Old Testament Survey
November 27, 2012
The Shroud of Turin is Jesus of Nazareth’s Authentic Burial Cloth
The Source of the Image Revealed
Under the cover of darkness, Jesus of Nazareth was arrested and brought to trial before the Jewish authorities. His captors repeatedly punched him in the face and spit on him, but that was only the beginning of his suffering. Early in the morning they brought him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman installed governor of the Judean Province. Pilate ordered that Jesus be flogged and crucified. Jesus was then beaten with a “Roman instrument called the flagrum” (Oxley 125). The flagrum is a whip that was capable of causing dreadful injuries. In fact, “The injuries caused by the scourging would have resulted in traumatic shock” (Oxley 162). In the interim, the soldiers were allowed to have some cruel fun with him. They created a crown out of a thorn bush and forced it onto his head, piercing his scalp and forehead. As the final stage of his punishment,
Jesus was nailed to the cross through his wrists and feet. After he died, a Roman soldier pierced
Jesus’ side with a spear in an upward thrust toward his heart. After taking him down from the cross, he was wrapped in a linen sheet and his body placed in a tomb. The linen cloth that enveloped him has graphically recorded the gruesome details of his chastisement. The linen cloth that Jesus was wrapped in is now known as the Shroud of Turin. Even though those who believe it is a medieval fake have challenged its authenticity, the Shroud’s history, weave pattern, pollen record, bioplastic coating, bloodstains, and uniqueness all testify to its authenticity.
After the crucifixion, Jesus was first laid on the cloth and then it was wrapped over his head and down to his feet completely enshrouding his body. To visualize what that would look
like, just imagine going head first into a sleeping bag. On that cloth there now appears a faint image, yet on close examination it shows an astonishing
The Shroud of Turin is Jesus of Nazareth’s Authentic Burial Cloth
The Source of the Image Revealed
Under the cover of darkness, Jesus of Nazareth was arrested and brought to trial before the Jewish authorities. His captors repeatedly punched him in the face and spit on him, but that was only the beginning of his suffering. Early in the morning they brought him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman installed governor of the Judean Province. Pilate ordered that Jesus be flogged and crucified. Jesus was then beaten with a “Roman instrument called the flagrum” (Oxley 125). The flagrum is a whip that was capable of causing dreadful injuries. In fact, “The injuries caused by the scourging would have resulted in traumatic shock” (Oxley 162). In the interim, the soldiers were allowed to have some cruel fun with him. They created a crown out of a thorn bush and forced it onto his head, piercing his scalp and forehead. As the final stage of his punishment,
Jesus was nailed to the cross through his wrists and feet. After he died, a Roman soldier pierced
Jesus’ side with a spear in an upward thrust toward his heart. After taking him down from the cross, he was wrapped in a linen sheet and his body placed in a tomb. The linen cloth that enveloped him has graphically recorded the gruesome details of his chastisement. The linen cloth that Jesus was wrapped in is now known as the Shroud of Turin. Even though those who believe it is a medieval fake have challenged its authenticity, the Shroud’s history, weave pattern, pollen record, bioplastic coating, bloodstains, and uniqueness all testify to its authenticity.
After the crucifixion, Jesus was first laid on the cloth and then it was wrapped over his head and down to his feet completely enshrouding his body. To visualize what that would look
like, just imagine going head first into a sleeping bag. On that cloth there now appears a faint image, yet on close examination it shows an astonishing
Cited: Drews, Robert. In Search of the Shroud Turin: New Light on Its History and Origins. Totowa: Rowman & Allanheld, 1984 Garza-Valdes, Dr. Leoncio A. The DNA of God. New York: Doubleday, 1999. Print. Gove, H. E. Relic, Icon or Hoax?: Carbon Dating the Turin Shroud. Bristol: Institute of Physics, 1996 Kilmon, Jack. The Shroud of Turin: Genuine Artifact or Manufactured Relic? N.p., 1997. Web. Mattingly, Stephen. "The Shroud of Turin Coated in Plastic." BioScience 45.8 (1995): 575. Print. Oxley, Mark. The Challenge of the Shroud: History, Science and the Shroud of Turin. Central Milton Keynes: AuthorHouse, 2010 Wilcox, Robert K. The Truth About the Shroud of Turin: Solving the Mystery. Washington: Regnery, 2010 Wilson, Ian. The Blood and the Shroud. New York: The Free Press, 1998. Print.