Posted on 06/09/2006 3:31:39 PM PDT by NYer
Almost four centuries after its mysterious disappearance, Fr. Heinrich Pfeiffer reported that he has rediscovered one of Christendom's most intriguing relics: the Veil of Veronica, the cloth with which Jesus wiped His face on the road to Calvary.
Fr. Pfeiffer, a professor of Christian Art History in Rome, found the relic in the Abbey of Manoppello, Italy. The German Jesuit invested 13 years of searching through archives to prove that this is the same cloth that disappeared from the Vatican in 1608. Stolen, Sold and Donated The Same Face as the Shroud
Manoppello is a small, ancient town in the Abruzzo region of Italy, about 150 miles from Rome in the Apennine Mountains. The Capuchin friary there is appropriately named the Sanctuary of the Holy Face. A piece of stained, pale cloth kept in this tiny village has long been regarded by the Capuchin monks as a sacred icon with wondrous properties.
The story of St. Veronica and her veil appears in various early Christian writings. Most notably, the apocryphal "Acts of Pilate" from the sixth century, identifies Veronica with the hemorrhaging woman who was cured by touching the hem of Jesus' cloak. Veronica is described as a pious matron from Jerusalem, and numbered among the holy women who accompanied our Lord to Calvary.
During the Passion, she is said to have wiped sweat from His brow. Jesus rewarded Veronica for her charity by leaving her an imprint of His face on the "veil." She later traveled to Rome, bringing with her this image of Christ, which was long exposed to public veneration.
The almost transparent white veil measures about 6-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches and bears dark red features of a serene bearded man with long hair and open eyes, patiently enduring suffering. Bruises and other scars are apparent on his forehead. Clotted blood is on his nose, and one pupil is slightly dilated.
The sacred veil is so thin one can easily see through it. In fact, the image becomes invisible depending on the angle from which the cloth is viewed, something that was considered a miracle in itself in medieval times.
Documented history of the mysterious relic dates back to at least the fourth century. On the occasion of the first known Jubilee year, 1300, we know that the veil was kept in the Vatican Basilica as a popular goal of pilgrims, as it is mentioned in Canto XXXI of Dante's Paradiso. Fr. Pfeiffer believes the sacred relic was stolen during the restoration of the Basilica in the year 1608., when the chapel housing the veil was demolished. Shortly thereafter, the veil appeared in Manoppello.
Ten years later, in 1618, Vatican archivist Giacomo Grimaldi drew up a list of the sacred objects held in the old St. Peter's Basilica. The reliquary containing the Veil of Veronica was on that list, but Grimaldi indicated that the reliquary's crystal glass was broken.
According to records at the monastery written in 1646, the wife of a soldier sold the veil to a nobleman of Manoppello in 1608 in order to ransom her husband from prison. Thirty years later, the nobleman donated the relic to the Capuchins. In 1638, it was placed in a walnut frame adorned in silver and gold between two sheets of glass. It remained in the monastery ever since.
"There are few such objects in history," Fr. Pfeiffer explained to Rome's Zenit News Agency a few years ago. "This is not a painting. We don't know what the material is that shapes the image, but it is the color of blood."
Ultraviolet examinations of the cloth confirm that the image is not paint, and the fibers of the veil do not have any type of color. Thus, it was not woven with dyed fibers. Particularly noteworthy are several small flecks of reddish brown — presumably drops of blood from the wounds caused by the Crown of Thorns.
Enlarged digital photographs of the veil reveal that the image is identical on both sides of the cloth — a feat impossible to achieve by ancient techniques, and extremely difficult to achieve even today. These photographs have also been used to compare the veil with the face on the Shroud of Turin. Striking similarities are apparent: the faces are the same shape and size, both have shoulder-length hair with a tuft on the forehead, the noses are the same length, and the beards match. The only difference is that on the veil the mouth and eyes are open. Those who carried out the tests concluded that the two relics bear the image of the same face, "photographed" at two different times.
For those interested, the Veil of Veronica remains on display at the Capuchin Abbey of Manoppello.
Your experienced feedback ... thanks!
Are we to assume this is a fragment of the original? That size is hardly a historically-accurate veil! More like a pocket-hankin.
Amazing rediscovery. The fact that it is the same face as the Shroud of Turin adds to the credibility of both.
http://www.mercyimages.com/#shroud
(Click the 28k or 56k Quicktime buttons)
Maybe it works like minerals that form crystals (think rock candy or salt) - no matter how many times you subdivide it, the atomic lattice will produce the same shape (image).
That is why I pinged freepers 'shroudie' and 'swordmaker', both expert authorities on the Shroud of Turin and all ancillary items.
Great Post
It's called Veronica's Veil for illiteration purposes only. It probably was more like a hankie that she offered to wipe Jesus's fave on the way to Calvary.
The Crown of Thorns is exposed on Good Friday only at Notre Dame in Paris.
Because Faustina was not an artist, her spiritual director Father Sopocko took her to a local Vilnius artist named Eugene Kazimirowski, who painted this Image directly under Faustina’s supervision. Sadly remarking, “Lord, who will paint You as beautiful as you are” (Diary 313), Faustina had the artist change the face at least 10 times. Finally, Our Lord told Faustina that it was good enough - to leave it in the state it’s in. Just recently it was accidentally discovered at a prayer group in Arizona, that the face on this Image perfectly matched the one on the Holy Shroud of Turin. This restored Vilnius Image is the only Image painted under St. Faustina’s direction.
This beautiful Image is a reproduction of the original Vilnius Image of The Divine Mercy, and is the only Image painted under Sister Faustina's direction. Painted by Polish artist Eugene Kazimierowski in 1934, this Image fell into disrepair and was restored in 2003. This is the restored version of this Image.
Good point! In fact, 'Veronica' was not her real name. The word 'veronica' translates into 'real icon'.
The person who wiped our Lord's brow was real as is the image left behind. Only the names have been changed ... to protect the innocent ;-)
I'm still waiting for the sola scriptura crowd to come along and explain that since this isn't specifically mentioned in the Bible it couldn't be real and call us idolators.
The "Veronica's Veil" we are discussing.
Analysis shows the cloth was cut down to fit in the frame when it was mounted...
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Unlike the Shroud of Turin, the reputed image is smaller than the original.
It would not be unusual for this kind of miraculous sign to occur in that time frame. What Jesus would lament is people standing around fixating veneration on the sign. The bible doesn't report that kind of behavior with respect to any of His other miracles; the focus was all on Him.
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