

The History Channel special also showed the original architectural drawings for the planned church-like building that was to house the Grail; the idea being to "harness the power" of the Grail.

[gumbo]

Whatever he was looking for, he thought of as essentially a magical means to gain power, not as the goal of a religious quest.

Thank you. I was just about to ask, why would Hitler be interested in the Holy Grail, given that he clearly did not believe in the holiness of Christ. Then I found you'd already answered my question.

[Marysecretary]

There was another film that showed Harrison Ford chasing the Holy Grail. I loved them all.

[M. Thatcher]

The Holy Grail was the chalice Jesus used at the Last Supper, which was thought to have been brought by Joseph of Arimathaea to England or Wales, probably to Glastonbury. The object found by Indiana Jones was the Ark of the Covenant, probably removed from the Temple of Jerusalem by the Emperor Titus when he destroyed the Temple in 70 AD. Two quite different objects, one Jewish--as would be appropriate to Spielberg--the other Christian.

Actually, I read a very interesting and somewhat persuasive book, The Sign and the Seal by Graham Hancock, that argued they are one and the same: the "grail" is a mistranslation of an ancient term and the many ancient quests for it were actually searches for the "ark."

[Attillathehon]

Wrong Movie. Jones did indeed do battle with the Nazis who were after the Holy Grail in "Indiana Jones - The Last Crusade." Great flick with Sean Connery.