Defense Intelligence Agency
Classified: Top Secret
For circulation amongst Sigma Access Group only
Alpha Summary - supposed theft of iconic religious artefacts as hypothetical cause of current global environmental instability.
Beta Summary: On 24 April 2012, at 3 am GMT, seven locations said to be associated with three famous religious relics were raided. All of the raids were synchronised and took place under cover of darkness. Within hours of the raids, reports came in from across the globe of cataclysmic earthquakes, an alarming increase in volcanic activity, formation of multiple category-5 hurricanes, and acute weather conditions in almost every country. The colour of the sky across the earth was observed to start changing to blood red.
Religious leaders declared that the thefts were a blasphemy and the direct cause of the natural disasters. They demanded the safe return of the treasures and stated that, otherwise, the world would suffer the 'Wrath of God.'
All governments agreed that the severity of the natural disasters posed an unprecedented threat to the future of life on earth. The United Nations met in emergency session to coordinate a global response. It was decided a twin-track approach should be adopted. While scientific solutions were urgently sought, governments would, at the least, pay lip service to the possibility of the current crisis having a supernatural origin. To prevent possible religious hysteria breaking out amongst billions of believers, governments of all major powers agreed to use their intelligence services to apprehend the thieves and retrieve the stolen artefacts.
At present, scientists have been unable to account for the pattern of extreme environmental events. Investigations and data gathering are ongoing. Emergency conferences involving the world's leading scientific experts have been organised and will be given the full support of all governments. Religious leaders will also be consulted about ways forward. For the sake of public morale, it's critical for governments to be seen to be taking all possible courses of action at this time.
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(His Eminence Thomas Cardinal Lenihan of the Archdiocese of New York and Rabbi Dr. Menachem Grien, Professor of Theology at Columbia University, were consulted in the preparation of the following.)
The three holy relics said to be connected with the seven raids are the most famous in Western religious history:
1) The Ark of the Covenant
2) The Holy Grail.
3) The Spear of Destiny.
The seven locations raided are:
1) Temple Mount, Jerusalem.
2) The Church of Saint Mary of Zion, Axum, Ethiopia.
3) Chalice Well, Glastonbury, England.
4) Schatzkammer (Imperial Treasury), Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria.
5) Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Canada.
6) Rosslyn Chapel, Edinburgh, Scotland.
7) Hill of Tara, Republic of Ireland.
Brief descriptions of the three artefacts are provided below:
1) The Ark of the Covenant
A portable vessel, the size of a large chest and made of gold. According to the Book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to make the Ark and furnished him with a precise set of instructions. The Ark was the container for the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments. The Ark was mentioned many times in the Old Testament before abruptly vanishing. Many conflicting theories have been proposed concerning its fate and current whereabouts.
In the present context, it is important to highlight that the Ark was considered to have many dangerous properties, including the characteristics of an early Weapon of Mass Destruction.
The following is a list of powers attributed to the Ark:
1) Levitation: it could raise itself and other nearby objects off the ground.
2) It emitted light and sparks.
3) It had flame-thrower capability, which it allegedly used to kill two sons of Aaron, the Ark's first High Priest.
4) It was associated with a fiery cloud that materialised above it and from which a voice spoke to Moses and Aaron.
5) It could induce leprosy and tumours in people.
6) Those who touched it without permission, even accidentally, usually died. Ordinary people could not safely approach within half a mile of it.
7) During battles, it rose into the air, emitted a terrifying sound and sped into the heart of the enemy army. In one battle, it allegedly killed 50,000 enemy soldiers.
8) During the siege of Jericho, Jewish priests circled the city on seven separate days. Some priests blew trumpets as they went round the city walls while others carried the Ark in procession using special poles so that they did not come into direct contact with it. It has been speculated that the Ark may have amplified and directed the sound waves like a sonic cannon, eventually bringing down the walls of Jericho.
9) The High Priest had to wear special protective clothing when approaching the Ark.
10) When the Ark killed Hebrews, Moses insisted that their bodies be taken far from the Israelites' camp to be buried, contrary to normal religious practice. No explanation was ever offered as to why Moses took these extraordinary precautions.
11) The Ark was said to give off a dazzling supernatural radiance.
