Shroud of Turin - here we go again...

[Judah]

Ack, just when we thought that wily Leonardo da Vinci could've been doing some x-ray magic with this cloth, there may have been someone even more clever earlier (i.e. Jesus/God)...

What do you think? Hoax or real?

There's a London Daily Telegraph story in Canadian newspapers today (sorry, couldn't get the whole story) saying:

Rome: Shroud of Turin far older than thought, tests show
The Shroud of Turin is far older than carbon dating suggests, and may indeed date to biblical times as believers claim, a study has found. The findings may revive hopes that the cloth, far from being a medieval fake, is a miraculous recording of the face of Jesus after the Crucifixion. Raymond Rogers, of the University of California's Los Alamos Laboratory, argues that carbon-dating tests on the shroud in 1988 were "invalid,'' because they were performed on a replacement section rather than the original linen. His own exhaustive tests, most of them chemical analyses of fibres he says were taken from the original linen, instead reveal its age to be from 1,300 to 3,000 years old.

 

[nbcrusader]

An unnecessary and distracting relic.

Even if it is real, it only takes focus away from God.

 

[coemgen]

From everything I've read, I would say it's real. However, I don't need it to prove Christ's existance. NB, while it can be distracting and I'm sure some would tend to worship it in a sense than Christ himself, I think it can be a very inspiring piece of history too. I always get a kick out of findings like this because they reaffirm my faith, although I don't need them for my faith. You know?

Did you guys notice the Edge has a shroud sticker on one of his guitars on the Slane DVD show?

 

[BrownEyedBoy]

An unnecessary and distracting relic.

Even if it is real, it only takes focus away from God.

Though I agree with what you have said I still believe it must have some sort of value.

 

[verte76]

We Catholics are rather fond of relics. We don't worship them, we only worship God, but we find them useful. But we need to be careful about trust. There has been alot of abuse. There is a lawsuit against a guy in the next county who made all sorts of claims about someone from Bosnia having apparitions. According to Catholic teachings, if there's not a miracle at the site of the apparition, it's not valid. Apparently this guy has ripped off alot of people, exploiting their faith, because there haven't been any miracles. It's scary when dishonesty strikes that close to home.

 

[angel_of_L.A.]

I always get a kick out of findings like this because they reaffirm my faith, although I don't need them for my faith. You know?

Did you guys notice the Edge has a shroud sticker on one of his guitars on the Slane DVD show?

I'm like that too. I'm more interested in the symbolism and deep significance relics have on people and not whether they are "valid" or not--I love that qualitative data! It's the meaning that matters to me not the date.

I also did notice that sticker on the Edge's guitar! It made me smile.

 

[LoveTown]

I don't think it takes away from God. I think others are trying to use it to do so and that is sad. It's sad that so many people are intent on making believers give up their faith.

And to echo what others have said, I think it is real, but I don't need it to be real to make me believe

 

[verte76]

That's an interesting point about validity. I get much out of relics myself, and, in fact, I have one myself, one associated with St. Anthony of Padua. The symbolism is indeed very powerful, whether or not this thing was actually touched by St. Anthony--and I think it was. No, I don't worship St. Anthony. But I certainly don't mind asking him for prayers if I can't find something important. It's like having a friend.