steve_pikov 's review for:

The Messianic Legacy by Michael Baigent

3.5

challenging informative medium-paced

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And I’m still working on my to-be-read pile. This is the sequel to Baigent, Leigh, and Lincoln’s The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail which explored ideas which were later fictionalized in Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code. Obviously, these books aren’t for everyone, and need to be read with a realistic and pragmatic eye without falling down the “conspiracy theory” rabbit hole. That said, this book is a combination of historical research, informed speculation as to what realistically may have been going on in Israel/Palestine at in the early Christian era, and how this legacy may have been transmitted into modern times. 

 

The last section of the book deals with the writers’ very real dealings with Pierre Plantard-de-Saint-Clair, head of the Prieuré de Sion in the early 1980’s, and the confusing trail of documents, misinformation, fractionalization, and denials they encountered, including prominent figures in politics, banking, and finance, and indeed the CIA and the Vatican.  The book also explores the role of semi-secret and secret societies (essentially old-boys’ networks) operating under a “code of chivalry”, working towards the European Common Market and ultimately the European Union. 

 

A fascinating read for those interested in the area of conspiracy theories and secret societies. Just don’t fall down that rabbit hole.