Saints on the Road – Shroud of Turin

Now this post isn’t about a saint but it is about what could be one of the most holy items of Catholicism – the Shroud of Turin.

The Shroud of Turin is a centuries old linen cloth that bears the image of a crucified man. A man that millions believe to be Jesus of Nazareth.

According to the Bible, Joseph of Arimathea wrapped Jesus’ body in a linen shroud and placed it in a tomb. The Gospel of Matthew (27:59–60) details this event, which has been a cornerstone of Christian tradition.

The Shroud of Turin, since its first public display in the 14th century, has fascinated historians, religious leaders, skeptics, and the faithful alike. It has been preserved in the Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista in Turin, Italy, since 1578.

Modern science has completed hundreds of thousands of hours of detailed study and intense research on the Shroud. It is, in fact, the single most studied artifact in human history, and we know more about it today than we ever have before. And yet, the controversy still rages.

The Holy Shroud is a length of linen cloth that bears a faint image of the front and back of a naked man. Because details of the image are consistent with traditional depictions of Jesus of Nazareth after his death by crucifixion, the shroud has been venerated for centuries, especially by members of the Catholic Church, as Jesus’s shroud upon which his image was  miraculously imprinted.

The shroud depicts the front and back of a man’s body, showing wounds that match the Gospel accounts of Christ’s passion: scourge marks, punctures in the wrists and feet, and a wound in the side.

The human image on the shroud can be discerned more clearly in a black-and-white photographic negative than in its natural sepia colour, an effect discovered in 1898 by Secondo Pia, who produced the first photographs of the shroud. This negative image is associated with a popular Catholic devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus.

There has been a lot of various tests run on the Shroud. Carbon-dating, X-rays and all the most modern tests have been done.

Is it really the cloth that wrapped his crucified body, or is it simply a medieval forgery, a hoax perpetrated by some clever artist?

Currently, the Catholic Church neither endorses nor rejects the authenticity of the shroud as a relic of Jesus.

While the Church does not require belief in the shroud’s authenticity, it recognizes its value in drawing the faithful into deeper contemplation of Christ’s suffering and love. As Pope Francis said in 2015, the shroud “draws people to the face and the martyred body of Jesus.” 

Do you believe? If you have faith, no science is needed. If you believe, you know.