The Shroud of Turin

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DeusExMachina

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The shroud of Turin is without a doubt one of the most controversial relics kept by the Church. The large number of skeptics notwithstanding, it has fascinated me ever since I was old enough to understand what it is supposed to be
That being said, I am eager to learn what all of you think about it. Have any of you seen it in person, and if so, what is the experience like? Has it influenced your beliefs about the shroud one way or the other ( changed your mind about its authenticity)?
 
I don’t know whether or not it is the actual shroud of Christ- it might be.
But I don’t believe it was ever intended to be a fraud. It is simply to unusual and strange to be some elaborate scheme to fool people. Even if it isn’t the actual shroud of Christ no one has been able to reproduce the same technical qualities this shroud possesses.

Personally, I do think that it is the shroud of Christ but I can’t know for certain.

At any rate the Church has not made a definite statement about it. It fascinates me but my faith does not hinge on any discovery made about it.
 
I believe it is the Shroud that covered Christ in the tomb, but like other posters if it is proven it is not, my faith will not change.
 
The point of no definitive proof,requires faith. The Angels at His leaving did not belong to NCIS or Scotland Yard
 
It does not matter if it is authentic or not (although I tend to believe it is) because just seeing it is enough to evoke awe and appreciation for what Christ suffered for us. Just like any great painting of the Crucifixion does. But this seems so real and authentic. If it were proven to be some sort of man-made image, it would not have any impact on my faith. I would still appreciate it for what it portrays.
 
I have not been to Turin.

However, I have seen repro’s of the shroud in Alabama and in Israel.

In AL, the Franciscans have full-length back-lit slides of the images. What that perfect body is shown to have gone through is unbelievable!

In Jerusalem, the entrance to that city’s Shroud Museum is surmounted by a 4:1 enlargement of the face image. Looking into those huge, closed eyes, one is moved to image them open and alive, looking into one’s own.

My experience with familial deaths is that nobody looks good dead, but the man of the Shroud looked better dead than many people look alive; that **to me **is the real surprise behind the Shroud.

FWIW, I totally believe it to be true.

ICXC NIKA
 
There are many of us that seem to need something to help strengthen our faith, even Thomas
needed something more than the other disciples word ( John 20:24-29 ). The Shroud baffles
science because there is nothing in the natural world that could have produced the image.
A similar issue comes about with the tilma with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. I find it incredible when I read about these things…especially these two images.
 
Mr. Barrie M. Schwortz, who was a member of the STURP investigation has a wealth of information regarding the Shroud: shroud.com/. My dh and I attended his lengthy discussion about it at our parish. Quite inspiring and informative. I too believe it is the burial cloth of Our Lord, and I believe it’s been given as a sign for us in our unbelieving age. The work STURP did was important, but unfortunately it was flawed in that they took samples from an area with repairs done centuries after the cloth was originally made. Read for yourselves. I think it will be a blessing and an aid to our faith, which is what any relic is–not a prove of our faith.
 
Della said:
Mr. Barrie M. Schwortz, who was a member of the STURP investigation has a wealth of information regarding the Shroud: shroud.com/. My dh and I attended his lengthy discussion about it at our parish. Quite inspiring and informative. I too believe it is the burial cloth of Our Lord, and I believe it’s been given as a sign for us in our unbelieving age. The work STURP did was important, but unfortunately it was flawed in that they took samples from an area with repairs done centuries after the cloth was originally made. Read for yourselves. I think it will be a blessing and an aid to our faith, which is what any relic is–not a prove of our faith.
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Amen
 
DeusExMachina said:
The shroud of Turin is without a doubt one of the most controversial relics kept by the Church. The large number of skeptics notwithstanding, it has fascinated me ever since I was old enough to understand what it is supposed to be
That being said, I am eager to learn what all of you think about it. Have any of you seen it in person, and if so, what is the experience like? Has it influenced your beliefs about the shroud one way or the other ( changed your mind about its authenticity)?
Click to expand...
Last year, my parish brought Russ Breault, a well-known speaker on the Shroud, to our parish; the history of the Shroud is fascinating. He also brought with him a life-size, museum-quality replica of the Shroud that was mesmerizing. Checkout the website www.shroudencounter.com.
 
While it is not good that one’s faith should be exclusively contingent on the Shroud (which I don’t think is necessarily even possible) relics and like items have been immemorially and biblically venerated (e.g. staff of Moses, bones of Joseph, etc.). They are meant to bolster faith and remind us of their purpose, as well as act intercessively, hence the Christian myths of Mary giving Thomas her girdle or the veneration of the relics of the true cross. To say it is inconsequential, however, is to dismiss the expression of piety as inconsequential to the faith so long as we only have dogma - dangerously gnostic. No matter how rational or intellectual we are, we still remain human beings.

That being said, I haven’t been convinced either way nor am I interested.
 
For it to be false, it does not mean Christ never existed (of course He did, there is much evidence – even the most agnostic of textual critics like Bart D. Ehrman believe He existed!), nor does it mean He did not die out of His love for us.

For it to be true just means that we have even more evidence. I suppose we can only ask and pray right now.
 
CB_Catholic said:
It does not matter if it is authentic or not (although I tend to believe it is) because just seeing it is enough to evoke awe and appreciation for what Christ suffered for us. Just like any great painting of the Crucifixion does. But this seems so real and authentic. If it were proven to be some sort of man-made image, it would not have any impact on my faith. I would still appreciate it for what it portrays.
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Exactly. 👍
 
It’s a wonderful thing, tho the Blessed Sacrament is more wonderful.

“Let your face shine on us Lord, let the light of our face be a sign.” Psalm 4
 
I’ve never seen the actual shroud but like another poster I have seen the repro at the Shrine to the Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, AL.

The repro has an X-ray quality to it where you can see His face clearly along with the blood stains. Whether it is real or not seeing even the repro is very emotional and I can completely understand how people are inspired by the shroud.

From a personal perspective I feel their is no greater “proof” of Christ than the Eucharist and do not think any image can come even close to the real pressence. As Christ said when talking to Thomas (paraphrasing): You believe because you have seen, blessed are those who believe without seeing.
 
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