2) The Holy Grail
Usually defined as the cup used by Christ at the Last Supper. This event supposedly took place in the house of Joseph of Arimathea who may have been Jesus' uncle. Reputedly, Joseph used the cup to catch a few drops of the blood shed by Jesus at the Crucifixion, and the blood was said to be miraculously preserved in the cup. Another legend said that the cup was originally made for Abraham, the founder of the Hebrew People. Like the Ark of the Covenant, the Holy Grail was said to emit an unearthly radiance.
Other theories say that the Holy Grail is a dish, a stone, a person (Mary Magdalene), the head of Jesus, the skeleton of Jesus, or even Jesus' bloodline following his alleged marriage to Mary Magdalene and the birth of a daughter. As with the Ark, many conflicting theories have been proposed concerning its fate and current whereabouts.
3) The Spear of Destiny
A Roman Centurion thrust this spear into Christ's side as he hung on the cross. The spear was highly prized, and many powerful figures throughout history went out of their way to possess it, including several emperors of the Holy Roman Empire and Adolf Hitler.
It became a museum piece and was put on display in a prestigious palace in Vienna as part of the Imperial Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire.
Note that the Holy Roman Empire is sometimes referred to as the First Reich. (Bismarck created the Second Reich and Hitler ruled over the Third Reich.)
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Brief descriptions of the seven locations that were raided are provided below:
1) Temple Mount, Jerusalem
Temple Mount contains secret underground passageways that belonged to the original Temple of Solomon and survived the temple's destruction by the Babylonians in 586 BCE.
The raiders on 24 April blasted open one of the sealed tunnels using plastic explosives. There is evidence that the explosives were detonated using timers. However, no indication has been found that anyone entered the tunnel or that anything was removed. The Israeli Defence Force has sealed off the area, and no one is currently being granted access. No further investigations are possible at this time.
Rioting broke out in Jerusalem within minutes of the explosions, with Muslims accusing Jews of attempting to blow up the Dome of the Rock - one of Islam's holiest sites. The gold-domed mosque is built above the ruins of the Temple of Solomon and the later Temple of Herod.
2) Treasury of the Church of Saint Mary of Zion, Axum, Ethiopia
Axum is Ethiopia's holiest city, and the Church of Saint Mary of Zion its holiest church. The Treasury, a separate building located just behind the church, was said to house the Ark of the Covenant, supposedly brought there by Menelik I, the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. (Menelik means 'son of the wise man', and the ancient kingdom of Sheba is believed to have incorporated Ethiopia.) A monk known as the Keeper of the Ark protected the Ark at all times. He was shot dead during the raid on the Treasury. The Ethiopian authorities did not allow investigators to enter The Treasury. They refused to confirm that the object they claimed was the Ark of the Covenant was taken.
3) Chalice Well, Glastonbury, England
Legend says that Joseph of Arimathea was imprisoned after Jesus' death. When he was released, he fled from the Holy Land and took the Holy Grail to the safe haven of Glastonbury in England. He hid the Grail at the bottom of Chalice Well at the foot of Glastonbury Tor, a sacred mound overlooking the town of Glastonbury. The well's water is allegedly tinged red and reputed to have healing powers. The April 24 raiders climbed into the well and removed a section of the well's wall, revealing a small, rust-free iron chamber, hitherto unknown. There is no indication of what, if anything, they discovered.
4) Schatzkammer (Imperial Treasury), Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria
The Schatzkammer houses the Imperial Regalia of the Holy Roman Empire; the European empire created by Charlemagne and dissolved centuries later by Napoleon Bonaparte. The only item stolen from the collection of treasures was the so-called Spear of Destiny. All alarm systems and CCTV cameras at the Hofburg Palace were disabled during the raid. A top-secret tranquillising gas knocked out security guards. Only U.S. and U.K. Special Forces are known to have access to this gas.
5) Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Canada
A small, remote island off the east coast of Canada, practically uninhabited, and reputed to be the site of a vast, inaccessible buried treasure located at the bottom of a booby-trapped, intricately constructed 200-feet-deep vertical shaft known as the Money Pit. Originally, pirates were thought to have buried the treasure; Captain Kidd and Blackbeard being the most likely candidates. However, some experts have said pirates lacked the engineering skills to construct such a complex structure. Leonardo Da Vinci has been mentioned as a possible designer of the pit. Other theories claim that Freemasons or the Knights Templar created it. Following the forcible arrest of the Knights Templar in 1307, those leaders of the Order who managed to evade capture gave instructions for their treasure to be hidden from their enemies. It was removed by the ships of the Templar Fleet and vanished from history. Some accounts say it included the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant. Several experts believe the Templars discovered the Americas before Columbus, and that the Templar Fleet possibly went to North America to bury the treasure.
