The Dark History of the Templars
by Harun Yahya
excerpts
...The first crusade ended with the fall of Jerusalem in 1099. After 460 years of Muslim rule, the Holy Land came under Christian control. The crusaders established a Latin kingdom that stretched from Palestine to Antioch and made Jerusalem its capital city...
About 20 years after the conquest of Jerusalem and the creation of a Latin Empire, the Templars first appeared on the scene of history... The order was founded in 1118 by nine knights...
At the time, there were a number of other orders of warrior monks in Jerusalem, but all acting according to their charters. Besides training as soldiers, the Knights of St. John-a large organization also known as the Knights Hospitalers-took care of the sick and the poor and were performing other good deeds in the Holy Land.
The Templars, however, had taken it upon themselves to protect the lands between Haifa and Jerusalem-a physical impossibility for the nine knights to shoulder all by themselves. Even then, it was now obvious that they sought political as well as economic gains, quite aside from performing works of charity.
In "Morals And Dogma", one of Freemasonry's most popular books, Grand Master Albert Pike (1809-1891) reveals the Templars' true purpose:
In 1118, nine Knights Crusaders in the East, among whom were Geoffroi de Saint-Omer and Hughes de Payens, consecrated themselves to religion, and took an oath between the hands of the Patriarch of Constantinople, a See always secretly or openly hostile to that of Rome from the time of Photius. The avowed object of the Templars was to protect the Christians who came to visit the Holy Places: their secret object was the rebuilding of the Temple of Solomon on the model prophesied by Ezekiel...
The Knights Templar, he continued, were from the very beginning
"devoted to . . . opposition to the tiara of Rome and the crown of its Chiefs. . ."
The object of the Templars, he said, was to acquire influence and wealth, then to
"intrigue and at need fight to establish the Johannite or Gnostic and Kabbalistic dogma. . ."
Adding to the information that Pike provides, the English authors of "The Hiram Key", Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas-both Masons-write about the Templars' origin and purpose. According to them, the Templars discovered "a secret" in the ruins of the temple. This then changed their worldview; and from then on, they adopted un-Christian teachings. Their "protection for pilgrims" became a front behind which they hid their real intent and activities.
Writes the French historian, Gaetan Delaforge:
The real task of the nine knights was to carry out research in the area, in order to obtain certain relics and manuscripts which contain the essence of the secret traditions of Judaism and ancient Egypt
At the end of the 19th century, Charles Wilson of the Royal Engineers, began conducting archeological research in Jerusalem. He concluded that the Templars had gone to Jerusalem to study the temple's ruins and, from the evidence Wilson obtained there, that the Templars had set themselves up in the vicinity of the temple to facilitate excavation and research. The tools that the Templars left behind form part of the evidence Wilson gathered, and are now in the private collection of the Scottish Robert Brydon.
Despite being born and raised in a Christian society, they adopted wholly un-Christian practices. Black magic rituals and rites and sermons of perverse content were common practice. There is a general consensus among historians that these practices were derived from the Cabala.
Cabala literally means "oral tradition." An esoteric branch of mystical Judaism, the Cabala is also a school that researches the secret, hidden and meanings of the Torah (or first five Books of Moses) and other Jewish writings. There's more to it, however. A close examination of the Cabala reveals that it actually precedes the Torah. A pagan teaching, it continued to exist after the revelation of the Torah and lived on to spread amongst the followers of Judaism...
For thousands of years, the Cabala has been a resource for sorcery and practitioners of black magic and now enjoys a strong following all around the world, not only in the Jewish community. The Templars were one such group, engaged in research into the Cabala with the goal of acquiring supernatural powers...
...As their legend and renown spread from mouth to mouth, the Templars became a multinational company with seemingly unlimited capital and financial resources and tens of thousands of trained employees:
Recruits, and offers of money and land came flowing in from far and wide. Soon, numerous presbyteries, castles, farms and churches, were built and occupied by the Templar Knights and their servants. The Templars fitted out ships, creating both a merchant and fighting navy. In time, they became the most famous warriors, travelers, bankers and financiers of their day.
