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

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 400 pages
• Published by: Fair Winds Press August 1, 2001
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1931412766
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1931412766
• Book Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Weighs: 12.8 ounces

Product Review
One hundred years ago, an amateur was allowed to photograph the Shroud of Turin. The negatives he produced of that famous image captivated the Christian world and strengthened their belief that it carried the imprint of Christ's face and body. In The Second Messiah, authors Knight and Lomas, who are Freemasons, build a meticulous case against this theory. Although they use recent scientific data that proves the linen shroud could not have predated medieval times, they go well beyond proving it is not the burial shroud of Jesus. The Second Messiah not only pinpoints the exact moment in history during which the Shroud of Turin took the imprint, it actually names the man whose image the Shroud holds.Like any good mystery story, this one begins in medias res. The opening chapters recount centuries of suppression of certain "truths" of Freemasonry by the English Grand Lodge, which led the authors to believe that secrets were being kept from other Freemasons in the service of a Christian agenda. To the uninitiated, this might seem like petty in-fighting within the membership of a clandestine club. Read on. The authors soon paint a greater history of the Knights Templar, the Crusaders who were the originators of modern Freemasonry, and their oppression and eventual eradication by the Roman Catholic Church. The torture and martyrdom of Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, are at the center of this remarkable book's search for historical authenticity.In their introduction, the authors propose that "History seems not so much a record of past events, more a catalogue of preferred beliefs expounded by people who have a vested interest." One of their purposes in writing this book is to show how Freemasonry's rituals and secrets were twisted and used by the Catholic Church to persecute the Knights Templar and their followers. The chapter entitled "The Tarot and the Templars" fascinates with its explanation of how the allegorical cards were used by the Knights to instruct members in the secrets of Freemasonry, and how the Church misinterpreted the meanings of the Tarot and outlawed it.At the conclusion of their well-documented search for the origins of the Shroud of Turin and the Great Secret of Freemasonry, Knight and Lomas say they reached a "new vantage point," from which they see "people huddled together with their eyes squeezed shut _ all facing inwards and repeating the same words, "This is the only highground, there can be no other."" After publication of this painstakingly researched and utterly convincing book, it will be hard for readers, Freemasons or otherwise, to keep their eyes and their minds closed. -- From Independent Publisher --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
For almost seven and a half centuries, a piece of cloth was venerated because it bore the image of the crucified Christ. However, but results of carbon dating have shown that the fabric could not have predated 1260. Now new evidence conclusively proves that it is not a faceyet neither is it the image of Jesus Christ.

In the follow-up to their groundbreaking first book, The Hiram Key, Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas continue their research into the mysteries of Freemasonry and the true historical Jesus, and uncover the precise time and place of the shroudÆs creation.

The answer to the great mystery of the Shroud of Turin will surprise and astonish as the authors unlock the secrets of abandoned Freemason rituals and the man who would be called the Second Messiah.

Reader Reviews
This review is from: The Second Messiah: Templars, the Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry (Paperback) 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.