Demonstrating a profound depth of knowledge, Barbara Frale proves once again that she is amongst the foremost authorities on the subjects of both the Knights Templar and the Shroud of Turin. With access to inside information, gained through her work at the Vatican Secret Archives, Dr. Frale offers a solid hypothesis in The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. A well known fact brought out in King Philip the Fair's inquisition of the Templar Knights during the early 14th Century is the mention of idol worship amongst the warrior monks… particularly the worship of a bearded male head called Baphomet. Dr. Frale suggests that the object referenced as Baphomet was not blasphemous but may in fact have been none other than the famous Shroud of Turin, kept in a reliquary and folded in upon itself so that only the head of Christ was showing. How the Templars came to possess the sacred relic and why they did not reveal it's existence to their accusers (and thus redeem themselves) are subjects that comprise the bulk of the book.
Barbara Frale theorizes that the Templars must have obtained ownership of the Shroud shortly after the violent sack of Constantinople in 1204 A.D. Reliable sources describe the Shroud as then being kept folded in a reliquary which only allowed the face on the cloth to be seen… a visual presentation which may have inspired the many "mandylion" depictions of Christ's solitary head in Eastern Orthodox art. The Templars protected and worshipped the Shroud, but kept it secret for various presumed reasons including the humanizing bloodstains and possible traces of Judaic script on the cloth. Much more is revealed in the text.
Of particular interest is the great care offered in illustrating how the Templars themselves may have perceived the Shroud, which likely differed from the modern viewpoint. Frale states, "The definition of the Shroud is best understood if we try to understand the theological concept of Icon, which is not simply the same as a holy image. Icons, in a sense, live and give life; they can bestow real benefits on the spirituality of the faithful." This is further explained in the practice of the Templars wearing thin strands of linen around their tunics which were never removed, even during sleep. Early on these linen strands had touched the Holy Sepulchre, later on they must have been blessed by another Icon sacred to the passion of Jesus Christ… namely the burial shroud which held his crucified dead body and witnessed his resurrection.
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: Jaques de Molay
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: Baphomet
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: Mandylion
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: Mandylion
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. Barbara Frale: The Shroud of Turin
A straightforward history text, backed by scholarly research, The Templars by Barbara Frale is a paramount addition to the field of material regarding the legendary Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, better known as the Knights Templar. In her work as a staff historian at the Vatican Secret Archives, Dr. Frale made the discovery of the long-lost Chinon Parchment, a document that proved that Pope Clement V had indeed absolved the Templars of the notorious charges of heresy brought against them by King Philip the Fair in the early 14th Century. This brought to light new evidence of the Knights' proper place in history and the Catholic community, and further demonstrated the innocence of those Templars condemned to burn at the stake on the orders of the French King.
The concise but energetically-written text follows the history of the Templar Knights from the Order's inception in 1129 AD, to the infamous arrest of it's members on Friday the 13th of October in 1307, to the horrific execution of it's last heroic Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, in anno domini 1314. At it's height, the Temple had unparalleled power, answering only to the Pope. Presiding over mounds of wealth and real-estate, the Order created the world's first international banking system, with accounts and interest used to fund their many Crusades to reclaim the Holy Land (with a focus on the Holy Sepulchre) from Muslim forces. In the end, they were brought down by the torrid accusations of a jealous monarch. Envious of the Templar's wealth and autonomy, King Philip the Fair brought charges of heresy against the order in an effort to claim their fortune for his court. The charges stemmed from misinterpreted elements of the Templar initiation ceremony, which involved denying Christ, spitting on the cross and engaging in homoerotic acts. While based in fact, the charges played up the sordid elements and ignored the multi-layered lessons of obedience and temperament that the ceremony was intended to teach the initiate. Pope Clement, ill in health and near death, investigated and absolved the Templars… but the King went ahead and executed them anyway without cause or authority.
Of particular interest is Dr. Frale's effort to portray the psychological struggle the Templars faced in their dual nature as a deeply religious order that engaged in brutally violent acts during times of war in Jerusalem and beyond. In the minds of the Templar Knights, when they killed an enemy they were not committing a homicide… it was a malicide, the killing of evil.
The text is by-the-book history, with a focus on the stance of the Holy Roman Catholic Church… so there is not much legend or conjecture here, with only passing references in the Afterword to the Holy Grail, the Shroud of Turin and the knowledge of the Templars being passed down through history to the Freemasons.
Infused with rare knowledge and unique access to seldom-shared documents in the Vatican Secret Archives, Dr. Barbara Frale has created an essential work with these 200 pages.
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: The Chinon Parchment
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Seal of the Order
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: The Temple Mount, Jerusalem
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Grand Masters
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Temple Church, London
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Temple Church, London
The Templars. by Barbara Frale:
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Jacques de Molay
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Structure of Freemasonry
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Indiana Jones. Holy Grail
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: Indiana Jones. Holy Grail
The Templars. by Barbara Frale: in the movies
The Templars. by Barbara Frale
Barbara Frale: The Knights Templar. Vatican Secret Archives