The raiders at Oak Island appeared to know exactly how to access the Money Pit. A hitherto unknown route through the booby-traps was cleared, leading to a large subterranean waterproofed chamber, the walls of which were carved with swastikas, many hundreds of years old. A couple of Roman coins were discovered near the mouth of pit. The coins were from ancient Judaea, one side showing the head of the Emperor Tiberius, the reverse showing the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate.
On a tombstone near the Money Pit is a Latin inscription: I tego arcana Dei. meaning Begone! I conceal the secrets of God.
6) Rosslyn Chapel, Edinburgh, Scotland
Rosslyn chapel was built between 1446 and 1486 and is often described as the most mysterious Christian chapel in the world. Like Oak Island, Rosslyn is linked with the lost treasure of the Knights Templar, including the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant. Many Templars fled to Scotland in the years after 1307 because the Scottish king, Robert the Bruce, wasn't bound by the Papal edict to suppress the Templars because he had been excommunicated. Several experts believe the Templars regrouped in Scotland and eventually emerged in a new guise - the Freemasons. Informed speculation says that Freemasonry originated specifically at Rosslyn.
The Rosslyn raiders disabled all of the chapel's alarm systems and CCTV monitors. As at the Schatzkammer, security guards were rendered unconscious by tranquillising gas. The raiders removed a section of wall from the crypt, revealing a sizeable stone chamber. There is no indication of what, if anything, they discovered.
7) Hill of Tara, Republic of Ireland
Ancient Ireland's most sacred site where the High Kings of Ireland were crowned. Legend says that the Hebrew prophet Jeremiah brought the Ark of the Covenant to Ireland for safekeeping after the destruction of King Solomon's Temple, burying it somewhere on the Hill of Tara.
The raiders used an excavator stolen from a nearby building site to dig a trench several yards away from a feature known as the Mound of Hostages. A large bronze chamber was exposed. It is unknown whether the raiders found anything.
Conclusions
The raiders at each location used similar methods. The top-secret tranquillising gas used in two of the locations indicates the involvement of U.S. or U.K. Special Forces. Thirty U.S. Special Forces personnel went absent without leave on 23 April. It must be concluded that these individuals were responsible for the raids.
The raiders clearly had access to secret information concerning each site. However, the only object that has definitely gone missing is the Spear of Destiny from Vienna's Hofburg Palace.
It is speculation whether the raiders also retrieved anything that might be described as the Holy Grail or the Ark of the Covenant, or any other religious treasures. It is unknown whether the raiders found a particular religious relic at each of the seven locations, or if they were looking for the same objects at different locations. However, given their detailed knowledge, it is likely the raiders knew precisely what they would find at each site. On the other hand, it's possible they carried out some fake thefts to create confusion and mask their true intentions (the raid at Temple Mount may be one example). Were they seeking publicity by targeting high profile sites? Were they seeking to generate unrest between Jews and Muslims by their actions at the Temple Mount? No claims of responsibility have been issued.
The blood of Jesus Christ is an obvious connection between the Holy Grail and the Spear of Destiny, and these two items are historically regarded as two of the four so-called Grail Hallows. These four objects appear in the legends of King Arthur and the Holy Grail and are said to have enormous power, particularly when collected together. The other two Grail Hallows are a sword and dish. There is no known link between the Grail Hallows and the Ark of the Covenant. The Hallows are associated with the Christian New Testament while the latter is an Old Testament, and specifically Jewish, sacred artefact.
The Ark, by reputation, is a potential WMD. The Spear of Destiny allegedly confers great power on its owner. The Holy Grail is said to be the goal of the ultimate spiritual quest of humanity. The Grail Hallows, as a collection, supposedly possess unprecedented power.
Do these fabled religious relics have the capacity to be the centrepieces of some hitherto unsuspected Armageddon conspiracy? Cardinal Lenihan and Rabbi Grien concur that they do. Prominent scientists have ridiculed this notion, but have at this time been unable to explain the current global crisis, and have provided neither solutions nor suggestions as to what ought to be done.
REPORT ENDS