In short, the Templars were an autonomous entity answerable only to the Pope, with no obligation to pay dues to any king, ruler or diocese. Their wealth increased day by day. In the Holy Lands, the order's power was legendary and continued until the fall of Acre (1291). They controlled the shipping routes from Europe to Palestine used by pilgrims, but all these constituted just a fraction of the Templars' overall activities.
They had entered the scene as "Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ," but no description could have been less accurate. Amongst their ranks were to be found the wealthiest people of Europe: leading bankers from London and Paris, among whose customers were Blanche of Castile, Alphonso de Poitiers, and Robert of Artois. The finance ministers of James I of Aragon, and Charles I of Naples and the chief advisor of Louis VII of France were all Templars...
It is estimated that in the 13th century, the Templars numbered 160,000, of whom 20,000 were knights-in those times, constituting an undoubted superpower.
In "The Temple and the Lodge", authors Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh document the Templars' incredibly widespread influence throughout Christian Europe. They were simply everywhere, even playing a role in the signing of England's Magna Carta. ...
"Christian Usurers"
According to Alan Butler and Stephen Dafoe,
"The Templars were expert financiers, using trading techniques quite unknown in the Europe of their day. They had clearly learned many of these skills from Jewish sources, but would have much more freedom to extend their financial empire, in a way that any Jewish financier of the period would have envied greatly."
Even though usury was strictly forbidden, they weren't afraid to lend money on interest. The Templars had acquired such wealth-and the power that came with it-that nobody dared speak out against them or do anything about it. This so went to their heads that they went out of control. They were disobedient to kings and the Pope and in some cases, even challenged their authority...
History records Florentine bankers as having invented "checking accounts," yet the Templars were using this method of money transfer long before. It is generally accepted that capitalism first arose in the Jewish community of Amsterdam, but long before them, the Templars had established their own medieval capitalism, including banking based on interest.
They lent money on interest rates of up to 60% and controlled a major proportion of capital flow and liquidity in the economy of Europe.
Using methods much like those of a modern private bank, they derived profits from both trade and banking, as well as from donations and armed conflict. They became as rich as the multinational company that, in effect, they were.
At one time, the finances of the English and French monarchies were controlled and run by the Templars' respective offices in Paris and London, and both the French and English royal families owed the Templars huge amounts of money.
The kings of Europe were literally at their mercy, hoping to borrow money, and most royal households had come to depend on the order. This let them manipulate the kings and their national policies for their own purposes...
The Templars' True Face
Modest missionaries, fighting for Christianity - this was how the Templars presented themselves to the ordinary people. Undeservedly, they were perceived to be saints of great virtue, mentors of Christianity, devoted to aiding the poor and the needy. It's amazing that they managed to create such a positive image while leading lives contrary to Christian teachings and, on the way acquiring status and wealth through donations, trade, banking and even looting. The few who discovered their true identity did not dare to speak out against this powerful order. Philip, King of France, feared the dangers their financial strength could create for him.
It was high time to unmask the Templars. As a Masonic writer of the 18th century explains:
The war, which for the greater number of warriors of good faith proved the source of weariness, of losses and misfortunes, became for them [the Templars] only the opportunity for booty and aggrandizement...
The Templars became increasingly confident and impertinent in their practices and in disseminating their teachings, trusting in the unjustifiably positive image they had managed to create throughout society. This in turn led to an increase in the numbers who witnessed their perversion and began to whisper about it.
Whatever might the Templars be doing behind the closed doors of their palaces? The knights' avarice, inhumanity, greed and zeal, already well known, awakened the curiosity of the locals, the clergy, and the monarchy. The Papacy was almost certain that this group, which it could no longer control, was living an irreligious life and abusing the privileges it had granted them...
Perversion in the Templars' Faith and Practice
The documents at hand, together with the allegation made against the Templars, demonstrated that this was no ordinary order of knights. It was a darker organization altogether: one of perverted faith, frightening methods, and cunning strategies. It was well organized and well prepared, always scheming, always ready and dangerous, and-unlike anything seen before-forward thinking, with comprehensive plans for the future.
