Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Essential for conspiracy researchers, but some flaws, June 18, 1998
John Daniel is an evangelical Protestant who places much of the content of his book within the context of Protestant "bible prophecy". I am Orthodox Christian, so I do not share all of his eschatological views, but in terms of actual facts, as opposed to interpretation, there is a wealth of information here. In Volume I, Daniel shows that Freemasonry is the common denominator in all common conspiracy theories (Communists, International bankers, Multinational corporations, European aristocracy, Jews, Jesuits, the Illuminati). Drawing heavily upon the work of Baigent, Leigh, and Lincoln, he proceeds to show that the rivalry between the Priory of Sion and the Knights Templar developed into rivalry between the Grand Lodge Masonry of England and the Grand Orient and Scottish Rite Masonries of France. He shows how this rivalry figured in the American Revolution, the French Revolution, the revolutions of the 1800's, Marxism, the Russian Revolution, World Wars I and II, the establishment of the League of Nations and the United Nations, and more. This volume is also valuable because it discredits anti-semitic conspiracy theory. While acknowledging the involvment of many Jews in subversive movements (for example, 82% of the Bolshevik government was staffed by Jews), he shows that the most prominent of these Jews were Masons, and were acting as Masons, not as Jews. In fact, he says Masonry is inherently antisemitic, and that Masonry conspired to both undermine Orthodox Judaism through Reform Judaism and to promote Jews in their ranks, so that if Masonic conspiracies were revealed, the Jews, and not the Masons, would be assigned blame. In Volume II, Daniel attempts to show the continuity between Masonry and the ancient pagan religions. While I agree with his thesis, his layout needs to be more chronological and systematic, and he needs to back up his assertions with more varied sources. In Volume III, he examines the domination of the world economy through central banking and control ! of gold. This will be familiar territory to students of Murray Rothbard, Ludwig von Mises, and other libertarian sources, and I think they do a better job of actually explaining the economics, but in tying the quest for economic hegemony with Masonic membership, Daniel's analysis is unique. In the same volume, Daniel also briefly discusses the assassinations of JFK and Pope John Paul I, as well as the "real" reason for the Vietnam War, and an explantion of what happened to the Nazis after the end of World War II. In Volumes I and III, Daniel assigns the blame for the rock-drug counterculture to sub-Masonic lodges such as the Order of the Golden Dawn. These volumes should serve as a springboard to further research, although many of the books Daniel references are out of print.
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22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great introduction to conspiratorial-apocalyptic research., January 15, 1999
In this 3-volume set, Daniel attempts to show that Freemasonry is the skeletal structure through which all "modern" conspiracies and subversive movements have evolved. This includes everything from the Mafia to Communism to British rock music to drug-dealing, money-laundering offshore banks. The facts he presents in his argument come like a tidal wave. While he appears occasionally to reach too far in his interpretation, for every time I found myself thinking, "Whoa, wait a minute" there were ten times where I was thinking, "That makes sense". The connection of his thesis and many of his points to the apocalyptic books of the Bible was of utmost importance to me. The underlying statement that Satan, or rather Lucifer (as the Freemasons prefer him to be called), is the Great Architect of Freemasonry, is the clinching point of his work.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Must read, February 19, 2009
The two prior reviews are fair assessments and this is a must read for everyone regardless of your ideology. History and prophecy scholars both will glean valuable insight. This set is worth 10x the price as it contains close to 2000 pages of documented historical facts which allow the readers to make their own assessments. The facts are not skewed by the authors biblical, or prophetical theory. However, his theory is, in my opinion, very accurate and only minor issues, which do not impact the whole, are speculative. I purchased mine new from the author which he signed. This may also be viewed as a collector item as it is apparently out of print and a rarity, an absolute jewel. Thanks John for what must have been years and years of extensive research and divine guidance.
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