Believers expect Second Coming to occur on outskirts of Edinburgh
By Jack O'Sullivan, Scotland Correspondent
One of Britain's most mysterious churches, which is said to house the Holy Grail, has become the focus of speculation about the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ.
Believers have lately been visiting the tiny 15th-century Rosslyn chapel on the outskirts of Edinburgh, convinced that it is the site where Christ will reappear, as predicted in the Book of Revelation.
The Gothic chapel, which includes many Masonic references, is devoted to the Knights Templar. They fled persecution in France to Scotland in the 14th century and decisively intervened to help Robert the Bruce defeat the English at Bannockburn in 1314. From their ranks emerged the modern Freemasons.
A heavily decorated pillar in the church is said to contain the Holy Grail, the chalice Christ used during the Last Supper. In the vaults below the church, 20 barons lie on slabs in their full armour, supposedly preserved in the airless chambers to rise again after the Second Coming. In his poem, "The Lay of the Last Minstrel", Sir Walter Scott wrote:
Where Roslin's chiefs uncoffin'd lie Each Baron, for a sable shroud Sheathed in his iron panoply
Joseph Lang, an official guide at the chapel, said: "People are coming here and praying in silence. They see this as a place of great reverence. They come up to me and say this is the place where Christ will return to. I suppose it is millennium fever, but they are very serious. They are not specific about exactly when it will happen but they hold the building in awe. "The Holy Grail tends to come into the conversation and the pillar as well. They want to see the pillar and the floor opened up."
Rosslyn Chapel is owned by the family trust of the Earl of Rosslyn, whose ancestors gave refuge to the Knights Templar but who, since the family fell on leaner times, works as a senior officer in the Thames Valley Police. The exquisite decoration of the church reflects the vast wealth of the Knights Templar in the Middle Ages, when the Paris Temple was the centre of the world's money market.
Their treasure is believed to be hidden in the nearby village of Temple, according to local legend which states: "Twixt the oak and the elm tree/You will find buried the millions free."
Mr Lang said he had dug between most oaks and elms in the area and failed to find any treasure. Likewise the chapel is playing down speculation and is making no special preparations for a sudden, messianic arrival. It is closed on New Year's Day.
The Guardian
31st December 1999