The Templars worshipped the idol Baphomet, thought to symbolize Satan.
During their time in the Middle East, the Templars had established and maintained contact with mystic sects belonging to different religions and denominations, including sorcerers. They were known to have close links to the hashashis (assassins) who, while influential, were regarded as a perverted sect by the Muslim population.
From them, the Templars had learned some mystic teachings and barbaric strategies, as well as how to organize a sect. As will be seen in the coming chapters, the order's higher echelons in particular had also acquainted themselves with-and incorporated into their practice-beliefs based on the mystic teachings of the Cabala, the influence of the Bogomils, and Luciferians, thus leaving Christianity behind.
According to the Templars, Jesus was a god ruling in another world, with little or no power in our present one. Satan was the lord of this material world of ours.
Rumors and complaints circulated about the Templars...
All these rumors were combined with actual fact - what servants in Templar palaces and the people living in the vicinity of them witnessed and reported...
All this, however, was unacceptable to the French King. He quickly passed a new law, under which he had the Templars arrested. On October 13, 1309...
During their trial, almost all Templars mentioned having worshipped Baphomet. This idol they described as having a scary human head, a long beard and frightening, shining eyes. They also mentioned human skulls and idols of cats.
The consensus among historians is that all these figures are objects of Satanic worship. The demon Baphomet has ever since been an object of Satanic veneration. Details about Baphomet were later conveyed by Eliphas Levi; a 19th-century Cabalist and occultist, whose drawings illustrate Baphomet as having a goat's head with two faces, and a winged human body that is female above the waist and whose lower half is male....
Baphomet was the deity worshipped by the Knights Templar, and in Black Magic was the source and creator of evil; the Satanic goat of the witches' Sabbath?
The interrogation of the Templars culminated in the dissolution of their order...
In 1314, Grand Master Jacques de Molay was burned at the stake. Templars who had managed to escape arrest by fleeing to other countries were pursued throughout the whole of Christendom. Other countries including Italy and Germany followed suit, arresting and interrogating the Templars they could apprehend.
But for various reasons, some countries offered the Templars refuge. On November 10, 1307, England's Edward II wrote the Pope that he would not persecute the Templars and that in his country, they would remain safe.
But two years later, after interrogating the Templars, the Pope issued a Papal Bull declaring that the Templars'
"unspeakable wickednesses and abominable crimes of notorious heresy" had now "come to the knowledge of almost everyone."
Upon reading it, King Edward agreed to prosecute the Templars.
Finally, at the Council of Vienne in France in 1312, the Order of the Knights Templar was officially declared illegal in all of Europe, and captured Templars were punished.
Read the whole article here
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It´s interesting to see, that a bunch of men, who were in reality in their times userers, war-mongers and extortionists, are nowadays in popular media (or books like the DaVinci Code) considered as saintly martyrs and fountain of wisdom.
Some historians claim that the accusations of Luciferian heresies are not proven, and that the confessions in the process of the trials against the Templars were the results of torture.
Undeniable and historically documented fact, however, is that the Templars were the first Christian bankers and war-profeteers in Europe, who became obscenely rich and influential.
The belief-system of the Templars, or at least, what was in the last century assumed to be their belief-system, became then the foundation of the beliefs of the Free-Masons.
At the same time as the history of the Templars is white-washed, the Jesuits, who were most often champions of social justice and racial tolerance within the Catholic church, are smeared as "evil conspirators"..
