Books like this are certainly the kind that will be like Marmite to most. Some might call it controversial, some might call it blasphemous, some inspiring, and some mind-blowing. The author, Robert Barry, promises to expose the truth about the Holy Grail, probably the most famous "vessel" in the world, maybe excepting the Ark of the Covenant. The Truth: The Biggest Cover-up in History's aim is not to take you on a long journey with a big twist moment at the end to tell you what the Grail is. Instead, we learn very quickly what it is, and where to find it and, essentially, how to use it. I'm going to avoid spoiling what the Grail is according to the author, and a compelling argument it is in my opinion, as the book is worth reading for the reveal and the subsequent explanation.
What follows the explanation of the Grail is the charting of the journey of Yeshua (Jesus), and his aim to open the eyes of not only his followers, but ideally the rest of the world, to what is described as the Source - I suppose shortly identified as the meaning of life - one’s purpose. Anyone familiar with the concept of Natural Law, liberty as a fundamental universal right, and the veil of conspiracy on the modern world, these may already be familiar with a "source", or ultimate understanding of our reason for existence, and the exploration of such topics. The great philosophers of the past certainly had some inroads when it came to assessing these (though not verifying), and though this is not the aim of the book to philosophise, the subject is a fascinating one for further exploration, and The Truth… certainly opens up the conversation.
Now, some people cannot even hear the names "Jesus" or "Yeshua" without squirming, nor want to take the Bible seriously on any level, and some, of course, take both counts very, very seriously. I sit about in the middle of this (though I didn't always), as my further education in various other areas of propaganda and social manipulation make very strong cases for the Bible being the basis of a lot of what's used as that manipulation. And historically, as the book also points out, the Bible has been used by the Church (capital c for corporate) and thoe operating it for centuries to manipulate the populace (the majority who couldn't read on a vast scale in the early days, let alone read Latin, in the early days). Still, the depth of the ignorance about what the Grail truly is and was intended to be, it seems, has been suppressed for almost the entire time Christianity has existed. I will stress, I have not tried the method in this book to use what the author states as the Grail, and therefore cannot vouch for the assurances of its truth or affect, but I will state the argument is extremely interesting, and in general well-rounded and explained throughout - plus, exceedingly simple on one hand, and terrifyingly difficult on the other, like most prospectively life-changing choices. I also haven't read the whole Bible (or the whole Quran, which is also sometimes quoted), so I cannot vouch for the context or accepted (rightly or wrongly) interpretations, but I do understand enough about word manipulation by the so-called Elite (and lawyers) to know that it is almost certain that the manipulation of the Gospels’ meanings was done to sway and control the populace, and it is certainly possible the Grail is as described when looking at the world today and what is missing.
So, aside from the Grail itself, which I'll leave you to discover, what else does this book offer? In actual fact, a great deal. The author makes it clear he is not in this for any religious reasons, to make the reader think or feel a certain way, or to change anyone's minds about the topics he covers. To be honest, anyone who genuinely sees themselves as someone interested is seeking truth, or at least alternative viewpoints that will help expand their critical thinking, then I think this book would be a fascinating prospect. Indeed, if you are interested in looking at the history of these topics, and also looking at the more fundamental underpinnings of what it means to be a living being with a purpose, these journeys are deeply interwoven. There is also the exploration of the systems we as humans access - particularly knowledge-based (that which Yeshua resided in and intended to show his disciples) and belief-based. The author states he has witnessed (but doesn’t reside in, I think) the former, but that every person lives within the latter, which is akin to living life behind a blindfold without knowing it - or, more simply, in The Matrix, if you will. I'm inclined to agree. Belief without fact has, and continues to, cause some of the greatest problems in the world.
I found the entire book a fascinating subject, and invigorating journey. Personally, I'm not at the start of my journey comprehending the theft of our self-understanding - that is, our existence in the wider universe and connection to it. And I’m not talking the 60s hippy movement, Free Love and all that kind of connection. I speak of a much more substantial and fundamental comprehension of what makes us what we are and how we a truly connected to the universe and each other. I've read and conversed much on the topic (but nowhere near enough in my opinion, we ever learn), mostly away from the Bible and its people, however, its use in the understanding of the development of laws (and that is real law, not "legislation"), is essential when unravelling our modern world. This means that the exposé of the Grail and why it was hidden, if you accept the contents of the book, was not a massive surprise to me. But there was more than enough exploration of what was written in the Bible - and the way it has been manipulated over the centuries to make the information, whether actions or speech, into something almost entirely opposed to what is actually meant - to keep me thoroughly engaged and wanting to discover more.
The book is written with care and attention, clearly and simply enough to understand, but still packs a lot of complex ideas and evaluation into it, Still, I still found questions arising along the way, which is good I wager. The knowledge-based system didn’t seem really defined to me. Is it omniscience? By using the Grail do we suddenly become all knowing? Or is it the rejection of living life without direct experiential evidence of a fact? This still bears problems. Some "facts" only remain fact for a while. To live within the knowledge-based system, does this mean we must only experience everything directly to be able to see it as truth? Or see the truth? Is the truth something that we cannot comprehend under our belief-based system? I also don't quite know how the author knew what the process of using the Grail was. I may well have missed some points or finer detail, there was a great deal to unravel and assess, and certainly it is likely I will read it again, to further digest the material, and maybe combine it with some cross-referencing with the Bible, and go deep.
Many questions are raised in the book, and many statements that may fundamentally challenge your whole ideology. The author clearly knows his stuff, and I agree with him that you don’t have to be an “expert” (in this case a theologian) in certain research and understanding to be able to thoroughly assess and re-evaluate if necessary. Indeed, I think it is essential sometimes that others, “outsiders” if you will, take on these tasks, to bite back against the gatekeepers (and if you believe there are not gatekeepers on knowledge and history, go research the Vatican’s library and ask why the world is not allowed to see what’s in it). But, no matter one's viewpoint of organised religion or Christianity on the whole, I see this book as something that is well worth diving into, if you have at any point been interested in the endless battling across time to grasp this mythical holiest of instruments, and maybe take solace in the fact that perhaps it has been found, and everyone on Earth has a right to it, not just a select few. A final point I think, is that the "Truth" of this book was never actually meant to be “religious” at all, some people just made it look that way.
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