Does the world really need yet another Holy Grail story?

Well, yeah, at least more than it needs another vampire story. The Cenacle Scroll  takes a slightly different view of the Grail narrative than you might be used to. The story postulates that the historical vessel -- used by Christ to celebrate the Last Supper -- was essentially the first-century equivalent of a Howard Johnson's water tumbler.


This isn't meant to be disrespectful in any way. Jesus and the Apostles were, after all, wandering from town to town, and, according to most accounts, had just arrived in Jerusalem for the Passover celebration. I doubt they showed up at the public house for their celebratory meal with their own complete set of dinnerware. Like any of us when traveling, they would have availed themselves of the proprietor's utilitarian place settings; in this case, likely a collection of robust, unadorned, kiln-fired stoneware.


If it was a Passover meal (a position with which not all scholars agree; see Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?) there likely would have been a large, celebratory wine goblet. If we assume that to be the Holy Grail, we can also assume that the apostles left it behind, as it was the property of their host. Like the rest of the table clutter, after the guests had left it would have been emptied, tossed into a basket, cleaned and returned to a shelf, possibly to be used on the following day for another set of travelers.


Where did it end up? Well, that's the stuff of which novels are born...


Conveniently, my take on the matter, The Cenacle Scroll, is available as a Kindle E-Book. And a couple of sample chapters are available here.