Community and Communion in the Quest of the Holy Grail
Community and Communion in the Quest of the Holy Grail

Summary/Abstract: In this article the author intends to analyze to what extent the Holy Grail, which may be regarded as a symbol for the Holy Communion, can be considered the basis for creating and preserving a community in the Quest of the Holy Grail (La Queste del Saint Graal), as rendered in the Vulgate Cycle. One starting point is to identify the elements which determine and define a community, and the author tries to apply these characteristics to the gatherings presented in the Queste. There are several moments when the Holy Grail appears in front of a group of people, and it affects those assemblies in different ways. Starting from the well-known fact that a Christian community is created around the Holy Communion, or the Holy Eucharist, celebrated with the Holy Chalice, it is to be expected that the Holy Grail, used in a similar situation, also gathers a community of knights around it and elevates them spiritually. However, the author will show that these expectations are not achieved, as neither the Quest, nor the mystical Grail, can establish a community. The text of the Queste does not introduce any sort of community either terrestrial or celestial, which could include most of the knights involved in the Quest.

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