One Of The Mysteries That Has Confounded The World May Now Be Solved

Over the centuries there have been countless mysteries that have mystified humankind. Among the many: the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Oak Island, the Pyramids and Sphinx of Egypt, Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, the Stradivarius Violin, and the Mona Lisa, to name just a few. But there is one that has baffled and confounded the experts, the curious, and the inquisitive, but has given hope to faithful Christians. Now, their devotion to this iconic object might be justified.

The Shroud of Turin, also known as the Holy Shroud, is a linen cloth that bears the image of what appears to be a crucified man, imprinted on its front and reverse, and believe to be that of Jesus Christ. Some have called it a hoax, and that it was the work of a medieval artist. Others believe it is the burial cloth that Jesus Christ of Nazareth was wrapped in after His crucifixion.

Over the years scientists have performed hundreds of tests and thousands of hours of research on the Shroud, and yet its origin and authenticity, one way or the other, have escaped the experts and remained a mystery. It is considered to be the most studied artifact in human history. What makes the Shroud so confounding is that when the cloth is turned over, the image that is captured is the back of the figure. 

The Shroud’s color is unusual, as sepia is a brownish grey to dark olive brown, which clouds the image to the naked eye. However, in 1898 Secondo Pia an Italian scientist discovered that when the cloth is photographed, the black and white negative image that is produced reveals more clarity - the figure can now be discerned more clearly. 

The Shroud has been revered over the centuries, especially by the Catholic Church which believes it is the burial cloth of Christ; devotees know it as the “Holy Face of Jesus.” The possession of the Shroud has changed over time, as it has traveled. It was first exhibited in 1354 in a church in the village of Lirey in northern France. In 1453 the House of Savoy purchased the Shroud. It sustained damage in a fire in 1532, and in 1578 the Savoys moved it to Turin Italy, kept in the Chapel of the Holy Shroud. In 1983 the Savoys passed on ownership to the Catholic Church. 

In 1988 the age of the Shroud’s linen material was said, based on radiocarbon dating testing by several different laboratories, to have been produced within a period between 1260 and 1390, 13th century. This coincides with the Shroud’s first public appearance in 1354. However, there are those who question this testing method and the dating.

The mystery of the Shroud has been with us for some years now. Occasionally a report or story would surface, there would be the usual back and forth within the scientific community and the Church, and then usually we would be left uncertain. But now new technologies and science have been able to create more intricate methodologies to delve deeper into the Shroud.

A recent scientific study reported in Newsmax magazine titled “Holy Evidence,” reveals that the Shroud of Turin “is not only real, but is the burial cloth of a Jewish male who died exactly as the Bible says Jesus died. New evidence from modern archeological findings shows the man depicted on the Shroud died just as the Romans of Jesus’ time conducted crucifixions.” The Newsmax report refutes the age of the Shroud’s material as originally said to be the 13th century, and lists a number of evidential recent findings, including:

• Unlike carbon dating, to the 13th century, new X-ray dating puts the Shroud’s origins to the time of Jesus.
• Some scientists are absolutely certain the Shroud is that of a crucified man.
• The image on the Shroud has never been replicated before, and is not art.
• It took great energy to produce the image, equal to all the electrical power generated in the world today.
• Blood evidence: dozens of indicators that show the man who was buried died just as the Bible claims.
• Traditional Jewish burial reveals multiple points of evidence the man was a religious Jew.
• A Jewish photography expert concluded the Shroud is 100% real.
• A Jewish botanist pinpointed pollens on the Shroud linking it to Jerusalem.
• French historian Jean-Christian Petitfils studied the Shroud and concluded that "its authenticity can no longer be disputed.”

In the face of these facts, there will still be those who dispute the findings in the Newsmax report. Some just refuse to believe; others, the non-believers, hedonists, atheists, in a post-modern world will attempt to dilute the Shroud’s authenticity and thus deny Jesus Christ’s divinity. But in the minds of the faithful, I believe this mystery has been solved, and the figure is that of the crucified Christ.