I have been a long time reader of this blog and this is my first comment. I just TODAY finished reading the DA VINCI CODE and that totally deals with your blog entry. In it is explained that yes the Templars were on a covert mission and did use protecting Christian pilgrims as a pretext for setting up camp at the Solomon temple ruins... but that was because there was a deeper truth to the biblical tales the mainstream masses are being told. Basically Jesus was a MAN, yes a good man that respected and loved woman, specifically HIS woman which was Mary Magdalene... apparently the Church wanted Jesus to be beyond mortal desires so Mary was branded a whore. Anyone that takes the bible verbatim on faith after all the translations and political editorial control, mine as well take everything they read in our mainstream newspapers at face value too... its the same concept.. the new testament bible was controlled by the emperors of rome who were doing their damndest to control their populaces... Apparently Jesus was leaving control of his following to Mary and this rifled some feathers...
its a long complicated tale and certainly cannot and should not be summarized succinctly in a blog such as this... but if you think witch hunts and burning people at stakes for worshipping nature is appropriate than you mine as well figure blowing up some middle easterners in the name of God is a good idea also.
There is more to this story and I suggest you read the Da Vinci Code.
even secular historians agree on this one.
It is hyped as being based on historic fact. This is simply not true.
Dismantling The Da Vinci Code
My blog entry is not a review on the Da Vinci Code, it is just a summary to an article by a Muslim Turkish scholar, who bases his findings on documents and books written by other historians.
People were not burned on the stake for "worshiping nature" , they were accused of taken part in repulsive rituals worshiping the devil.
And while many or even most of those accused were probably innocent, and the confessions were forced through torture, it looks to me, that the Templars were not innocent at all.
They actually were in contact with heretics of other religions.
And their behavior in the real world showed their absolute disdain for any rules of ethics and honesty taught be Christianity.
The history of the Templars is relevant because their spiritual inheritance is found in the attitudes of todays Freemasons and other esoteric groups.
What all Esoterics have in common is their elitism.
Esoteric sects, including the Masons, do not believe that all men are of equal value and have equal rights to life and happiness.
And their attitude spills over into their behavior towards those they consider "inferior".
They might be whitewashed as "nature-worshipers", the reality however is, that their nature worship goes at the expense of decency and compassion towards their fellow human beings.
The Esoterics are just the "religious" side of the coin, on which the Malthusians, the Social-Darwinists, the Zionists and the Neocons are the secular side.
Yes the Da Vinci Code is certainly a work of fiction AS IS THE MODERN DAY BIBLE. Maybe at one point in time it had more basis in reality but it is so far removed from the here and now it is pure pure fiction with no real world application whatsoever.
The author comment at the beginning of Da Vinci Code however clearly says historical fact in his research as far as documents cited, the info on the Knights Templar sect that survived the Catholic purging (the Priory of Sion) and all artworks are FACT not fiction.
Wicca, paganism, and nature worship are good things not BLACK MAGIC or whatever you insinuated in your blog entry... the catholic church attempting to monopolize religion converted nature imagery into Devil worship: i.e. GOATS became DEVILS. The whole thing borders on the absurd but the lack of education creates belief systems that do indeed border on the absurd and fantastic. The Templars were men grounded in SCIENCE who respected and loved women and from what I am reading sought to enlighten the world. Remember Sir Isaac Newton was the first to tell us the EARTH rotated around the SUN, and the Church forced him to recant even though he knew he was right and science in the end proved him out.
Are we currently living in enlightended times or Dark Ages? Possiby these elites who you apparently have much contempt for, are just a heckuva lot more grounded in hard science and reality than the brainwashed masses, so money comes easily to them. No one forces a person to borrow money at exorbitant rates. In Da Vinci Code they explain that travelers with a ton of gold do not feel secure on the roadways in those days, so they would use the Templar temples as bank depositories to protect their assets. That sounds legitimate. Do we have proof people resented this banking system? What would you suggest in its stead? Possibly rather than resenting these rich, intelligent guys we should learn as much as we can from them and probably adopt their world view.
Again, a lot more research needs to be done before we can draw lines in the sand and identify right and wrong... Seldom are things clearly black and white on the surface. To simply sweep this book aside as a work of fiction is too easy a way out without actually addressing any of its actual content.
I happen to agree with what you say here....
Wicca, paganism, and nature worship are good things not BLACK MAGIC ............the catholic church attempting to monopolize religion converted nature imagery into Devil worship: i.e. GOATS became DEVILS.
