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Turin, Italy, Apr 6, 2020 / 04:00 am (CNA).- Catholics around the world will be invited to pray virtually before the Turin Shroud on Holy Saturday as the world struggles to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Church officials have said. The Shroud, which bears the image of a crucified man and has been venerated for centuries as Christ’s burial cloth, will be displayed via livestream at 5pm local time April 11. Archbishop Cesare Nosiglia will preside over a liturgy from the chapel of Turin cathedral where the Shroud is kept in a climate-controlled vault. It will be broadcast live on television...

CONCLUSIONS From its first recorded exhibition in France in 1357, this cloth has been the object of mass veneration on the one hand, and scorn on the other. Appearing as it did in an age of unparalleled relic-mongering and forgery and, if genuine, lacking documentation of its whereabouts for 1,300 years, the Shroud would certainly have long ago been consigned to the ranks of spurious relics (along with several other shrouds with similar claims) were it not for the extraordinary image it bears. The Shroud of Turin has a double image—that is, a superficial discoloration on the front surface of...

[...]ConclusionSo, here’s the evidence I have presented for why the Shroud of Turin is clearly a hoax: The forger who made the Shroud of Turin confessed and the earliest definitive mention of the shroud in any historical source is a record of his confession.The Shroud of Turin doesn’t match the kinds of funerary wrappings used in Judaea in the time of Jesus or the description of Jesus’s own funerary wrappings given in the Gospel of John.The linen of the Shroud of Turin has been securely dated using radiocarbon dating to between c. 1260 and c. 1390 AD—well over a millennium...

Your Holiness,Significant momentum is building for decisive action that will positively impact your church, all Christ-centered denominations, and the world. It’s time for 21st-century scientific testing on the Shroud of Turin.Only you can authorize what will be a universally applauded decision that could also enhance your papal legacy.Why should the Shroud be tested now? Articles from three international Catholic news sources provide the answer. National Catholic Register, August 5: “The Shroud of Turin Latest Study Deepens Mystery.” (Subhead: “Researchers cast doubt on the findings of the controversial 1988 study.”) Inside the Vatican, June/July issue (re-published from La Stampa newspaper):“‘The Shroud Is Not Medieval. We...

In an imaginary “ranking” of Christian topics that elicit the most fervent discussions, Jesus Christ is No. 1. But near the top is the Shroud of Turin — believed by millions of Christians to be the authentic burial cloth of Jesus. This “ranking” was inspired by you — Townhall readers who wrote over 500 impassioned comments in response to my July 21 piece, “Shroud of Turin: New Test Concludes 1988 ‘Medieval Hoax’ Dating Was a Fraud.”I purposely read all your comments to gain insight into my role as an adviser and fundraiser for a groundbreaking exhibition about the Shroud of Turin at...

Important news about the Shroud of Turin, believed by millions to be the authentic burial cloth of Jesus Christ, has been flagrantly under-reported.Nevertheless, the lack of mainstream media interest does not diminish landmark new research contesting the results of the controversial 1988 radiocarbon test that dated the Shroud between the years 1260 and 1390. Immediately after those dates were cited three decades ago, and to this day, the Shroud has been tainted, maligned, disparaged and denigrated while wedded to the descriptions “not authentic,” a “forgery” or “medieval hoax.” Meanwhile, the medieval date range is still continuously questioned and debunked by scientists and experts. The...

These are difficult times for all denominations founded on the divinity of Jesus Christ.    Recent polling indicates that American church attendance is rapidly declining, with "none" the fastest growing faith group cited by 20 percent of respondents up from 8 percent in 2000.Then during Holy Week, the most sacred seven days for Christians, two tragic events struck that shook the faithful and the world to its core. First, on Monday, April 15, the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, followed by Easter Sunday’s deadly terror attacks in Sri Lanka that targeted worshippers as they were celebrating the resurrection...

Warning: If you are not a believer in the divinity of Jesus Christ yet choose to continue reading, keep an open mind but prepare to be challenged. Good Friday, the day annually associated with Christ’s crucifixion, is solemnly observed and followed by the jubilation of His resurrection on Easter Sunday. Let us be reminded that Jesus’s body was never found. If it were, Roman and Jewish authorities would have celebrated. And Christianity — which eventually grew into the world’s largest religion on the foundational event of Christ’s resurrection — never would have been birthed.My belief in the resurrection is non-traditional. Having...

LATEST ON SHROUD OF TURIN: Science Finally Catches Up with Faith It is the most intriguing and unique relic of its kind and the longstanding irony is – there are legions of professed Christians who have no idea what it is, or that it even exists. The Shroud of Turin is revered as the sacred burial cloth of Jesus Christ and is arguably the most important archaeological artifact ever found. The image on the cloth is like a photographic negative exposed to light that is a detailed portrait of a crucified man. The historical specifics include the multitude of...

