Could it be the Lord's shroud?

By Lenard M. Mahaarachchi

History has mysteriously retained for us evidence of the last act of Jesus' life and resurrection. Recent discoveries have proved that the cloth laid on the table on that first Maundy Thursday and the winding sheet used at the burial of Jesus on Good Friday, are the same. This cloth is known to us as the Shroud of Turin.

The Scriptures tell us that Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. What then became of the Shroud that was woven round His body at burial? John recalls in his Gospel that the napkin that covered Jesus' face, was found in the tomb at dawn on Easter Sunday, when he and others went there to perform the proper burial rites.

In 544AD, speculation was rife that in Edessa (modern-day Turkey) was a cloth with the face of a man imprinted on it. How it came to Edessa, from Jerusalem (where Jesus was crucified) is not known, but from Edessa it was taken to Turin via Constantinople, France, and Shombury. It is recorded that in 1147, King Louis VII is said to have adored the Shroud while in 1204 it went underground due to the Crusades, when relics were being pilfered at will. It surfaced again in 1353 in Lire (France) and in 1506, Pope Julius II is said to have composed a Mass and recommended its devotion. Then in 1532 it caught fire while at a church in Shombury. The nuns of Poor Clare are said to have mended it. It was brought on the 1st of June 1694, to the Cathedral in Turin, from where it got its name, and where it has been since. 

In 1898, the Shroud became the subject for research, being photographed for the first time by Secundo Pia. Two years later, Pope Pius 11th permitted it to be exhibited. In 1969 a Commission of 44 international scientists among who were learned men of various disciplines, including syndologists was appointed to study the authenticity of the Shroud. 

In 1988 carbon testing was carried out on the Shroud and in 1992 scientists re-scrutinised it, this time making use of the latest technology. The Shroud in the meantime was moved from the Turin Cathedral to another church, due to repairs effected to the Cathedral. 

The last exposition was in the Jubilee year 2000, at the request of Pope John Paul II, who now calls The Shroud of Turin, "The 5th Gospel".

So what evidence do we have that the Shroud is indeed the burial cloth of Jesus Christ? The Shroud is 14' 3" long & 3'7" wide. Photographer Secundo Pia confirmed that the Shroud was a positive photograph of a dead man who had disappeared from the cloth by a 'great transformation of light' (attributed to Jesus' resurrection in the tomb). 

The 44 scientists revealed that the dead man was of the AB positive blood group, and that he was a near six-footer, who weighed 175 lbs. They also concluded that he was possibly a Jew, going by his beard and hair. They also said that he had been scourged and had undergone much pain, caused by his wounds, two of which suggest that he had carried a cross beam, which felled him several times, causing bruises all over his face.

The researchers confirm that Jesus had been pierced with a lance which had gone through His fifth and sixth ribs, causing a wound that was two and a half centimetres long and half a centimetre wide. Unlike the image we have of Jesus on a cross, researchers are of the opinion that He was crucified through the wrists and not the palms.

They even say that the Shroud image shows only four fingers, and that the thumbs lost flow of blood when the wrists were nailed, and that only a single nail had gone through both legs. It also shows wounds on the head, caused by the crown of thorns which scientists Allen and Mary Wanger, American botanists say was made from a Palestinian thorn bush.

Excavations done in Palestine showed a burial custom that was extant in the first three centuries where two coins were placed on the dead person's eyes. It would interest the reader to know that the Turin Shroud does show two coins placed on the eyes. Studies show that these two coins (Pontius Pilate Lepton & Julia Lepton) were in circulation for six months in the year 29 AD (the year of Jesus' death), especially minted to commemorate Tiberius Caesar's mother.

Easter treat

By Derrick Schokman

Easter was the name of a springtime fertility festival during which eggs figured prominently as a symbol of fertility, creation and new life. 

Ancient cultures celebrated this festival with the gift of coloured eggs. The eggs were shared at a meal, and afterwards the shells were carefully crushed in a ritual to drive away the winter. And since Christ's resurrection also took place in the spring, the secular custom of gifting eggs became associated with it.

It really became popular when the Church banned the eating of eggs during Lent. 

The eggs were consequently collected and saved to be eaten on Easter Sunday after the fast in the form of a huge omelette. 

When the nobility got into the act, this practice became far more sophisticated. Decorated eggs would be given to their king and their loved ones. In the 16th century in the Court of France, decorated eggs were all the rage, with some of them being decorated by the great artists of the day. 

This custom reached unparalleled heights in the Court of the Czar of Russia in the 19th century. The court jeweller, Carl Faberge made fabulous eggs of gold, crystal and porcelain. Today chocolate Easter eggs are very much in demand, especially among children.

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