Customer Reviews

Second Messiah: Templars, the Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

The authors present their latest findings concerning the links between Jesus, his brother James, the first Jerusalem Church, the Knights Templar, the Turin Shroud and Freemasonry.

Without wishing to give away too much, the stories they unravel and the picture they lay before you develop and appear like the mysterious image of the Shroud itself; any hints given here would detract from the final impact as the book picks up more pace and rushes headlong to its conclusions. If they are to be believed, their theories will force a re-examination of the origins of Christianity - so this book will shock readers possessing less than open minds.

The authors' style of writing - almost conversational - is one which I expected to find distracting; far from it! It turned out to be especially appropriate when one considers the very special nature of some of the (purely coincidental) conversations they did have with some key characters who have been introduced to them. Their revelations are truly stunning.

Both authors are Freemasons of some years' standing; it is fascinating to see, even given that, how many obstacles to genuine research were placed in their way. In their words, "what is there to hide?" They found plenty.

My only criticism is of the authors' tendency to present their theories as fact... but the sheer weight of documented historical evidence lends a high degree of plausibility to those theories.

With every chapter containing so much complex detail, the inclusion of a brief, simple summary of each one is especially welcome and I have been stimulated to go in search of more books on the subject; I bought two more this week.

Prepare to be left feeling shattered

Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas present a clear, well-documented model of religious and Masonic history. I read this a long time ago... Then I read the Hiram Key... Then the Templar Revelation.... and then the Head of God.... and tonight I read this again. (The Second Messiah, and oh, for the un informed these books are a few of the many focusing on the Templars Jerusalem treasure and great heresy) I find this book more believable than its prequel (Hiram Key), though much of its work is based on the conclusions of that piece. And this is MUCH MUCH MUCH more credible than "The Head of God." It has the same idea of the royal blood line however, but doesn't take as far back as Akhenaten/Moses. First the authors set out to show that Paul's theology was at direct odds with the Jerusalem church, which was completely Jewish, not viewing Christ as anyone supernatural. But Paul's religion conquered it, which further expounds their idea that there were many secrets to Jame's church. If you haven't read the Hiram Key, this is their formula [Nasorean=Essene=Christian] They also get into the feature of all the books I mentioned-Rosslyn Chapel. Their finds in the ancient decorations of this temple prove that Freemasonry is centuries older than the English Lodge says. In fact, their dogma is rather evasive. It claims 1717 was the birth of modern Masonry, and doesn't appreciate Freemasonry historians to look further in the past than this date. It is amazing how all the books on these same subjects come up with such different conclusions. The engraving of the "Veronica" was interpreted by "The Head of God" to be just that (a severed head) and here it is identified with the Shroud of Turin. And speaking of the Shroud, here they establish that the most feasible theory regarding its origin is the image of Jacques de Molay. (And they at the same time debunk "The Templar Revelation"'s theory surrounding its mystery) It is surprising to note that in Templar history we find an interesting alternative in interpreting eschatological fulfillments-specifically the book of Revelation. And that is their big claim. Jacques De Molay became the "Second Messiah." He was their High Priest of Yahweh. I'm not going to get into detail explaining this, but it is profoundly interesting. By now you will not want to put this book down. And once you hit the last chapter it is utterly FASCINATING. And that is of course, if it is all true. But the jigsaw puzzle fit of most of their theories certainly suggests that they have found something rather arcane and revolutionary.

This Investigation into the cloudy history of Freemasonry and the Origins of The Shroud of Turin is so well-conceived, written, explained and researched that I am amazed the general public has access to the material. Normally, I tend to write flippant, funny reviews.... However, "The Second Messiah" is such a truly illuminating book that I feel compelled to tone it down, considerably. Reverence? Perhaps. I have been dropping hints here and there, in other reviews, but would not specifically back certain theories ---e.g., the concept of the Shroud being painted by Leonardo da Vinci ("The Templar Revelation," by Picknett & Prince)....great read, but not plausible. My grandfather owned two volumes called: "The Complete Works of Leonardo da Vinci" (fully Illustrated, with notes made by Leonardo). Somehow, after growing up with those books, I don't think the Leonardo theory jives. This work, by Knight and Lomas, however, is based on terrific research and is based on a real-world hypothesis. It seems, to me, after studying everything I can get my hands on about Masonry, that Knight and Lomas know more than they let-on....or, have been extremely "lucky" with their insights, informants and book discoveries, but that makes it even more interesting to me. I keep wondering what the Next book will reveal ! This one Reveals quite a lot.....in fact, I doubt it could-have been published ten years ago. I feel that the Masons must be ready to join the Information Age, or Knight and Lomas would not have gotten this book printed. They have done a wonderful job and everything makes sense. There are no Loopy Theories or silly proposals, based on illusive myths. I believe they are onto something and that something is quite possibly The Truth.

