By Gerard Verschuuren, Sophia Institute Press, 2021, 240 pages
People who read the title of this book will probably divide into two camps: those who already believe the piece of cloth known as the Holy Shroud and preserved in Turin cathedral to be the actual winding sheet of the crucified Christ; and those who think the author has allowed his objective scientific judgement to be overborne by his subjective faith.
However, in this study Verschuuren remains faithful to his twin vocations, both as a Catholic and as a scientist, achieving an admirable balance in a highly controversial area. The chief value of what he has written, particularly for our modern age, is to demonstrate that there need be no conflict between the two.
By Dr. Jeff Mirus ( bio - articles - email ) | May 04, 2021
I have previously called attention to Gerard Verschuuren’s latest book on the Shroud of Turin (see Out of the past, three surprise books, all occasions of grace). But having finished a careful reading of Verschuuren’s argument, I decided it would be useful to summarize the main points. The following is a summary of the conclusions of the noted geneticist, in accordance with the nine areas of study he undertook in the main chapters of his book:
Biblical analysis: We know that Jesus Christ was crucified, died and was buried after being wrapped in a burial cloth, such that if an image should have been miraculously imprinted on the cloth, its fundamental visual characteristics would have been something very like what is seen on the Shroud of Turin today.
By Dr. Jeff Mirus ( bio - articles - email ) | Apr 19, 2021 | In Reviews
It is rare that I can comment on newly-published books without reading them for review purposes, but I was surprised to find three new books on my desk this week that I already knew were well-worthwhile. I knew this for different reasons in each case, but with a certainty which makes it impossible for me to go wrong in recommending them to others. My only regret is that I did not call attention to them earlier, as two of the three though worth reading at any time were ideal for Lent.