Knights Templar to use latest imaging in search for Grail

New Zealand Herald ^ | 01/06/03 | The Independent (?)

[mgstarr]

For centuries the intricately carved stones of Rosslyn Chapel near Edinburgh have tantalised historians, archaeologists and devoted Christians.

A labyrinth of vaults beneath the 15th-century home of the Knights Templar is reputed to contain dozens of holy relics, including early gospels, the Ark of the Covenant, the fabled Holy Grail - and even the mummified head of Christ.

More than 550 years after the first foundation stones were laid, modern technology is about to put the legend to the test.

A group of Knights Templar, successors to the warrior monks who sought asylum from the Pope by fleeing to Scotland in the early 14th century and fought for Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn, are to make a "non-invasive" survey of the land around the chapel.

They will use the latest ultrasound and thermal imaging technology in the hope of finding evidence of the existence of the vaults.

"The plan is to investigate the land around the chapel to a depth of at least 20ft," said John Ritchie, Grand Herald and spokesman for the Knights Templar.

"The machine we are using is the most sophisticated anywhere and is capable of taking readings from the ground up to a mile deep without disturbing any of the land.

"We know many of the Knights are buried in the grounds and there are many references to buried vaults, which we hope this project will finally uncover."Rosslyn Chapel, or the Collegiate Chapel of St Matthew as it was to have been, was founded in 1446 by Sir William St Clair, third and last Prince of Orkney.

Built as a celebration of Christ, it is also a monument to craftsmanship.

Bristling with flying buttresses and gargoyles in the highest Gothic style on the outside, the interior is carved with scenes from the Bible, the fall of man, the expulsion from the Garden of Eden, the birth of Christ, the crucifixion and the resurrection.

"Rosslyn is an amazing building.

[Green Knight]

Are you a mind-reader, now, that you assume you know my heart? Do you know the contours of it? Where the shallows and the depths are? Where the boiling seas and the calm waters are located? Hey, seeing as how you know me so well then you should be able to tell.

(Felt like waxing poetic, in the manner of God in the Book of Job. Heh)

Funny how you cut out the rest of my sentence, though, how it's a matter of FAITH. And yeah, there's no evidence other than the Gospels. None that I know of, anyway. Funny thing, is, Faith isn't prerequisite on a determination if something is 100% fact or not. That kind of thing can be hedged by time and by men trying to cover up the real truth. So when it comes down to it, do you recognize truth, REAL Truth when you hear it?

Don't ever insult me again by claiming that my heart doesn't have the capacity to recognize Truth when it hears it, when you know absolutely nothing about it.

[El Sordo]

"even the mummified head of Christ."

Wouldn't that throw a wrench in the whole works....?

[mdmathis6]

"Thats silly. Everyone knows that the Ark is Ethiopia and that the Grail was lost in France. Sheesh!"


Yeah, and the 10 lost tribes are all the Jews that live in America.....(lol lol...hold muh matzo balls alert)

[Xenalyte]

Sure, there was an organization that was founded during the first or second crusade, built its headquarters on the holy sepulcher in Jerusalem, got really rich doing that, became a power back in europe, got mostly killed in france by Phillip, and then disappeared. Everything after their disappearance as an order, though, is pure fantasy. Even though the freemasons claim to have derived from the KT, there's no historical proof of that either. I've read the books and they make great historical romance reading.

You're right, and you said it better than I did. Glad someone else thinks these books are intriguing and good reading!

[Marianne]

Have you read The Second Messiah by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas?

[Xenalyte]

Yeah, and the 10 lost tribes are all the Jews that live in America.....(lol lol...hold muh matzo balls alert)

You just keep yer matzos to yerself, now!

[Xenalyte]

I sure haven't; should I?

[My2Cents]

As a matter of fact, there have been some historians who have concluded there is more evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ than there is for Julius Caesar, particularly in regard to the impact of that life on individuals and upon civilization. Other historians have said that there is compelling evidence for the resurrection. Some have tried to disprove the resurrection looking sole at evidence, only to become convinced of its reality. Don't be to hasty with your conclusions if you're ignorant of these works.

I don't have to be a mind reader to know your heart. The stridency of your contrary attitude toward the most important Christian teaching reveals your heart perfectly well.

