concludes another successful year for York’s Newman Circle
The York Newman Circle’s AGM on 11th April was followed by an enthralling talk from Dr Stephen Gregson on the Shroud of Turin. Several points emerged clearly from the talk. First, despite having been unanimously dated to the medieval period (between 1266 and 1390) by the radiocarbon dating team in 1988, there is no justification for referring to the Shroud as a fake or forgery. Even if the medieval dating is correct, the nature of the image – a photographic negative – makes it very unlikely to have been artificially and deliberately produced. Why would someone bent on deception hit on such an idea in the 13th century, and how would they do it? No one to this day has any idea how this negative image was produced. It remains a mystery.
Secondly, as Dr Gregson demonstrated, the details of the image are entirely consistent with the Shroud having been a burial cloth which had been in contact with a severely beaten and crucified male. Dr Gregson pointed out that since 1902, medical opinion about the nature of the Shroud has been unanimous: it is a genuine burial cloth.
Finally, it is fair to say that “the jury is out” on whether the radiocarbon dating carried out in 1988 achieved an accurate result, and the point at issue is the sample used in the test. On the one hand, the Shroud is a single piece of cloth – why shouldn’t a piece cut from the corner be regarded as a fair sample, and the medieval dating be simply accepted? On the other hand, the main use of carbon-14 dating is with uncontaminated freshly discovered archaeological finds, rather than on ancient textiles. There are reasons to think that the sample may have been contaminated – perhaps by frequent handling when it was displayed over the centuries, or perhaps by the fire of 1532, or the less than ideal circumstances in which it has been kept in the past. There is also some evidence of repair work in the area of the cloth from which the sample was taken.
Our faith does not, of course, depend in any way on whether a scientific consensus regarding such phenomena as the Shroud of Turin is ever reached. But it remains an intriguing mystery, and a genuine aid to devotion to the Passion and death of Our Lord.
A guided visit to Ripley Castle on 19th July will bring to a close the third year of the re-established York Newman Circle (for information about this visit, or any other aspect of the Newman Circle, please contact Judith Smeaton on [01904] 704525). The new year will begin with a talk on Monday 19th September by Fr Henry Wansborough OSB on the New Missal.