William Dufty / SUGAR BLUES:
As the Oriental sages phrased it, the mind and the body are not two. The sorceress…wise woman…natural healer believed this too.
By the time sugar was introduced widely in Europe, the natural healers were uncovered – practically overnight – as a declared enemy of church and state.
Ailing people consulted them at very real peril. One literally risked life and limb having any truck with them. In turn, they risked life and limb to aid you.
The church declared, in the 14th century, that “if a woman dare to cure without having studied, she is a witch and must die.”
Catholics and Protestant church-men forbade the exercising of healing arts or the dispensing of common sense wisdom under pain of death. Never mind that such people had spent their entire lives in practical study.
They had studied the order of the universe, the seeds and stars, the animal, birds, and bees in their native habitat. Nature and tradition were their teachers, not the scriptures as interpreted by the priests.
Bewitchment was the province of the exorcist and the priest. The cure prescribed was for the bewitched person to denounce the natural healer as a witch or a wizard, the source of the unholy spell.
The punishment? Burning at the stake.
In the age of witch hunts, the disorders, occurrences, and signs were divided into two categories:
1. Those thought to be your own fault [physical]
2. and those thought to be the work of the devil [mental].
Galloping consumption, stomach-ache and other obvious signs and warnings were clearly physical. Invisible symptoms – melancholy to migraine to madness were bewitchment.
With the support of kings and princes, the medieval church asserted complete control over medical education and practice.
The infamous 1486 manual for witch hunters, Malleus Maleficarum [The Hammer of Witches], defined witches as “those who try to induce others to perform evil wonders.”
Healing was one of the wonders they had in mind.
William Dufty
Sugar Blues
1975
pages 53-54
What you say here:
"Are we currently living in enlightended times or Dark Ages? Possiby these elites who you apparently have much contempt for, are just a heckuva lot more grounded in hard science and reality than the brainwashed masses, so money comes easily to them. No one forces a person to borrow money at exorbitant rates."
Grounded in hard science? Just because someone is grounded in "hard science" does not mean their reality is superior than anyone else's reality.... no.
And believe it or not, their is a lot of MORAL responsibility that comes with "money that comes easily"... yes.
You seem to hold contempt for the brainwashed masses, and those who are not forced to borrow money at exhorbitant rates but they do.
Well people need a car to get around for many good reasons. People need to get that education for many good reasons. Nobody is pushing them physically but they MUST have these things, don't you agree?
This is THEIR reality.... millions of people in the USA will lose their homes by the year 2008 - the brainwashed masses so to speak.
Oh well....bless the beasts and the children...right?
For they know not what they do.
It's always nice to learn that another person reads the blog regularly. And it's even nicer when they decide to join in the fray!
WELCOME, SMARTELF!
Now, to add my two cents worth to the discussion. I don't know too much about freemasons and the templars - but I don't like secret societies and I don't like secrets in general.
The Catholic church certainly has its flaws and I believe that some of the Bible's text has been fabricated to suit special interests. But, I think it's unfair to suggest that it's pure fiction. So many millions of people are guided by it, the vast majority of whom are normal people leading moral lives, so it must encompass good values.
As for burning people at the stakes - I agree that that practice is abominable and is designed by mercantile interests to snuff out any competition. Generally, throughout history up until today you can see a constant effort to keep all knowledge and information in the hands of just a handful of interests.
When the Church was popular and strong - these interests controlled it and abused it to get the monopolies they wanted.
When the Church fell from favor, these interests shifted their operations to the Corporation - what I consider the modern version of the witch burning church of past. Look at what they do to people who try to offer alternative treatments today - fine them and throw them in jail. You need not look far to see the patterns.
Finally, Rhiannon and I are on the same page regarding your suggestion that "Possiby these elites who you apparently have much contempt for, are just a heckuva lot more grounded in hard science and reality than the brainwashed masses, so money comes easily to them. No one forces a person to borrow money at exorbitant rates . . . Possibly rather than resenting these rich, intelligent guys we should learn as much as we can from them and probably adopt their world view.