[wideawake]

Baigent's book is based on the "researches" of a Spanish occultist and his claims about the "sang real".

[blam]

"I would just like to know if there are vaults and what if anything are in them sans controversial relics."

I expect they'll find something....maybe not what they're looking for though.

[Diana Rose]

and they make great historical romance reading.

Son of the Morning by Linda Howard? :)

[agincourt1415]

For all: The series of books, started with Holy Blood, Holy Grail.

I read the books years ago, and I found this review on the net. Thought it might be of interest. I am not going to state an opinion. Decide for yourself!

"Holy Blood, Holy Grail" is one of those books that requires one to have a vast and unquenchable knowledge and fascination with history.

Almost 2000 years of christian history is spanned in this book, and at times it seems as if the reader is kind of nodding his head while waiting for the chase to begin. However, the hypothisis and the evidence supporting it are never very hard to follow and the conclusion the book (and reader) is finally led to is at once unavoidable and incredible.

My telling it here will not give much away. The conclusion is that there are, alive today, linial descendants of Jesus, born to him by his wife...Mary Magdalene. Before this conclusion be reached however, we begin with a mystery. An almost trifleing little mystery of seemingly little consequence. How did a lone priest is southern France, living quite modestly for most of his life, amass both an amazing monetary fortune and a circle of friends that included composer Claude Debussey practically overnight?

The answer is both confounding and fascinating. The book begins with that one question. The only possible way to describe the turns "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" takes from here is to compare it to an enourmous spider web which gets more and more convoluted yet concise as we step back and examine the whole. Baigent, Leigh, and Lincoln tell a marvelous tale of historical conspiracy and back it up with very impressive evidence, among which are historical documents, legends that may actually refer to historical events, and logical deductions that are very well thought out.

Although the authors have lately taken to grasping at straws to prove this theory, this does not diminish the affect of this work.

It is a fascinating look at Christianity and the events and machinations it has spawned from its ver inception. It is a glimpse into the underground workings of the faith that we always suspected existed, but never grasped the scope of the shadow it has cast on all of us for almost 2000 years. - M.S. Colin

[SkunkPunk]

your god no more exists than does that of the islamocrazies. Get over it.

winner45 believes that we all came from rocks.

...and we should get over it?

[Xenalyte]

Baigent's book is based on the "researches" of a Spanish occultist and his claims about the "sang real".

Which Spanish occultist would that be? Knowledge is power.

BTW, the Sangraal was what Arthur's knights were searching for. It's not a Spanish phenomenon. Check your Malory.

[CCWoody]

The book does not teach anything. It posits a historical alternative. ~ Xenalyte

So, a historical alternative is not a teaching. What, then, is it; a fiction?

Jeez, we're all prickly today, aren't we? ~ Xenalyte

Nope! I shaved this morning.

Woody.

[Xenalyte]

LOVE your screen name!

BTW, Baigent et al never present their conclusions as fact. They are INSISTENT on being theoreticians only.

[Technogeeb]

That was the first relic recovered by the First Crusade in their first action in the ME. It also was lost shortly thereafter.

And can now be seen free of charge on weekdays at the Hofsburg Treasure House in Vienna (where hopefully, the Raellians will never get their hands on it; assuming any DNA could ever be extracted), after it was returned by General Eisenhower over the objections of Patton after WWII.

[Diana Rose]

I hope they turn up with Templar artifacts.

[Xenalyte]

So, a historical alternative is not a teaching. What, then, is it; a fiction?

Have you not read one thing I've posted? Baigent et al DO NOT PRESENT THEIR FINDINGS AS FACT. I can't make it any clearer than that.

If you're not presenting facts, no, darling, you are NOT teaching.

[Green Knight]

At what point did I ever cast doubt that Christ existed? Never. Not once. As for the Resurrection, the only thing I said was that there was no scientific proof. If there are historians who believed it happened, well, good then. Though personally I haven't seen any. But at no point, AT NO POINT, did I say it DIDN'T happen. I was just making the case that it's a bit anal to get upset when Historians don't talk about Christ being resurrected or that he died for our sins.

But hey, if you're one of those Christians who likes to attack people for not seeming to be "Christian Enough", then hey, feel free to cast all the stones you like. I can take it.