After my review of "The Hiram Key" was published here I received an email from Christopher Knight inviting me to read his and Robert Lomas's next books "The Second Messiah" and "Uriel's Machine." I just finished "The Second Messiah." I start "Uriel's Machine", tomorrow.

"The Second Messiah" presents the reader with massive amounts of evidence to show that the Catholic Church has, for centuries, covered up the true facts concerning the Shroud of Turin, (among other things), how the Shroud came to be and who's image is imprinted on the cloth. Knight and Lomas present a strong case that the Knights Templar, King Philip the Fair of France, and Pope Clement V had as much to do with the creation of the Shroud as did the person who's visage appears upon it. The authors go to great lengths to explain what physical forces created the image on the Shroud of turin. They even attempt to create a "Shroud" themselves.

"The Second Messiah" is a ride through history, with stops along along the way to visit Herod's Temple, and learn about the secrets which were hidden for centuries underneath, to Scotland and Rosslyn Chapel and the secret of the West Wall, to London and the formation of the Grand Masonic Lodge and its break with the Scotish Lodges. Here, Knight and Lomas explain in fascinating detail the secrets of the 33 Masonic degrees.

"The Second Messiah" is very interesting, extremely well written and painstakingly researched. I suggest that you read this book holding "The Second Messiah" in one hand and the Christian "Bible" in the other. Keep a pad and pencil handy to jot down the questions you want to ask the Pope, the next time you see him!

My biggest problem with this book is in its footnoting and documentation. Many of the titles in the footnotes (pp 71 among many others) are not in the Bibliography. Other information and quotes are never cited at all. The so-called facts about what occured after the Jewish War of 70 AD are not cited with any primary sources. In fact I don't believe there is hardly ever mention of primary sources. The only reference we get is SGF Brandon's "The Fall of Jerusalem and the Christian Church" This book might persuade the average reader, but if the authors wish to sway the opinion of anyone with any knowledge of the field, they must do better.

Many of the claims made by Knight and Lomas in their book the Second Messiah, gripped my attention, and caused me to read on, but I felt as if some of their connections were loosely drawn and pretty much unsubstantiated.

For one thing, they come up with something Rex Deus hypothesis in regards to modern freemasonry. The Rex Deus hypothesis argues that those in the know so to speak in modern freemasonry are direct descendants of the bloodline of Jesus through his brother James, but they make this assertion based simply upon hearsay. I doubt whether many of the claims made in the Second Messiah would hold up in a court of law, although the book does give its readers something to think about.

This book has some interesting comments on Grail legends, but the heart of the book, its theory that the image was created from a live crucified person, is totally refuted by the authors' own Appendix 3, the summary of the science report of Dr. Alan Mills that the authors themselves rely on. They say at Appendix 3 that according to Mills, "the build-up of lactic acid during the trauma of crucifixion would result in the surface body (repeat BODY) cells of the victim giving off singlet oxygen. ... The closer the traumatised skin (repeat SKIN) was to the cloth the more fibrils [of the shroud] would be discolored and the darker the mark would be." But this theory cannot explain the image of the HAIR that is so prominent on the shroud -- the head hair, including on both sides of the head; the mustache and beard; and the hair on the back of the head. Hair is a dead substance; lactic acid will not build up in it during crucifixion. Hair is not traumatised. Even assuming that the body, i.e., through the skin, can give off singlet oxygen (I have no idea if this is true) hair will not give off singlet oxygen. If the authors' theory of image creation was correct, the image on the shroud would appear to be bald. The hair framing the sides of the head would not show up at all. The only way that the hair of the back of the head, and the mustache and beard, would appear would be because it had obstructed the flow of singlet oxygen from the skin beneath, making the image of the skin beneath it fainter -- but this is exactly the opposite of what we actually see, which is that the mustache and beard are as dark as any element in the entire image. In short, the authors' theory of image creation is disproven by the image itself. I still feel that the "camera obscura" theory presented in the book Turin Shroud by Lynn Picket and Clive Prince, criticized in this book (ineffectively) in chapter 7, is the only explanation for creation of the image that works. I don't know that they are right to credit Leonardo Da Vinci, but that is a secondary issue -- anyone who wanted to create a religious artifact and make money by drawing pilgrims to their church or shrine would have an interest in making the shroud if they had figured out the process. The Grail, the Priory of Sion, Leonardo as discussed by Picket and Prince -- all that is interesting as stories but unnecessary to provide a motive for creating the shroud. It can all be false yet the image creation process they describe would still be correct.

