The Holy Grail is a term referring to the cup that Jesus used at the Last Supper before his arrest, trial, and execution. The term is more familiar to most people now as a metaphor for anything important yet unobtainable, that if it were ever found would change everything. That we even have a term for the cup is a testament to its value as a religious relic. But far from being unobtainable, there are Holy Grails in around 200 cathedrals in Europe alone, with more in the Middle East and elsewhere.
Listen beautiful relax classics on our Youtube channel.
According to the canonical Bible, Jesus did not own the cup. The room for the Passover feast was donated or rented from a Jerusalem resident, and the dishes would have been reused and replaced as needed. A medieval story says Joseph of Arimathea retrieved the cup, but contemporary accounts only mention him as taking responsibility for interring Jesus’ body. In any case, interest in the grail only arose hundreds of years later, as Christianity spread through Europe. Recovering the grail was a big part of the Crusades, and Middle Eastern entrepreneurs were happy to help fulfill their quests for a price. Read about the medieval obsession with the Holy Grail and the many relics that are still venerated today at CNN. -via Strange Company
(Image credit: Johannes Adam Simon Oertel)
Source: neatorama