I guess you consider israelis better and brighter than Palestinians and more deserving of all "the money" that they're rolling in?
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The "rich" - as you like to call them - do not "earn" their "money."
They extort it from the rest of us or they acquire it through fraud and corruption.
Morevoer, the "rich" are only more intelligent than the majority of people on the planet insofar as they know how (and are eager to) to exploit and defraud everyone else.
They know more about science and technology and benefit more from it than the average person because they deliberately make it near impossible (through patents, copyrights, and exorbitant education costs) for everyone else to learn.
So, before you consider "adopting their world view" remember that their supremacist world view is the reason we've reached the abominable state in which we are today.
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"Money" has no value - people do.
that the witch-hunts and the burning on the stake were cruel and criminal acts.
Indeed I am against all forms of death penalty.
I also agree, that the financial banking elites are not justified in any way. As the templers of old, todays bankers have gotten their wealth and power by extortion and fraud.
But I disagree with you, that the Church ever was just an instrument of power to be used by corrupt elements, which at one point lost favor.
For most Catholics, (and there are a billion of us today just like Muslims) if the Church is put down unjustly, it is as hurtful as for Islamic people, if the Prophet Mohammed is denigrated.
For us the Church as a whole, is the body of Christ, and we as members are all atoms molecules or cells of this body.
The Pope is NOT the head of this body, but Christ Himself is her head.
But the Pope and the Vatican is the heart of the Church.(The Protestants, however, believe the heart of the Church is the Bible.)
This heart keeps pumping, in a metaphorical sense, the spiritual blood of Christ throughout the whole body in an eternal circulation. It keeps the body alive and all parts connected to each other.
It provides the oxigen of constant renewal, growth and necessary adaption to solve the problems of the current times.
This heart can sometimes become very sick and then the body gets sick as well, and that is what happened during the Middle Ages. However recovery is always possible, since Christ promised Peter, who we believe to be the first Pope, that even the doorsteps of hell would not overcome the Church.
It is possible to criticize single Popes and even the actions and decisions of the current Pope, however, to put in question or call for the destruction of the office of the Pope and the institution of the Vatican, means to threaten the heart of the Church with a knife.
Although you as a Muslim cannot agree that Christ was the Son of God and I as a Christian cannot agree that the Koran is the literal truth dictated by God Himself. There are ways in which we can respect each other.
I can accept the God has inspired Mohammed in the same way as He has inspired other prophets before Him.
And you might agree that God Almighty has had His Divine reasons why He has allowed the Catholic Church to stay around and grow for until now nearly 1400 years, even after the times of the Prophet Mohammed.
As for what kick-started the Inquisition and the witch-hunts in the first place, I will go into in another post, because it has a lot do with the misconceptions of Zionist Jewish history and the connection and the collaboration between the Zionist Jewish and the Masonic gentile elites.
And the secular attitudes of both elites are based on a world view derived from the reactionary religious philosophies of the Templars.