This book has the means to upset so many readers who have adhered to a blind and inaccurate idea of what it means to be "faithful." This book is historically accurate, factual in it's depth, and so being will no doubt be ignored by many with a vested psychological or social interest in the accepting of fairytales and dogmatic. As a writer of similar historical books, there are many that do not wish to face uncomfortable facts. After re-reading this book, the historical facts it contains will be ignored, or more likely, denied by those unable or more likely, unwilling to understand the implications of it's history. It will be denounced as "the work of atheists", as a fable by "unfaithful" and perhaps labeled "Unchristian." These terms cannot detract from its scope and accuracy, despite the frightened words of its detractors. If history, real history has taught humanity anything, it is that the unpopular ideas are often most importantly studied, and we often find that they are based on truth: and in religious dogma, truth is unwanted, unnecessary, and at times dangerous. This is an excellent companion book to "The Hiram Key" which also speaks to the political power of the Christian Church, and the monetary and social control it has garnered over the past 1400 years.

I cannot recommend this book strongly enough, despite that fact that the mystics, the pseudohistorians, and the overly faithful will dismiss it. And that, in itself is a shame. For knowledge is free to anyone who seeks it. Yet so few do.

I wish I could give this book 6 stars.

W. S. Davis

The book is one of the best when it comes to the history of Freemansonry and the famous Knights Templars. It does give you an excellent detailed account of the fate of the Templars on those fatal nights and what they where accused of. I also liked their account of the Jewish war in 70 AD. The authors argue persuasively that the Rosslyn chappel was built by the Templars and could be housing the invaluable scrolls excavated by the Templars from the Jerusalem temple. The book also covers the mystery of the Turin Shroud. They argue that the image on the Shroud is Jacques de Molay, the last leader of the Templars! Yet, I was NOT convinced by their conclusion that Jacques de Molay was the Second Jesus Christ or Messiah.

I picked this up when it was on sale at B&N, and at least 3 months prior to my picking up The DaVinci Code. As a matter of fact, as I was rotating the book between my fingers, reading the jacket, I overheard a Barnes & Noble employee giving glowing recommendation to The DaVinci Code, a book I had only just heard about. I can pinpoint my reinvigorated exploration of Christianity to this very book, on that very day. Not that I buy it lock, stock and barrel, mind you. At times, it seems the Knight and Lomas stretch marginal evidence to bridge 700 years from the Knights Templar to the present. However, we come away with more than a kernel of enlightened perspective on the European adoption of Christianity.

I also feel that because of this book, I am a more solid critic of the blind-faith believers in the Shroud of Turin as THE holy relic. There are an awful lot of steps and connections missing between then and the first provenance of the shroud in France, 1357, although the "Edessa Cloth" refered to at least as far back as 944 CE by Gregory Referendarius, archdeacon of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, could possibly have been the same artifact.

The defacto Shroud of Turin official web site discussion board is replete with such outrageous blind faith-based propositions, which, in summary, say that the image was created in the cloth as Jesus' godly spirit passed through the cloth on its ascent to heaven. Well, if you believe that Jesus was god (which Free Masons Knight and Lomas do not believe), then there is nothing to discuss or study, and civilization may as well stop in its tracks, because there is nothing more to know about Life, The Universe, and Everything. It is simply 42, er, I mean, Jesus.

Knight and Lomas do a fantastic job in presenting the hitherto unfamiliar Roslin Chapel of Scotland. Wow, it is a pilgrimage I must make. Judging by the pictorials and the film documentaries I have seen, Roslin Chapel was NOT designed with orthodox Christian themes in mind.

Even though I have the sense to read The Second Messiah with a grain of salt, still, the authors know how to plant the seed of doubt about the origins and meaning of The Messiah, and YeHeShoVah. When you take the next step (rather, a next step, as there are many divergent avenues after this book) by delving into the Dead Sea Scrolls, one arrives at quite a bit of corroborative evidence that Jesus was not only just a man, and not a god, but that he may not even have been the Messiah. Again, there are those who "back" their criticism with typical papal bull (pun intended) and King James interpretations of the Bible, which is a bit like treating Fitzgerald's Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam as the authentic version; i.e., falacious.

I called my heading "Gateway Drug To Gnosticism" because I would not have given Christianity a second chance had it not been for this book. Another reviewer of another title observed that traditional Christianity is basically a closed system. But, that is only how it has been patented since Christianity hit the shores of Rome. The ontogeny of Christianity in its native Judea is far more opaque than the Catholic corporate committee understands. Kudos to Knight and Lomas for sparking a new age of inquisitiveness as replacement to the obsolete age of inquisition.