Pre-Article Disclaimer for Newer Readers: If you are reading this blog for the first time or are not totally familiar with my work, I am a 100% Christian writer who analyzes things from a Christian point of view. I sometimes research into what the spiritual forces of evil are up to in hopes of gleaning information to help us Christians figure out what is going on or to figure out what Satan has planned. You can read more about why I dare consider these unbiblical sources at the following link Now on to the article...
- Here is a full-sized picture of the front of the Shroud without any of the darkness usually seen in pictures of the Shroud. Link
- Here is a black and white picture of the face on the Shroud of Turin: Link
There is debate in the religious community about whether the cloth is authentic. The Catholic Church has tried to be cautious by not officially confirming or denying the Shroud’s authenticity. However, the Catholic Encyclopedia says that the authenticity of the Shroud is taken for granted by the Catholic Church because of the statements Popes have made about the Shroud.[1] The statements and actions of a couple of recent Popes seem to confirm that the Shroud is looked upon favorably within the Catholic Church.
- Pope John Paul II once said, “The Shroud is an image of God's love as well as of human sin ... The imprint left by the tortured body of the Crucified One, which attests to the tremendous human capacity for causing pain and death to one's fellow man, stands as an icon of the suffering of the innocent in every age".[2]
- Pope Benedict XVI (the current Pope) approved the public displaying of the Shroud and commented that he would like to see the Shroud in person with other pilgrims.[3]
In addition, several Popes over the past several hundred years have participated in celebrations of the Shroud (i.e. The Feast of the Holy Shroud).[4]
Meanwhile, other religious people are adamant that the Shroud is a forgery. For instance, Dr. Scott Johnson has a sermon called “The Shroud of Turin Biblically Debunked” which can be heard on Youtube.
There is even heavy debate in the scientific community about whether the cloth is authentic. Scientists using radiocarbon 14 dating have dated the Shroud of Turin between the 13th and 14th Century AD. However, scientists using alternative dating methods claim the Shroud is from the 1st Century AD. For instance, Vatican researcher Dr. Barbara Frale recently dated the Shroud as being from the 1st Century AD after she studied some faint, Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic lettering found on the Shroud. She claims that some of the lettering on the Shroud spells out the phrase “Jesus Nazarene” and other lettering on the Shroud spells out the phrase “removed at the ninth hour”.
- There is simply no scientific consensus about the authenticity of the Shroud yet.
The question that you’re probably wondering is “what is the purpose behind the Shroud of Turin?” There must be a reason why the controversial Shroud exists. Like with many controversial religious topics, Benjamin Creme, the official spokesmen of Maitreya (the leader of the Ascended Masters, a group of beings mentioned in Ephesians 6:12 as the “spiritual wickedness in high places”), has teachings about the Shroud of Turin that are revealing about the purpose of the Shroud.
Benjamin Creme is very adamant about the authenticity of the Shroud. In fact, Creme has repeatedly stated that the Shroud of Turin is authentic and has featured evidence supporting the authenticity of the Shroud in his magazine. For instance,
- Creme defended the authenticity of the Shroud in his book The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom (Page 95) and in an April 2004 press release.
- The October 2006 edition of Share International Magazine has a long article that tried to discredit the radiocarbon dating process and tried to bolster the scientific methods used by a variety of scientists who concluded the Shroud came from the 1st Century AD.[5]
- The March 2010 edition of Share International Magazine featured an article about Dr. Frale’s work to defend the authenticity of the Shroud. Creme’s Ascended Master “confirmed” that the text discovered by Dr. Frale is legitimate and “proves” that the shroud was Jesus’s burial shroud.[6]
Creme characterizes the Shroud as another miracle that will help bring on the emergence of Maitreya.[7] More specifically, Creme teaches that the Shroud is going to play a very important role in the future. Creme teaches the following (blasphemous) things about the Shroud:
- The image on the Shroud was created when Maitreya resurrected Jesus from the dead using a tremendous amount of spiritual energy.[8]
- The image of Jesus’s face was deliberately left on the Shroud to serve as evidence of Jesus’s resurrection.[9]
- The Shroud demonstrates that people have misunderstood the crucifixion process. The crucifixion process involved the victim getting nails driven through their wrists and ankles instead of through their hands and feet.[10]
Creme’s teaching about how the Shroud demonstrates that people did not have nails driven into their hands during the crucifixion process caught my attention. I looked at several Shroud research websites and found that they echo the same thing about how the Shroud shows that nails were driven through the person’s wrist instead of their hands. This detail shows that the Shroud did not originate from God, but from the forces of evil since it contradicts a major detail in the Bible about Christ’s body after the crucifixion.
