Do you KNOW for certain that it is NOT?! How many shrouds bearing images of a crucified man exist? How many shrouds exist of a crucified man with with scourge marks? The man of the Shroud was savagely flogged. Whatever was used, it is consistent with a Roman flagrum, a whip of short leather thongs tipped with bits of lead, bronze or bone which tore into flesh and muscle. There are dozens upon dozens of dumbbell shaped welts and contusions, the type of wound that the flagellum would have caused. There is blood from the flagellation and even a bit of tissue thought by some medical experts to be a torn-out bit of muscle. From the angles of attack – the way the marks fall on the man’s back, buttocks, and legs – it seems that man was whipped by two men, one taller than the other, who stood on either side of him.( John 19:1-2).
Anyone familiar with scripture can put the pieces of this puzzle together and recognize that the shroud image is unique and probably was created by Christ. ( Shroud Story ).
Ultimately, the shroud is not an object of worship but, rather, an image that reminds us of the ultimate sacrifice made by Christ, our Savior. As such, it merits our attention, reflection and introspective prayer of gratitude and appreciation. If anything, it is an object of the Greatest Love one can have for mankind.
“Ultimately, the shroud is not an object of worship but, rather, an image that reminds us of the ultimate sacrifice made by Christ, our Savior. As such, it merits our attention, reflection and introspective prayer of gratitude and appreciation. If anything, it is an object of the Greatest Love one can have for mankind.”
Beautifully stated.
As a Christian, a scientist, and one who likes history, I always find the Shroud topic interesting.
I recall some anatomy expert commenting on it and how the muscles, tendons, etc. are perfect in the image when it comes to the scourge marks, the rigidity in death, etc. (One of the pieces of information against a medieval forger with no detailed knowledge of anatomy back then.)
And I believe that it was VERY rare for one to be scourged so many times and ALSO crucified. It was usually (always?) one or the other.
I recall an old thread when that TV special on the 3-D recreation of the shroud was made, and there was some older gal that was a physics genius - talking about huge amounts of energy, and relating it to a time-distortion type thing (like a black hole). Not sure if this paper comes out of some of her research, or if it only in part confirms/adds to it.
Interesting stuff.