Its interesting that you might accept Bible to be literal truth dictated by God but you can not accept Qur'an in the same way. Now you yourself said that you can accept that Prophet Muhammad was inspired by God as were prophets before him. It seems that you are contradicting yourself here. First of all every Prophet in Bible and Qur'an was inspired by God in a way relevant to the era he lived in. Now Bible (Old &New Testament) is permeated by stories from time of Adam to time after Jesus. Although there are so many versions of the Bible in regard to wording and actually whole books you regard citation by your Church from the Bible that Jesus was son of God to be literal truth. Don't you find this a bit odd and not up to standard of being true beyond reasonable doubt. Also if you believe that Muhammad was inspired by God as other prophets before him are you then saying that he was a liar or that Qur'an is somehow invented and attributed to Prophet Muhammad. We have no record, and even western historians agree that Islamic history is much better recorded and documented than the most, that Muhammad ever claimed that any person, be he prophet or not was literally son of God, moreover he sent letter to Christians and Persians to accept Islam and worship One God. If he was of opinion that Jesus was "Son of God" why would he call them to accept Islam. Do you known that there is recorded historical event when Prophet Muhammad was actually challenged by Christian delegation exactly for him denying Divinity of Jesus. When he explained to them what God revealed in Qur'an about Jesus they denied it citing Bible. So then God instructed Prophet Muhammad to challenge that Christian delegation into open and public invocation of Divine curse on those who are telling lie about God. Well that delegation refused to accept that challenge and returned home. You can mess with ordinary believers but when Prophet challenges you in front of God you are gone forever. Those priests knew that fact very well so they took the flight home. Now as for Almighty allowing Catholicism to survive and even grow after the Prophet Muhammad I find that argument a bit immature. It is known fact that we as species multiplied a lot since the time of Jesus. Also Catholic sect of Christianity is the only one that propagates marriages "till death do us part" with lots of children. Even the latest Pope is alarmed with European trend of having couple or one child per family and advises more children. Thats OK with me for marriage is commendable but to insist on having lots of children clearly explains why that sect grew so much. Also Catholic sect has very attractive doctrine of redemption by priest which more or less means you go tell the priest what you sinned and he forgives your sins on the basis of the authority given to him by Church. Very enticing to masses. What about Chinese or Hindus they both have over billion people and one is atheist and other polytheist culture. Almighty allowed them too to survive and grow, and guess what they also know how to make a lot of children so its not easy to survive and grow as long as yo are not gay. If you are gay you finish up under "Dead Sea" sooner or later.
If you read Ten Commandments of Old Testament belief of God literally having son equals to blasphemy however that was ignored for the sake of rendering all other sons of God in Bible illegal or metaphorical and establishing Jesus as the only Son of God. I mean this doctrine does not pass neither theological nor scientific test. Its invented 300 years after Jesus and guess what, Catholics or should we call them Romans had a sole power to impose that doctrine on anyone who disagreed. Why do you think Protestants were protesting if Rome was so holy. So lets redefine your stance on this. You do not accept that Muhammad was a Prophet of God because you can not accept that Qu'an (Last Testament) is literal word of God. You accept Bible to be literal word of God because it claims on third person account that Jesus was the Son of God. I must admit vis a vis understanding of Christianity Protestants are at better footing because they know that Rome was and is corrupt place filled with idols then and now. So when we talk about respect we may talk about respecting each other's right to believe what we chose but neither are you nor we capable of respecting opposing beliefs about the basic nature of God that marks our respective religions. Toleration is a better word used for interfaith relationships because neither can you nor we respect something that we deem to be blasphemy. No offense fellow Catholics, just some little points to make. Carry on.
"Let there be Light!"
I do not accept the Bible as literal truth, Catholics don´t do that.
No Catholic believes, for instance, that God created the earth in 6 literal days of 24 solar-hours.
We believe that the Bible is written by human beings inspired by God.
And I believe that inspiration by God is not the same as dictation. It goes through a human mind and therefor it is always the interpretation of a human being of Divine inspiration, using human language, and therefor it is limited by human abilities to understand and to write.
Islam has a different concept, I think, but Islam does accept all monotheistic religions as Divinely inspired.
I am not discussing doctrine here. I am not here to convert anybody to my religion.
I was offering Qrswave a common ground from which we can build bridges between our different views.In order to do that one has to understand each other´s feelings on certain issues to be able to avoid being offensive.
Building bridges means that we do not insist in being totally right, while the other one is totally wrong.
This is a political site, not a religious one.
I believe, that the best way to overcome Zionism, racism, supremacism, social-Darwinism and oppression and exploitation of humanity, is when people from different cultures and religions respect each other and cooperate.
And the process of bridge-building is well underway. The people who want to divide and conquer us all, most of them Zionists and seculars(possibly Masonic based), who have got a deep hatred for both Islam and Christianity (especially the Catholic church), will loose in the end. It´s just a matter of time.
