Report on Temple Balsall

Report on Temple Balsall Assignment - 22 Aug 2005

Team

Lynda Barrow, Dave & Lesley Newman, Phil & Mary Kelsey, Carol Hillier, Rachel Wookey, Pauline Jamieson, Phil & Anji Gregg, Lorraine McHugh, Sue Spence

Twelve of us from different areas of Warwickshire (Rugby, Warwick, Solihull and Coventry) met in the car park at Temple Balsall in the early evening. Temple Balsall is not so much a village as a group of buildings - a church (St Mary the Virgin), almshouses, some of which were originally the Knights Templar Hall, and a Masters Lodge - a more modern building, where it was not certain whether it was in use today. There is also a primary school nearby.

The evening was lit by late sunshine after a very rainy day. We began by exchanging some research details we had regarding the characteristics and actions of the Knights Templar. We were astounded once again at their activities under the guise of “Christianity” and how many Christian emblems and symbols they had perverted and for what hideous purposes.

We soon however focussed on the Lord of Lords and King of Kings and began a time of worship (with guitars and shofars). This was truly wonderful as we felt the Lord draw near as we raised the name of Jesus over the area declaring there was “None Other”, along with many other truths from scripture.

We shared bread and wine in an informal but meaningful way, praying for each other and asking for clarity in revelation from the Holy Spirit.

At this point, Sue Spence (Solihull), felt particularly that, as belonging to this county, we should repent, through identification, of what had happened on this piece of land. She felt a great desire that the land should be healed. Several of us (particularly Mary and Philip Kelsey, Warwick) prayed along these lines and some knelt.

During this time Phil Gregg (Rugby) noted that a car came into the previously deserted car park. A man with a brush and shovel got out and proceeded to a small wooden bus stop (the rural kind) on the other side of the road. He used the brush and shovel to clear up some rubbish in the bus stop and then immediately drove away again. We were encouraged to see this as a sign that we were engaged in “cleaning up”!

We made our way as a group to the almshouses whose interiors still had some of the beams of the original Hall of the Knights Templar. Here Mary Kelsey related some of the hideous actions of the upper ranks of the Templars especially in the deception and abuse of “lower ranks” and the perverting of symbols of the Christian faith ( the cross, the armour of God, etc). We agreed together to renounce and break several curses and false covenants made by the Templars. We used words from a relevant book written by Yvonne Kitchen. At this point we also read from 1 John 2:18 -20:

“Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.”

We asked the Holy Spirit to come and fill any vacuum created on breaking and renouncing the curses. We asked him to replace curse with blessing and that the area should be redeemed as a place where people are led in the truth of Christ and even become a place of revival.

Lesley Newman (Rugby) also prayed that God would claim the land and declared a transfer of ownership from the Kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of God.

I believe it was around this point that we saw a flock of geese flying in V formation against the glow of the evening sky, honking as they went. It was a truly uplifting experience and again we felt that the Lord was encouraging us (see Notes at the end). We took some of the bread and wine and distributed this around these particular almshouses. One of the perversions of the Knights Templar was to incorporate the words “hidden manna” in their false covenants – we were now distributing “the bread of life”.

At this time these were our tactics in breaking down the spirit of religion over the area. Following this we tried to discern connections between Temple Balsall and the motto under the coat of arms of the city of Coventry. This reads “Camera Principis” which is usually translated as “The Prince’s Chamber” or as some others have it, “The Treasure of the Prince” or even “The Hidden Treasure of the Prince”. The prince mentioned here is thought to be The Black Prince, son of Edward the Third. The Black Prince lived from 1330 to 1376. The Knights Templar were forced to disband from 1312 to be replaced by the Knights Hospitallers (who carried on in much the same way??)

On the website on Coventry (www.coventry.historians.co.uk/cityarms.htm) it is stated that the Black Prince owned part of Coventry (The Manor House - now a registry - in the city on the south side, at Cheylesmore. It belonged to the Prince’s grandmother and was passed on to him)

One thing that drew our attention was the black mountain cat placed over the closed helm (helmet) on the coat of arms. This is described as meaning watchfulness (we believed it was linked to witchcraft and later cut off all links with that spirit). We observed similar edifices of cats on the outside wall of the church when we went round it to pray and again distribute bread and wine. (The church was built by the Hospitallers sometime after 1312 and restored in 1670 by Katherine Leveson, after whom the almshouses are named).

At this point we read from Isaiah 45:2-3

“I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by name.”

We decided the thing to do was to pray and declare a transference of wealth from the enemy ‘s secret place to the Kingdom of Light to further the purposes of God in the area

and the county – especially in the towns whose destiny is in pioneering economic growth in the nation (as mentioned at the Warwickshire Distinct Sound event in Coventry on 4 June this year)

We also declared that it was a time for exposure and uncovering; that the corrupt practises in local government and businesses be exposed and for God to pour His light into those places (Anji Gregg – Rugby)

At this time this was our tactic in breaking down the spirit of poverty over the area.

Note from Carol Hillier – since the assignment on Monday I have been looking at further websites on Coventry and found, in the rather long one (!) -www.coventry.org.uk/heritage2/history/coventry_coat_of_arms1.htm

an interesting twist on the explanation of the coat of arms – quite a Godly one.

I think this suggests that there is indeed a contest here in Coventry (and Warwickshire) and God is encouraging us to continue to bring to nothing the enemy’s hold on the region. In consequence I am aiming to spend time asking the Lord for any further meaning behind it all.

We turned our attention to the more modern building which was called the Master’s Lodge (it had a sign “Private” on its rather small wooden gate). The windows on the side nearest the gate were bricked up. Pauline Jamieson (Coventry) particularly felt we should pray against any past or present activity of freemasonry here and once again we poured out wine – this time on the gate posts – to close the door/gate on the activity and influence of freemasonry in the area. As usual we prayed for the Holy Spirit to fill all vacuum. Around this time we did feel an increase in wind activity! Another interesting thing happened here – as we were praying a car drew up from the road on the opposite side to where we were, pulled into the front of this building and then immediately drove off again. Another sign!?

To end with (for the moment) we prayed about the Leveson Centre situated here in one part of the almshouse complex. As far as we are informed this is to do with studies into Christianity and Ageing etc (see website rps.gn.apc.org/leveson/study.htm). We prayed against deception here and God’s purposes to be fulfilled.

On leaving we looked at the church’s notice board and noted that the minister was called “Master” as well as Reverend!!

As we passed the school we asked for God’s blessing and protection on the children there and again poured out wine.

Notes and Conclusions

We rejoiced that the Lord had given us so many signs during the evening. We took these to mean that we were “on the right track” and are open to further assignments in this or other areas of Warwickshire (eg. Waterways, Edgehill etc)
As mentioned above we are praying and thinking about any further revelation to do with “treasures of darkness” for the area.
Anji (Greg) has since mentioned that as well as there being 12 of us we did in fact come from the north, south, east and west of the county of Warwickshire!!
After the wonderful spectacle of the flight of geese, Anji found a Christian website called “Lessons from Geese”. This is truly excellent and an encouragement possibly on how we should proceed as a team -

see www.members.aol.com/CuttyhunkRose/geese.htm

I have only mentioned a few names here but all took part as the Lord led.
Particular thanks to the guitarists and shofar blowers!