I forget which book I read it in, but part of this whole 'mystery' was the mention of the source of Berenger Sauniere's wealth -- contributed by the Vatican to keep Sauniere silent about the bloodline.
According the story, the Prior De Sion, if in fact there was any truth to the 'grail' mystery, the living descendent of Jesus (who was recognized by Pontius Pilate as the 'King of the Jews') would have legal claim even today as King of Israel -- a claim that would supersede the apostolic authority of the Church over Christianity because of the royal blood relationship between Jesus and the current Prior.
Could have been the reason Herod was intent on eliminating any contender to the throne at the time when the order went out to kill all the infants, hoping the kill would have included Jesus, the one he was really looking for because he knew of Jesus' lineage and the bloodline of both parents.
Can't remember the book.
.....Could have been the reason Herod was intent on eliminating any contender to the throne.....
The assertion was that Matthew presents two lineages for Jesus. He and perhaps his twin brother Thomas traced back along the priestly lineage and were eligible for controlling the priests of the temple and also back to David thus establishing the claim to the throne. The twins were thus able to rule it all with the status of king and head priest.
Jesus thus was feared by not only Herod but also Caiphus the priest.
*Obviously. The Vatican is all about the money and we wouldn't be raking in scads of dough if word got out that Jesus was married and whatnot
The bloodline can be traced to the English Colonies in America; especially the Bush family who were loyalists. In any event, one of the Bush family members (long-ago disowned because he owned slaves) extended the bloodlines into the slave population and, generations later, we, lucky enough to be alive when he played at Winston-Salem State University and in the NBA in Baltimore and New York, wegot to witness the Jesus-Mary Magdalen blood coursing through the veins of the Black Jesus, Earl Monroe
Read the article. The priest's wealth came from plain old-fashioned fraud. He was selling masses.