In an August 8, 2025 interview on The Tucker Carlson Show, New Testament scholar Dr. Jeremiah Johnston laid out an extraordinary case for the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, describing it not merely as an ancient relic but as tangible evidence of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Johnston, a Protestant Bible scholar, began by pointing to the forensic details found on the cloth. The shroud, he explained, contains both “pre-mortem and post-mortem blood all over the shroud,” showing clear signs of a torturous death. The markings align with the Gospel accounts of Christ’s Passion, including scourge marks, wounds on the palms, forearms, and feet, and a “gash in the side … between rib five and six” — precisely where the Gospel of John records that a Roman soldier pierced Jesus, causing blood and water to flow. “That’s post-mortem blood,” Johnston said. “We know that that blood … differs from the other pre-mortem blood on the shroud”.
The scholar also noted that mathematician Bruno Barberis calculated the odds that the image depicts anyone other than Jesus of Nazareth at “one in 200 billion.” Johnston recalled how the shroud first captured global attention when Italian photographer Secondo Pia’s 1898 photograph revealed a “perfect negative image of a man,” invisible to the naked eye on the linen but unmistakable in photographic form.
One of the most mysterious aspects of the shroud is the image itself. Johnston explained that the figure is embedded only in the top two microns of the linen fibers, with no pigment, dye, or ink present. “If this was a hoax, if this was a work of art, if there was pigment, if there was dye, if there was paint, it would absorb fully,” he said. “But if we took a razor to the actual shroud, we could shave off the image because it’s that thin, and this is what the best scientists in the world cannot replicate.” He went further, citing physicist Paulo de Lazo’s conclusion that producing such an image would require “34,000 billion watts of energy in one-fortieth of a billionth of a second,” a burst of power beyond any known human capability.
Additional evidence connects the shroud directly to Jerusalem. Researchers have identified pollen from plants that bloom only in the region during spring — consistent with the timing of Christ’s crucifixion and burial — as well as limestone and clay soil unique to Jerusalem. These materials appear on the image’s feet, knees, and nose, suggesting the man depicted fell repeatedly, his knees and face striking the ground, much like the Stations of the Cross recall.
Johnston said the image also records over 200 wounds on the back and 172 on the front, likely from the scourging, and about 50 puncture marks on the scalp from a crown of thorns shaped more like a helmet than a wreath. The cloth even appears to show that the right eye was swollen shut, possibly blinded from the beatings.
“The image is actually something that chemically has happened, and we believe it happened at the moment of resurrection,” Johnston told Carlson. For Catholics, such a statement underscores what faith has always professed — that Christ’s resurrection was not merely symbolic but a real, historical, and supernatural event. While the Church has never officially declared the shroud to be the burial cloth of Jesus, it has consistently encouraged veneration of it as a sign that can deepen devotion and lead to a more profound contemplation of the mystery of the Passion and Resurrection.
Johnston concluded with a reflection: “If we ever doubt God’s love for us, we only need to contemplate on His immense sufferings for our sins in His Passion.” For Catholics, the Shroud of Turin stands as a profound visual reminder of that love, inviting the faithful to meditate on Christ’s suffering and the mystery of His Resurrection.
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