The story of Pope Sylvester II (Gerbert of Aurillac) who lived 940-1003 was the first Frenchman to be Pope in 999. His life story begins as a poor shepherd boy (like King David) in the rich Aquitaine in France, and he became the first Christian alchemist. He was born in Aurillac with its black Madonna and golden statue of Saint Gerard. The area of his birth was noted for its golden fleeces, as sheepskins left in the river Jordan attracted particles of gold and were transported across the pilgrim routes. The area had strong links with Compostela where he studied mathematics in the universities of Cordoba and Toledo under the Arabs. He introduced Arabic numbers to the west, and he invented the astrolabe, a hydraulic organ and a clock. Prior to being made Pope, he was Bishop of Rheims and Archbishop of Ravenna. Most interestingly, he kept a head that talked!
Helinand, a popular medieval author on the Grail, was greatly influenced by Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) who had been personally responsible for obtaining the Papal rule for the Knights Templar. There were deep connections between Bernard’s monastic order, the Cistercians, and the Nazoreans, who fought and died for Jerusalem in 70AD. The Cistercians wore white robes, as did theNazoreans, and so did the Knights Templar before adding the red cross.
Prior to the formation of the Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, Jerusalem had been successfully taken in the First Crusade of 1096 - 1099. Later, the Templars along with other Crusader knights and their entourage, sang Salve Regina while, under Godfrey of Bouillon, they took Jerusalem.
King Philip the Fair expended the Jews in 1306, confiscating their wealth and properties. He had accused Pope Boniface of heresy, idolatry, black magic and sodomy.
1147 - 1149 2nd Crusade, 1187 - 1192 3rd Crusade, 1202 - 1204 4th Crusade, 1208 - 1271 5th and last Crusades.
It is debated where the Sermon on the Mount was preached by Jesus. Some say at the Horns of Hattin, a place known as Quorum or Karn Hattin, a high plateau between two sharply conical hills. On 4th July 1187 Saladin moved from behind a smoke screen of burning brushwood to annihilate the army of the Crusades.
May 12, 1310, 54 Templars were burned to death for retracting admissions of heresy. What were the Templars truly guilty of? They were instructed by the Pope to provide the great cathedrals with relics, as with relics came pilgrims and money flooded in for the Church. But the Pope was very demanding for relics, and the Templars had to provide them. This was done very discreetly, and may not have been with the highest integrity. Both the Papacy and the Templars knew of the lack of authenticity of many relicsnd this knowledge put them in danger of the Church.
It is thought, laughably, by some modern researchers, that the Templars were guilty of the accusations made against them by the Inquisition - that of heresy, blasphemy, etc. Many of these popularists claim that the Templars had similar practices to modern Gardnarian/Alexandrian witchcraft with its witchcraft paraphernalia and religious anarchy (eg., initiations, black chalices, sex acts, drug taking, idolatry, etc). The first and last prayers of the day in the Templar Rule were made to the Mother of God. At their Initiation, the novice knight was told “in honour of Our Lady, this Order was founded, and in her honour, it will come to an end whenever it pleases God”.
It is unlikely that there were any initiations beyond acceptance into the Order by way of commitment to give lands and to die for Christ. These were brother monks of lowly and often illiterate status. The sacrament of baptism and the sacrament of confirmation by the Bishop were sufficient for all dedications to the Rule and to God. Priests (fathers) took the sacrament of Holy Orders, a Confirmation by the use of chrism, but monks took oaths of poverty, chastity and obedience. They would attend public mass daily, with public confession and holy communion, and honour the 8 hourly prayers through the day and night, so any heretical behaviour would have been noticed and reported. Heresy was something to fear since the Cathar inquisition that Templar knights were involved in - and very knowledgeable about.
The Templars honoured the Baptist, as he, like Jesus, was born miraculously, had a dedicated spiritual life of great personal stoicism, and many of his teachings are known by verbatim reports in the synoptic gospels. He was the forerunner of Christ and as such, to all Christians, is held in very high esteem. However, Templars were sworn into the Order of the Fellow Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, and as such, they were prepared to die for Jesus, not the Baptist.
There was a 6th century church built of the title, Saint Sophia in the Praaetorium of Pilate area which fell into disuse. It was known only by those who knew the area well, that the ‘way of the cross’, the path which Jesus walked as he carried his cross to his death on the hill of Golgotha. Though it was ‘tradition’ at the time of the Templars, archaeology has confirmed this unquestionably.
Article by Wendy Stokes https://wendystokes.co.uk
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