As the evening hours approach on this day before Easter, I happened on this fascinating article on the shroud of Turin, which is thought by many to be the burial cloth of Jesus. Will this ever be definitively proved? No, and neither will a 100% slam dunk piece of evidence proving God’s existence ever surface, for what a mockery that would make of the amazing gift of choice He gives us. The ability to live life as one pleases is a necessary factor for us humans to reach our highest potential and a God that forces our belief of Him through paint by the numbers evidence would greatly dishonor this.
Regardless, it’s a very interesting piece that touches on the more technical aspects of the Shroud, like the “distance information” that enables it to be read as a 3D map. It plainly shows a beaten, crucified Middle Eastern man with the exact details of someone who endured over 100 whip marks on his body and blood stains formed around the head as such would be found from a crown of thorns. Marks of crucifixion appear too along with those on the side showing large wounds from a spear.
As Russ Breault states in the article, “The Shroud is actually an itemized receipt documenting the extraordinary price that was paid when God sent his only son to redeem the world.”
Whether you believe that or not, it’s still a fun read. Happy Easter!
2017 Update: The author of the article I link to above, Myra Adams, has another article on the shroud that brings some interesting context to both her original piece and this post. Give it a read here.
Freedom Through Empowerment 
There really is no argument about the authenticity of this ”rag’ any longer – it is a fake, pure and simple, and only besotted Christians hang on to the myth that ole’ JC was actually wrapped up in this.
But in brings in tourist dollars and keeps the fires burning, does it not?
You really should steer well clear of anything remotely religious in his regard and read only genuine scientific articles that will patiently explain how the arms are not quite right, and how the face is not quite right – if it actually wrapped around a dead body.
I would post links but you being a devout Christian and all that …. well, you know how it is; just more atheist denials and god-hating nonsense, right?
The Jesus Artifact business has been in full swing since Helena, the mother of that psychotic murdering SOB went off and ”found” JCs tomb, bits of the cross and probably even stopped by for a cup of tea with
those nice folk sitting by a cave and a small well in a small hamlet just up the road from Yafia, and declared this must be Nazareth.
Credulity has no bounds when religious belief is involved.
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Hello Ark and thanks for stopping by and remaining consistent with your commenting style. Less work for me as I already know what you’ll say before opening them up. 😉 Happy Easter to you and yours!
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Oh, dear, Tricia. You don’t truly believe that this rag was the actual burial cloth of JC, do you?
Please tell me you are not quite that credulous; that you have at least done the right thing and examined the science and not simply read a few religious plonkers with an agenda?
Say it isn’t so.
Why don’t we order pizza and have a grown up conversation?
And happy reserection day to you and yours as well,my dear. 😉
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lol Ark…like I’ve said before it’s not worth jumping in to the rabbit hole with you but I do like the idea of pizza and conversation but plenty of beer or wine would have to accompany that. I will respond to your religious freedom post though on your site later when I have time. Cheers.
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”Gay” Pizza or ”Straight”?
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Well I wasn’t aware pizza had a sexual orientation but why not? Either one would be fine with me
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Lol @ you two.
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Good stuff Tricia. Interesting for sure. Happy Easter to you and yours.
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Happy Easter Wally to you and yours as well!
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Thanks Wally and Happy Easter to you as well!
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Very interesting and timely article. While I do not think the artifact is genuine I have a theory you may entertain. Is it beyond all possibilities that another man was given the same treatment as Jesus was given? If it worked once it only follows that the practice would be continued and this burial shroud is from another person and passed off as the cloth Jesus was wrapped in.
We humans long for proof of everything because it is very hard to maintain “faith” but easier to believe in something or someone when we have tangible proof of existence .
Just my thoughts this Easter.
Thank you Tricia for the mental gymnastics this morning.
Happy Easter to you and your family!
PS: Will you send me an Easter Selfie like you did a few Easters ago?
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It very well be as you say Dennis and yes, I totally agree it’s easier, a no brainer really to believe in something you have absolute proof of. Much harder so sustain without it but much more meaningful. Happy Easter to you and yours, I’ll see what I can do about that selfie!
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Wow Tricia looks like you have a mosquito buzzing in your ear. Just light a citronella candle and spray some deet. That stuff’s strong. I hope you had a wonderful Easter amiga mia!!!!
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Well thank you La Sabrosona and I hope you had a wonderful Easter with your family as well! I’m a bit confused by your mosquito comment though…what am I missing? 😉
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Thank you, we had a very relaxing day today. Ummm I think I assumed Ark was a troll. Maybe I’m wrong?
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Ha ha ha, that is an easy assumption to make! No, Ark is more of a pain than a troll. He takes great pleasure in degrading anything remotely related to Christianity, including blog posts from people he has never met and knows nothing about. I keep him around for the entertainment value but I refuse to engage back in the hostility, it goes no where. To be fair his blog does have some interesting fair outside of religion and I do believe deep in that black heart of his lies a good person, somewhere. Perhaps I’ll try the citronella though!
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lmao you have a huge heart and a LOT of patience. I think slapping one’s anger on someone else’s blog is irresponsible and not very intelligent, but as long as it doesn’t cause you undue stress then all’s good with the world. Citronella. Do it. hahaha!
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Ha ha! I feel very intelligent (won’t last) as I knew what she meant! 🙂
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Good write-up, Tricia.