And for the notion, that the Protestants are the better Christians:
From an Islamic point of view it should be rather counterproductive to ally oneself with a few million Protestants, many of them hopelessly involved in Christian Zionism, and then, using the Protestant anti-Catholic rethoric, to alienate the one Billion Catholics.
I am nonaligned in regard of religion and especially with Protestants whose protesting was more political than religious. I am well aware of Zionist evangelical zealots and their effect on the Christian world. Also over billion Catholics means nothing to me either when discussing religious issues. I am not interested in converting anyone into anything but I am interested into making people aware of essential truths and flaws both in religious and political domain. I think of Protestant-Catholic rhetoric as the one of Shi'ite-Sunni rhetoric. Basic difference between Shiites and Sunnis is more political than religious but they share pure monotheism while basic difference between Islam and Christianity is theological about main pillar of belief and that is Oneness of Divine Being. I have nothing against building bridges between Muslims, Christians and Jews as they all were founded on Heavenly Books and in the Qur'an certain privileges are given to Jews and Christians over the rest of world because of common Origin of these faiths. However bridges are bridges and distinctions are often ignored letting it appear as if it was all same while it isn't. My previous comment was not particularly to you but to all Christians. This religious divide is the main platform that allowed Zionist anti-God forces to build its dirty global empire. It still is and blind support of overall majority of Christian world for Zionist entity is very obvious to majority of Muslims even the ignorant ones. Templars emerged from the age of Crusades and I see them as byproduct of injustice done by the holy Rome. However I know that Zionist jews have been behind fire of Crusades in many ways so I say about this "Father forgive them for they know not what have they done." Ignorance is our greatest enemy both in religious and political domain and its being exploited by the learned elders of Zion who by the way I do not believe emerged just over a century ago. They were there over 2000 years and they were the ones that wished death of Jesus (peace be upon him) for they never wished for the Kingdom of Heaven. Zionist jews planned and almost succeeded in killing the Prophet Muhammad as well but they failed and paid for it according to the law of Torah. They aligned themselves with polytheist Arabs against Muslims in war time while being in contract with Muslims. I found it quite astonishing that they chose to support polytheist Arabs against monotheist Arabs. They are doing same thing again. They have betrayed their belief in One God because of insatiable greed for world dominion. They want Kingdom of Zion and they will sacrifice all Christians and the rest of world to get it. Muslims are alone whichever way you look at it. Jews hate them because God has given Kingdom of World to Arabs that they despised as lower caste and Christians align themselves with Zionist jews because they can not accept pure monotheism that Islam calls for. However as for rhetoric against Islam Catholics of today are generally more cordial than Protestants with various offshoots across the West. One has to stop and wonder why so much animosity for religion that seeks to establish justice and pure simple worship and awareness of Absolute Being. What is wrong with those Divine principles that rallies almost the whole world against Muslims. There is a lot of Christians who fear God and do not agree with Zionist warmongering but nevertheless they are passively aligned with them and that fact is very hard to ignore. This is my assessment of this matter and I wish I am wrong on this subject but overwhelming evidence is just mounting up its not decreasing or even stagnating. I hate violence and wars more than anything but long overdue Zionist oppression will cause demise of the whole Zionist aligned front however improbable that might look now. God forgive us for we have sinned in ignorance of You and save all those souls that have at least atom of good in their heart.
"Let there be Light!"
so I thought I would post it here
The story is about a recently discovered document from the Vatican archives which supposedly reveals the Templars were not actually heretics. But looking at the evidence cited in the article, I don't think the document clears the Templars at all.
Apparently Clement V said that the Templars were not heretics, but disbanded them anyway because of political pressure.
Can you believe this nonsense? They admit to a ceremony involving a man kissing another a man on the navel and spitting on the cross, but they're not heretics?
The "Saracens" excuse seems to work for just about anything: "If the Saracens catch us, they might make us eat a human baby. That is why we have an initiation rite that involves eating babies." Whatever.
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"Stop judging by appearances, but judge justly."