Graham Phillips - The Chalice of Magdalene: The Search for the Cup That Held the Blood of Christ

The Search for the Cup That Held the Blood of Christ

GRAHAM PHILLIPS

Bear & Company
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Rochester, Vermont 05767
www.InnerTraditions.com

Bear & Company is a division of Inner Traditions International

Copyright 1996, 2004 by Graham Phillips
Originally published in the United Kingdom in 1996 by Arrow Books Limited, under the title The Search for the Grail

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Phillips, Graham.

[Search for the Grail]

The chalice of Magdalene: the search for the cup that held the blood of Christ / Graham Phillips.

p. cm.

Originally published: The search for the Grail. United Kingdom: Arrow
Books Ltd., 1996.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

print ISBN 978-1-59143-038-4 (pbk.)
ebook ISBN 978-1-59143-877-9

1. Grail. 2. Arthurian romancesMiscellanea. I. Title.

BF1442.G73P48 2004
001.94dc22

2003025527

Printed and bound in the United States by Lake Book Manufacturing, Inc.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Text design and layout by Priscilla Baker
This book was typeset in Sabon, with Kingsbury and Avenir as display typefaces

Graham Phillips would like to thank Mark Booth, Anthony Whittome, Lyndsay Symons, Elizabeth Rowlinson, Karma Attar, Tracey Jennings, Dan and Susanna Shadrake, Malcolm Ordover, Steven Griffin, Melissa Marshall, Victoria Palmer, Jean Astle, Kerry Harper, Caroline Wise, Steven Wilson, the management and staff of Hawkstone Park, Francesca Price, Michael Hurll Television Ltd., Brian Blessed, Martin Keatman, the Edwards family, Mrs. Sheila Lea, Geophysical Surveys of Bradford, Mike Stokes, and Roger White for all their invaluable help.

For more information about Graham Phillips, his books, and his research, please visit his Web site at grahamphillips.net

And as they were eating, Jesus took the bread, and blessed it, and broke it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, drink ye all of it. For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

M ATTHEW 26: 2628

The Grail has occupied a unique place in the Western imagination since the dawn of the Middle Ages. Even today it remains a central recurring theme in modern literature. It has inspired writers, artists and musicians for centuries, and now it exerts its enchanting influence from the cinema screen and on television. A sacred chalice said to hold the power to cure all ills and bring peace and prosperity to the world, the Grail embodies a promise of immortality and the fulfillment of dreams and aspirations.

Over the years the search for the Grail has become as important a motif as the sacred artifact itself. In the literature of the Middle Ages medieval heroes sought the Grail in scores of epic poems and romantic adventures, each gaining worldly insight and spiritual enlightenment from the tasks given them during the quest. It became almost unimportant that the Grail itself was not discovered; the real search was for knowledge, and the understanding of the inner self was the true prize. In many medieval stories the Grail was merely a beacon to lure the hero into the ultimate game of life, to discover his true place and purpose in the world. This is the Grail as it was eventually portrayed in the Gothic revival of the nineteenth century, in the paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites and in the verses of the romantic Victorian poets. It is the image that has become the theme of todays novelists and Hollywood scriptwriters. But what exactly is the Holy Grail? Didor doesit really exist?

To most people today the Grail occupies the realm of legend. However, during the Middle Ages it was not portrayed simply as another magical artifact, but as the most sacred Christian relic. As such, belief in the Grails existence was not a matter of profane superstition, but of profound religious faith.

In most medieval Grail romances, from the thirteenth century onward, the Grail was portrayed as the cup used by Christ himself at the Last Supper, in which the wine became his blood. It was said to have been kept by the disciples during the Roman persecutions, before being brought to Britain, where it was later sought by King Arthur and his knights. Millions of Christians throughout the world firmly believed that Jesus was the Son of God and that the miracle of the Last Supper really occurred. From the Christian perspective there was no doubt that the cup of the Last Supper actually existed, and during the Middle Ages many believed that it still survived.

Usually, holy relics were the earthly remains of saints: their bones or, in some cases, a mummified appendage. Relics were believed to hold divine power: they could heal sickness, protect against evil, and secure spiritual well being. In the Middle Ages relics were highly sought after, their acquisition becoming an international obsession. For many monks it was a sacred duty to seek them out and return them to their abbots. In abbeys throughout Europe relics were displayed in public shrines, to be visited by thousands of pilgrims in the hope that they might he helped, cured or enlightened by their close proximity to the remains. Pilgrims were prepared to pay to view or touch the relics, and vast wealth was donated to the churches, abbeys, and cathedrals that contained the bones of the most famous saints. Often a religious center would grow rich and powerful solely from the proceeds of its relics.

An excellent example is Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset. The impressive ruins of the abbey date from the late twelfth century, replacing much older buildings destroyed by fire in 1184. Following the fire, the abbey was desperately in need of funds for rebuilding, and the only sure way to raise the money was to attract large numbers of pilgrims. In 1190, during renovations to the abbey ruins, the monks claimed to have discovered in the foundations the bones of at least three famous saints: Patrick, Gildas, and Dunstan, all thought to be early patrons of the abbey. The relics were put on display and attracted generous donations from multitudes of worshippers. So wealthy did the abbey become that it was reconstructed as one of the most splendid in England.

During the Middle Ages any relics were big business, but the most prestigious were those thought to have been associated with Christ himself. As the Bible relates that Jesus ascended bodily into heaven, his bones could not exist on earth. It was therefore items associated with Jesus that became his relics. Many splinters from the cross were claimed as genuine, as was the famous Turin shroud, in which Christs crucified body was said to have been wrapped. If it had survived, however, the holiest of all relics would be the vessel that had once contained the very blood of Christthe cup of the Last Supper.