The Shroud of Turin

The Shroud of Turin

     In today’s class, we watched a video on the Shroud of Turin, which is recognized as potentially having been the original shroud that clothed the corpse of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion.  This was an interesting video, as it explained, in depth, the possibilities of the shroud’s origin(s), as well as the way that the shroud’s history has affected other members of the Catholic faith ever since its investigation.

     The term “belief” inherently implies a sort of faith without needing factual knowledge or evidence… Keeping this in mind, this film offered some convincing facts that might lead one to believe that this shroud is, in fact, the shroud of Christ.  Safely tucked away in the Cathedral of John the Baptist in Turin, this shroud have given both the religious and the scientific something to talk about…

     When carbon-dating experiments, the shroud was revealed as being “fake”, for, if the numbers were correct, it would have been far too young to have been in existence in the time of Christ.  Conversely, in 1978, the stains embedded in the shroud were tested to be real blood stains, not merely a paint or any work of some conniving artist looking to create a rouse among religious believers across the globe.  It was even proposed that artists such as Leonardo da Vinci could have just as well created a similar shroud, but these assumptions were quickly nipped in the bud, as this shroud was documented to have been on display and under investigation well before da Vinci’s lifetime!

     Having recited the Stations of the Cross throughout grade school, I remember well the story of Veronica as she supposedly wiped the face of Jesus on his way to the Cross.  Similarly, I began watching this video doubting the shroud’s historical legitimacy.  Personally, I found the photography of the negatives to be the most interesting part of the presentation of evidences.  The blood stains so accurately portrayed the intricate form of the human body, and the exact punctures (wrists, ankles, side, crown of thorns, and back scourging), that I have trouble doubting that this shroud is legitimate.  The precision and detail of the remaining bloodstains were not fully revealed (or visible) until the age of photography… and I also find it ironic that the shroud has stayed in such impeccable shape throughout so many centuries… It seems to be existing in perpetuity..

 -Margaret Mary