Invenio
Today has been the patronal feast of the House of Savoy, and thus the Feast of the Holy Shroud, since Pope Julius II proclaimed it in 1506; and in my lifetime, the “Shroud of Turin” has been substantiated in an obvious way. It seems to have been precisely what was claimed for it — the winding sheet used to wrap Jesus’ slain body where it lay dead, and also as it “awakened,” or was initially Resurrected. I don’t think we can say, correctly, that He “was resurrected,” for who would be responsible for such an act except the Very God, who was and is Christ? (So much for Musalman complaints that we are polytheists.)
For those with access to a traditional Catholic missal, yesterday was the Feast of the Invention of the Holy Cross — commemorating the discovery of that very Crucifix, buried by the pagan Romans under many, many, cartloads of earth, stones, and muck, at the location of Golgotha in Jerusalem. It was exhumed, dug out, uncovered, by St Helena, mother of Constantine the Great, seventeen centuries ago (almost exactly). To those who are sceptical of this assertion, it ought to be explained that “Invention” is derived from the Latin invenio, meaning “uncovered.” (Alethea in Greek: proven, true.) The discovery was made in a very public way. Not hidden.
It is a curious feature of the Christian religion that, from Bethlehem forward, physical details of its existence have been available. Our faith has always been fully supported to whatever standard of proof pertained through the successive days since, and so the denial of Christ has been ludicrous, continuously over this time. For that matter, the archaeological evidence for Judaism remains, at the original sites, in contemporary Israel and beyond her borders, from Egypt to Babylon and Persia.
Today we are doing tests with “advanced technology,” which the Shroud, unsurprisingly, continues to pass. Don’t be naïve. Go check it out.