The Western world has been fascinated with the Holy Grail, the legendary cup of Jesus Christ from the Last Supper, for centuries. Its mysterious history has given rise to numerous tales, including several modern blockbuster movies.
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Yet, what these popular adaptations fail to recognize is the truth behind it all, underlying the mythic stories of chivalric heroism. The Holy Grail is real and is a treasure beyond measure.
Author Charles Coulombe gives a fascinating history and account of the ongoing quest for the Holy Grail through a Catholic lens, something unique in the various scholarly attempts to find the true meaning behind the medieval legends. In A Catholic Quest for the Holy Grail, Coulombe digs deep into medieval spirituality to discover the faith and devotions that led to and flowed from the quest for Jesus’ cup at the Last Supper.
Here is the book description from the publisher:
The Holy Grail: it conjures images of a rich and fantastic world full of magnificent adventures and perilous quests by gallant knights. It whispers of strange mysteries and fabled conspiracies staged by Templars, Cathars, Nazis, and innumerable secret societies. Was it the Cup used by Christ at the Last Supper, or something else? Is there any truth to the wonders and marvels bards and poets associated with it?
After years of being co-opted by pop culture and New Agers, what significance can this fairy tale still hold for Catholics? Ah, but this is no fairy tale! As A Catholic Quest for the Holy Grail shows, not only does the Grail exist, its whereabouts are known today!
Charles Coulombe examines the fabled vessel s literary and historical connections, but he offers far more than a stuffy history of a dusty old cup. Rather, he shows how the Holy Grail is the key to an entire genre of glorious relics and miraculous phenomena that extend from the time of Christ to the present day. A Catholic Quest for the Holy Grail uncovers the Grail s intrinsic connections to Catholic Monarchy and Chivalry, to the Precious Blood of Christ, the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts devotions, and to the Kingship of Christ and Queenship of Mary, as well as its ties to the Passion of Our Lord and the Blessed Sacrament.
In these pages, discover the reality of the legend of the Holy Grail!
Coulombe’s gives a marvelous account of the historic quest for the Holy Grail and discloses its likely location today. He also looks beyond the physical location of the Grail and examines the religious piety that gave rise to the many legends of the Middle Ages.
I thoroughly enjoyed A Catholic Quest for the Holy Grail and appreciated the author’s respect for the miraculous and the legends of old. Instead of dismissing everything mythic, Coulombe believes these stories have great value and can revive in us a deeper appreciation and love of the Most Holy Eucharist, which is a treasure even greater than the Holy Grail itself.
A quote by J.R.R. Tolkien featured in this book perfectly summarizes the quest and its applicability today, “Do we walk in legends or on the green earth in the daylight? it can truly be answered: A man may do both … The green earth, say you? That is a mighty matter of legend, though you tread it under the light of day!”
