The Messianic Legacy

by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln

Overview

Holy Blood, Holy Grail rocked the very foundations of Christianity. Now four more years of research have uncovered shocking material — and its earthshaking consequences.

• What extraordinary meaning lies behind Jesus' title — "King of the Jews"?
• Was there more than one Christ?
• Who really constituted Jesus' following — and what were the real identities of Simon Peter and Judas Iscariot?
• Who now has the ancient treasure of the Temple of Jerusalem?
• What is the true source of today's Christian "Fundamentalism"?
• What links the Vatican, the CIA, the KGB, the Mafia, Freemasonry, and the Knights Templar?
• What is the stunning goal of the European secret society that traces its lineage back to Christ and the House of David?

The Messianic Legacy. Here is the book that reveals the answers to these intriguing, potentially explosive questions. Utilizing the same meticulous research that catapulted their first book onto the best seller lists, the authors again bring an enlighteneing message of truth — and urgent importance — to Christians and non-Christians the world over.

From the Paperback edition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780385338462
Publisher:	Random House Publishing Group
Publication date:	01/06/2004
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	269,576
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Michael Baigent was born in New Zealand in 1948 and obtained a degree in psychology from Canterbury University. At one point he gave up a successful career in photojournalism to devote his time to researching the Templars for a film project. He lives in England and is the author of numerous books on ancient Christianity and conspiracy.

From the Paperback edition.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	x
	Introduction	xi
Part 1	The Messiah
1	Scholarship and Public Understanding	1
2	Jesus as King of Israel	24
3	Constantine as Messiah	36
4	Jesus as Freedom-fighter	48
5	The Zadokite Movement of Qumran	57
6	The Formation of Christianity	69
7	The Brothers of Jesus	91
8	The Survival of Nazarean Teaching	102
9	The Last Days	125
Part 2	The Quest for Meaning
10	The Activation of Symbol	133
11	The Loss of Faith	137
12	Substitute Faiths: Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany	145
13	The Post-War Crisis and Social Desperation	163
14	Trust and Power	169
15	The Artist as Priest, the King as Symbol	187
16	Towards an Embrace of Armageddon	202
Part 3	The Cabal
17	Fragments in the Post	227
18	The British Connection	242
19	The Anonymous Tracts	270
20	The Elusive 'American Contingent'	285
21	The Vista Widens	302
22	Resistance, Chivalry and the United States of Europe	312
23	The Return of De Gaulle	327
24	Secret Powers behind Covert Groups	343
	Epilogue	365
	Bibliography	376
	Notes and References	386
	Index	411

Editorial Reviews

The trio of authors of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail (1982), which traced a Merovingian bloodline for Jesus, continue their inquiry into the origins of Christianity in this sequel. With zeal they search many contexts for the Jesus of history, rather than the Christ of faith, and begin by discounting the Gospels as reliable historical documents. From material culled from many disciplines, they arrive at a speculative, controversial image of Jesus greatly at variance with received Christian tradition. As in the earlier book, the authors rely heavily on the mysterious Prieure de Sion, alleged custodian of the Holy Grail. The inquiry presented here is an interesting melange of the factual and the imagined, of centuries-connected clues and serendipitous happenings involving such disparate offices as the CIA, the Vatican and the Mafia, among many. Those who believe in global conspiracies will enjoy the intrigue; others may be rightfully bemused. Photos. (October)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This sequel to Holy Blood, Holy Grail ( LJ 1/15/82) continues the authors' investigation of the French Cabal, the Prieure de Sion. It is divided into three sections: (1) the concept of Messiahship in the thought of Jesus and his contemporaries, (2) the relevance of the concept today, and (3) the current activities of the Prieure. The three sections are related briefly in the epilogue: the Prierue, it is claimed, can provide a leader (Messiah) of the kind the world wants and needs. As with the previous volume, this one suffers from unsound generalizations, unfounded assumptions, and questionable handling of scholarly research. However, since some who read Holy Blood will be interested in the sequel, it is recommended, with reservations, for larger public libraries. Craig W. Beard, Harding Univ. Lib., Searcy, Ark.

Library Journal