What Did Jesus Really Look Like?Imagining Jesus: from left, Jeffrey Hunter in "King of Kings"; Janet McKenzie's recent painting "Jesus of the People"; the face of a first-century Semitic man, rendered by the contemporary artist Donato Giancola. By DAVID GIBSON Whatever arguments there may be about the verisimilitude of Mel Gibson's film "The Passion of the Christ," one thing is certain: this Jesus is a Hollywood hunk who probably bears little resemblance to what the Jesus of history looked like. The title role is played by Jim Caviezel, a dark-haired, blue-eyed star whose brooding good looks have been compared to...

Bloodstains found on the shroud of Turin burial cloth, believed by many to have once wrapped the body of Jesus Christ, are likely fake, according to new research reported in the Journal of Forensic Sciences. In June 2017, researchers at the Institute of Crystallography found traces of blood on the 14-foot-long relic, with initial analysis of the particles discovering "a scenario of great suffering, whose victim was wrapped up in the funeral cloth." The nanoparticles uncovered were found to not be typical of the blood of a healthy person. The Journal of Forensic Sciences report on July 10 revealed that...

Tonight, CNN presented a one hour television documentary special entitled “Finding Jesus: Faith, Fact, Forgery.” I thought this title was inappropriate because the entire episode was about whether or not the Shroud of Turin is the burial cloth of Jesus. Thus, the title should have had “Shroud of Turin” in it or the like. CNN did some advertising of this special, so I think they were a bit deceptive about whole thing. They interviewed some scholars, including Ben Witherington III who is a friend of mine. I am always surprised by the attention given the Shroud of Turin by many...

A 14' by 4' piece of linen in northern Italy genuinely appears (after exhaustive scientific testing), to contain a picture of the crucified Christ. The Shroud of Turin. But what about the Shroud of Oviedo? Their combined picture gives new significance to that old song 'nothing but the blood'. The linen cloth housed in Oviedo, called The Sudarium, meaning "sweat cloth", measures 33" by 21" inches. It contains no image of its own, only stains. The Scriptures describe both a shroud and a smaller cloth at the tomb: "And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying...

Coinciding with the Easter celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection — the foundational basis of Christianity — is the annual controversy over whether there exists physical proof of this miraculous event.The “evidence” is a 14.5' by 3.5' linen cloth known as the Shroud of Turin, believed by millions of Christians to be the authentic burial shroud of Jesus Christ. The cloth is preserved in an underground vault in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy, where it has resided since 1578.Visible on the cloth in a faint yellowed color is a full front and back body image of a...

Fr. Robert Spitzer speaks on new scientific evidence surrounding the Shroud of Turin during his presentation, “A Remarkable Relic of the Resurrection: The Shroud of Turin and New Scientific Evidence” at the 2017 Napa Institute Conference in California.

Published in a US scientific journal new findings by CNR and University of Padua. Electron Microscopy to analyze a pristine fiber: found creatinine and ferritin iron nanoparticles, typical in cases of severe polytrauma The Shroud of Turin, the linen cloth that according to an ancient tradition, wrapped the body of Jesus after crucifixion, actually came into contact with the blood of a dead man who suffered many serious injuries. This is what emerges from a research on a fabric fiber extracted from the dorsal imprint of the cloth, around the feet area. The study was conducted by two CNR...

SEEKING SOLUTIONS TO THE MYSTERIES OF THE SHROUD ICST-2017: July 19 to 22 TRAC Center 660 Burden Blvd. in Pasco, Washington State, USA This website is devoted to promoting a better understanding of the Shroud of Turin through research, conferences, and presentations. Of special importance now is the upcoming "International Conference on the Shroud of Turin" (ICST-2017) to be held July 19 to 22 at the large TRAC center at 6600 Burden Blvd in Pasco in Washington state (not Washington D.C.). This conference will include the latest research and new evidence on the history, DNA, pollen, image formation, and dating,...

New technology offers additional proof of the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin. In an interview with RCF Liège, the numismatist Agostino Sferrazza addressed the old question on the coins that cover the eyes of the Man of the Shroud. According to his conclusions, these pieces must have been coined in the days of Pontius Pilate, circa the year 29. This could constitute an additional proof of the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin.Back in 1976, the hypothesis of the presence of coins covering the eyes of the Man of the Shroud was first introduced, thanks to a 3D...

Image of how the Sabana Santa was placed on the body of Jesus (MURCIA, Spain) – A new scientific study conducted by researchers at the Catholic University of Murcia in Spain has confirmed that the Shroud of Turin and the Shroud of Oviedo were wrapped around the same person, following up on previously unpublished medical and forensic research. Furthermore, the study has identified a spear wound made in the corpse, which according to the study’s authors “agrees with what is reflected in the Gospel of Saint John.” The study, led by forensic medical researcher Dr. Alfonso Sánchez Hermosilla, took up...

An astonishing discovery has been made during repair work to the Edicule -- the ancient chamber housing Jesus' tomb in Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Scientists have reported extraordinary phemonena that may support the authenticity of the Holy Shroud of Turin. On October 26, 27 and 28, 2016 a group of scientists and religious authorities oversaw the removal of the marble slab that covers the tomb of Christ. Marie-Armelle Beaulieu, editor-in-chief of Terre Sainte Magazine, reports that some of the measuring instruments used by scientists were altered by electromagnetic disturbances when they were placed directly on the stone in...