Experience a fascinating demonstration that explains the Shroud of Turin through photography!
The Shroud of Turin is a captivating artifact, widely believed to be the burial cloth of Jesus Christ! Some researchers even go as far as to call it “the first photograph,” as the image it bears seems to function as a negative, created through divine contact.
From a photographic perspective, the image on the shroud resembles a contact print. But what does this mean, and how does it shape our understanding of Jesus as depicted by this Holy Cloth?
To begin unraveling this mystery, we must first ensure that our source material is indeed the original. While it may not be possible to admire the shroud in person, we can analyze a photograph of someone inspecting it within its frame in Turin.
Take, for instance, Pope Francis in 2015, gently touching the frame of this revered relic. When we zoom in, we notice that the bloodstain on Jesus’s forehead appears on the left side of the image.
Now, the source image of the shroud that we have from the internet shows the stain on the same left side. This consistency leads us to be fairly certain that the internet image has not been altered.
To further illustrate how we should approach understanding the Shroud of Turin, I’ve prepared a simple demonstration. I lift my left hand, which rests upon a photocopy of itself, both on paper and transparent paper.
This mimics the contact print aspect of the shroud. When I invert it, a curious phenomenon occurs.
On this reversed contact print, my thumb appears mirrored to the opposite side, the left side. In reality, however, my left-hand thumb is on the right.
Remarkably, the shroud operates on the same principle. With a stain located on the left side of the forehead, the corresponding positive print would naturally place this mark on the right side.
How can we be sure of this? By flipping the contact print back onto my actual hand, we see that everything aligns perfectly.
Now, applying this logic to the Shroud of Turin, it suggests that the image of Jesus would indeed display the bloodstain on the right side of his face.
By using the same reasoning and recognizing the Shroud of Turin as the real burial cloth of Jesus, we can find out which side of his body the Roman soldier pierced with his lance in John 19:34–35.
One of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.
It was the right side.
In unveiling these insights, we not only deepen our appreciation for this extraordinary relic but also embark on a journey through history and faith, forever intrigued by the questions it raises and the mysteries it holds.