The origin of The Knights Templar through early 12th century eyes

"Few scholars have approached the Knights Templar from the beginning, examining their creation in terms of where the order originates and why it was created. This makes this area largely unique and untouched, and the motivation of Bernard of Clairvaux’s (a major actor in the juvenil Cistercian Order) for helping form the order has been largely overlooked.

Knights Templar investiture, The Netherlands, September 2011

source (© antoine janssen)

Information on present day Knights Templar in The Netherlands are scarce. This web-entry reports on a Knights Templar investiture in St John's Cathedral, Den Bosch, The Netherlands on September 4, 2011. A translation of the original Dutch text reads as follows:

Gathering of Order of the Knights Templar

On Saturday September 4, 2011, 130 Knights of the Order of the Temple, men as well as women, gathered at Saint John's Cathedral (at Den Bosch, the Netherlands). It was the yearly meeting of the order, which this time took place in The Netherlands. At St John's mass was consecrated and during the Investiture 10 kandidates were knighted. There was a moment of contemplation and all present sang, in their own language, "Thine be the Glory". Afterwards the knights posed on the St. John's square for a ceremonial photograph.

Pope Innocent III founded the Order of the Templars in 1112. The Pope gave the first nine knights the name Knighthood of God". The purpose of the order was to protect pilgrims who were on their way to the Höly Land, now Israël. It was the time of the Crusaders. Den Bosch also has a local Commandery, as they say, that of St. Norbert.

source Dutch tekst and illustrations (pictures © antoine janssen)

Muslim-Christian relations during the 3rd Crusade

"The Second Crusade (1145-49) had put a great deal of the Holy Land under European rule, but Saladin (Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, 1138-1193) had re-conquered much of that territory, prompting several kings of Europe to agree to another crusade. The Third Crusade (1189-92) was unsuccessful in putting the Holy Land under Western European control. It did, however, open up a dialogue between the east and west in unforeseen ways.

The Crusades, a solution to violence in Christianity

"The crusades were originally meant to redeem Europe from its violent nature, not to extend that violence. In this way, the crusades were intended to be a military pilgrimage of penance for the men who participated, a way of channeling the evil of their violence into a godly purpose. It was this idea that Bernard latched onto when he aided in the forming of the Templar order.