As someone once told me, if you believe it’s real, then it’s real to you. And that’s what matters. 🙂
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Thanks Gabriel, as always, I appreciate your words. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Freedom Through Empowerment and commented:
What better time to ponder the burial cloth of Jesus than the day before Easter?
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“a God that forces our belief of Him through paint by the numbers evidence would greatly dishonor this” I’m interested in your view therefore about a God that threatens eternal damnation if you don’t believe in him. Not a great choice there. What say you?
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Oh good Lord, seriously? Sorry, there are other blogs to play pea shooting games at, this ain’t one of them. Thanks for coming by though. 😉
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Do you know Tricia – I get the issue….atheists v theists argue online, but do you know I ask questions of sooo many people everyday on sooo many subjects – because I am inquisitive and that is how you learn. That is how you grow. I am humble enough to say frequently online that I do not know everything, so school me.
The only ones that ever shoot me down are theists.
It’s happened about three times on WP.
I think y’all get so sensitive about the issue or previous spats that you cannot recognize a genuine query and so dismiss anyone that doesn’t just agree with you and say ‘Praise the Lord. Isn’t he great and let’s leave it at that.’
Maybe you mistook my tone? Maybe I asked clumsily? However I do feel if I had asked (for example) why you were called ‘Tricia’ in exactly the same tone you would not have been so damningly dismissive.
I wanted a convo. YOU brought the subject up on a public blog. I would have liked to know how you reconcile the 2 sentences as they do not reconcile with me.
I’m probably one of the few that come at this subject with a view but open minded and waiting for an intelligent response that will indeed school me.
What a shame I never get it.
And certainly before making an accusation of ‘pea shooting games’ which I’m a bit surprised at from you to be honest, I would have done you the courtesy of reading enough of your material to assess where you were coming from. A cursory glance at subjects I have covered, including faith and religion would have shown that I ask questions for the pleasure of conversation, debate and to pick people’s brains – and not to pick aimless fights.
Funnily enough (or not as it’s Easter) I’d just watched Jesus Of Nazareth – as a representative of his father, I can’t recall the bit where he tells someone to get stuffed for asking his thoughts on religion <— that bit is slightly tongue in cheek, but the rest isn't.
I'm disappointed. But whatevs.
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I do appreciate an open conversation, but the way you worded your question seemed, I dunno, a bit hostile with little implication for earnest discussion, so my apologies if your intentions were good. I’ve seen hundreds of questions like this asked by people whose only motivation is to stir the pot and be the ass of the party and I mistakenly thought your approach was the same. I should have known better than to log on to WP after several hours of fighting southern California traffic as I was not in the best of moods and certainly could have responded better. I’m sorry for that.
I’ll try and expound better here. First, this s not a Christian blog and I’m not an apologetic. I occasionally touch on spiritual themes, mainly on battles I’ve gone through with myself and the conclusions I’ve drawn from them. I have no points to prove when it comes to religion and God, I don’t care what others believe and I certainly have no desire to try and convince you or anyone else what, if any, God to follow. I know, that might make me a bad Christian, but I’ve found forcing beliefs on others just tends to not go over well. Plus I’ve barely figured out stuff for myself, I can’t take on the extra burden of doing it for others. 😉
That being said, I will say that your question is a good one, but the answer requires a pairing of theological knowledge with years of personal experience so it would be impossible to provide one that satisfies. All I can say say is that I agree with CS Lewis when he says that hell is the natural place one ends up as he travels further and further away from God. If you choose not to accept Him in your life and keep pushing Him away, than God certainly will grant you that wish to be apart when you die.
It’s always a choice you see. I’d rather have the free will to make that choice than live as a robot conditioned to accept and love God.
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“but the way you worded your question seemed, I dunno, a bit hostile with little implication for earnest discussion” – more than likely, although not intentional.
“Plus I’ve barely figured out stuff for myself, I can’t take on the extra burden of doing it for others.” <–but even that answer is enough because it tells an enquirer that they are not alone in that feeling.
The CS Lewis quote '…hmmmm' she says suppressing her desire to ask more inept questions.
Traffic? I hear you. 🙂
And suffice to say my disappointment came from holding you in high esteem. You know what to expect if you talk to a bit of an idiot, which you are not. <– There's a compliment in there somewhere!
Thanks for getting back!
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No problem! 🙂
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🙂
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Fact or faction, doesn’t really matter then does it trish. Truth is, it gets people talking about something that actually happened.
I lean though that it is probably not, that it could be from somebody else, and even if authentic, neither should add or take away from faith. Things like this tend to be idolized I suppose.
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Very true CS, whether or not the shroud is really what Jesus wore doesn’t take away from the main point in that he really was crucified.
A couple of interesting points, the first being that people on their way to being strung up on a cross were not beaten and whipped to a bloody pulp like Jesus was, as it was intentioned for them to stay up and suffer as long as possible. The shroud clearly shows markings consistent with the beating/whipping marks plus the blood drawn from the crown of thorns. Also, the shroud comes from someone whose legs were not broken (don’t ask me how they know this) which was the typical end result for crucifixion victims, so they would finally die and the body could be taken down. Again, as you know, this was not the case with Jesus as none of his bones were broken.
Interesting stuff regardless. 🙂
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