Thomas was the only Apostle who did not immediately believe the news that Christ was resurrected from the dead. Thomas told his brethren that he wanted to see physical proof of Christ’s resurrection by looking at His hands directly before he would believe the news.
- Joh 20:25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.
Thomas met with Jesus and was encouraged by Jesus to put his finger on His hand. The physical evidence that Thomas found was more than enough for him to believe that Christ rose from the dead and demonstrates that Christ had nails driven into His hands when He was crucified.
- Joh 20:26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.
- Joh 20:27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
- Joh 20:28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.
- Joh 20:29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
The physical resemblance of the face on the Shroud to “Jesus's face” and the lack of wounds on the hands of the individual shown on the Shroud are not coincidences. If you read yesterday’s blog post you know that anytime you see a depiction of “Jesus” you are actually seeing a depiction of the Ascended Master that poses as Jesus (Ascended Master Jesus Sananda Immanuel). I suspect the visual depiction of “Jesus” on the Shroud is very similar to (if not, the same as) the visible form Ascended Master Jesus Sananda Immanuel uses when he appears to people. I also suspect that the reason that the individual shown on the Shroud of Turin does not have wounds on his hands is that Ascended Master Jesus Sananda Immanuel does not have wounds on his hands.[11]
There is a strong indication from Creme that the Shroud of Turin is going to play a major role in the end times. Recall that the forces of evil have tried to warp the resurrection story by claiming that Maitreya was the power that resurrected Christ from the dead instead of the Holy Spirit and plan to tell this warped story to world during the end times. Creme wrote that the Ascended Master Jesus Sananda Immanuel will “confirm” to the world the authenticity of the Shroud of the Turin and the teachings surrounding it by claiming that the Shroud “as His own”.
“This matter will soon be cleared up once and for all, no doubt to the consternation of the sceptics and the scientists who use unscientific methods to prove their bias. The Master Jesus will claim it as His own”.[12]
If Creme is telling the truth (which is a big IF), it appears the forces of evil plan to support their warped version of the resurrection story by using the Shroud of Turin as “proof” to support their version of the story.
To sum up everything, the Shroud of Turin is going to one day be a major tool that the forces of evil are going to use to convince people that the Ascended Master that will pose as Jesus is the real Jesus and convince people that Maitreya is the power that resurrected Jesus from the dead.
On an unrelated note (for those of you reading this article on the actual blog website), I now have a “Share Button” at the end of every blog post so if you read something you want to share with the people you know click the share button and you will be given dozens of options that will enable you to easily share what you read with the people you know (for Gmail Users, watch out to make sure the link stands out on its own).
References
[1] Thurston, Herbert. "The Holy Shroud (of Turin)." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 7 Apr. 2010 http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13762a.htm
[2] “Pope John Paul II's Address of May 24, 1998 in Turin Cathedral”. Vercelli and Turin: Italy. 24. May. 1998.
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/travels/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_24051998_sindone_en.html
[3] Glatz, Carol. “Shroud of Turin to be Displayed to Public in 2010”. 2008. Jun. 2. Last Accessed 7 Apr. 2010. http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0802940.htm
[4]“Of Saints and Popes Concerning the Holy Shroud”. 27 Nov. 2007. Last Accessed 7 Apr. 2010. http://www.holyfaceofjesus.com/of_saints_and_popes_concerning_t.htm
[5] “Turin Shroud Investigations”. Share International Magazine. October 2006. http://www.share-international.org/magazine/old_issues/2006/oct_06.htm
[6] “Turin Shroud Script Confirms Authenticity”. Share International Magazine March 2010. http://www.share-international.org/magazine/old_issues/2010/2010-03.htm
[7] “News release no. 69, April 2004. The Turin Shroud-a Photograph of Resurrection?”. Last Accessed 7 April 2010. http://www.share-international.org/media/april2004.htm
[8] “News release no. 69, April 2004. The Turin Shroud-a Photograph of Resurrection?”. Last Accessed 7 April 2010. http://www.share-international.org/media/april2004.htm
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid.
[11] “FAQ-Maitreya’s Emergence”. 15 Oct. 2005. Last Accessed 7 Apr. 2010. http://www.share-international.org/ARCHIVES/M_emergence/faq_M_emergence.htm
[12] “News release no. 69, April 2004. The Turin Shroud-a Photograph of Resurrection?”. Last Accessed 7 April 2010. http://www.share-international.org/media/april2004.htm
