17. Art History! Dating back to 544 from the Shroud

Transcription

1 1. Buzz Aldrin quote is an overview of today s talk. We will be looking at scientific empirical evidence that validates the Catholic Church and what we believe. 2. Science is basically the opposite of ignorance. God gave us science to know things, to use our intellect and logic. 3. Throughout the ages, scientist have observed all forms of our God- created existence in this world. We are going to focus on the Natural Science the physical and biological world. We have studied the environment, time, the earth, and living things, etc all things in our physical world. Through observation and experiments, we have collected data and learned about the causes of natural events. Through these studies we derived laws describing what should always happen, which are the laws of nature. We are going to take a closer at look at what happens when an event surpasses normal laws of nature physically and biologically. 4. Common speech miracle = wondrous, improbably, or newly discovered A few examples: sunrises, seasons, birth, or coincidence. In many ways, these events are wondrous, and we can be in awe. Some even point to God and His plan of salvation, such as the birth of a baby. While wondrous, they are also all ordinary. To apply the term miracle to any of these, is to omit the most distinctive feature of a miracle: God s direct intervention in the natural world. 5. Someone read please slide. This is why we need scientists. Sometimes we observe an event that cannot be explained by science because the normal powers of nature have been exceeded or surpassed. 6. What is basic scientific observation? In preschool this year Olivia learned to use her five sense. If a miracle is a sign that is perceived by our senses, let s consider the case of Jesus first miracle The Miracle at Cana. What is the natural process of making wine? We should all take a class on the science of winemaking to find out! Naturally water can become wine after. harvesting the grapes, to weeks of fermentation, overall, wine

2 making is generally a long process. But at Cana God s power bypassed that process! Boom the water became wine. The guests at the wedding of Cana perceived the wine with all five sense- they could taste, touch, smell, etc.. The laws of nature were surpassed at that moment. 7. Christ used the three years of His public ministry to teach people of his kingship. Through His miracles Jesus called people to faith, bringing before their eyes a meeting of nature and supernature. If miracles are the divine presented to the natural world, what is the most fundamental example of divinity becoming part of the natural world? 8. The Incarnation! Jesus has always existed before He became man. But by entering our world through His physical nature, we were able to perceive God through our senses. And so the incarnation can be viewed as the Miracle of Miracles. 9. Read slide 10. To quickly review before moving on, I hoped to have established how science and Catholicism go hand- in- hand. We are the only religion with scientifically proven miracles. 11. While the Incarnation is the root miracle of salvation, the Resurrection is the definitive and ultimate sign. The resurrection surpassed all laws of nature regarding death and corruption. Considering the resurrection as the definitive proof, it would make sense that God would create the image on the shroud of Turin as physical proof to linger in our world. For those who aren t familiar, the Shroud of Turin is the burial cloth that Jesus was wrapped in after taken down from the cross and placed in His tomb. 12. It is the most studied and analyzed artifact in the world. Throughout the history of analyzing miracles, a common factor lies in the sense of smell. The most recent opening of the Jesus tomb had some observes report a sweet frangrance. The same sweet scent has been recounted with Marian apparitions, the tombs of Saints, the stigmata of Padre Pio. It is referred to as the odour of sanctity. During another opening of Christ s tomb 1809, the

3 chronicler also made mention of a sweet aroma. But moving past using our basic five senses for scientific analysis, we are now going to look at more complex laboratory studies. 13. Here are a few known facts about the Shroud (read 1-3). Back in 1988, atheists were excited about finally finding evidence that the shroud was a fake. They sampled right here in the corner the most handled portion. In this image you can also see the burial practice of the time that corresponds with the image on the shroud. 14. There is no theory that could explain how they could have produced a fake today, let alone in the medieval times. Why? Because the blood stains are real and the photographic image cannot be man- made. 15. From a recent study starting in the last 1970 s called the Shroud of Turin Researching Project. The overall conclusion of all these tests indicate that nothing has been applied to the cloth to create the image. If the image wasn t painted on or manually applied, how did it get there? Point out the face and hands crossed. 16. Read slide. The only logical explanation is that the image is similar to a film negative, where a flash of light inside a camera records the image onto the film. The conclusion supports the historical documentation from 544 when the Image not made by hands was discovered in Edessa (southern Turkey) and became the model for all Byzantine and Orthodox icons images of Christ that we see throughout Art History. 17. Art History! Dating back to 544 from the Shroud 18. A group of American scientists recently used relief mapping technique developed by NASA to discover that the image was three- dimensional, apparently seared onto the cloth as a result of a powerful explosion of energy of split- second duration. Does this not signify the Resurrection? In the instant before life was restored to the dead body, its image was imprinted forever on the surface of the fabric by a burst of radiation of mysterious origin. From a scientific point of view, it is far easier to accept the Shroud s

4 authenticity than to account for it as a forgery, for the alleged medieval forger would have to have been a genius light years ahead of modern knowledge and science, which remains unable to replicate the image. The most powerful VUV radiation light source available on the market come to only several billion watts, and not enough to produce an image of this size onto cloth. 19. Moral and intellectual miracles are a topic for another day, but in a nutshell they are human accomplishments beyond natural human capability, such as prophecy. Today we are only looking at physical miracles. So moving on, I have a trick question for you: 20. Are the Sacraments miracles? The sacraments are signs, but the supernatural part- the occurrence of grace coming from the sign- is not perceived by the senses. For this reason, sacraments are not considered miracles in a strict sense. For example, after the host is consecrated, we do not taste flesh and blood. The physical part remains tasting, smelling, feeling, and appearing like bread and wine. A Eucharistic miracle, on the other hand, would entail the host physically surpassing the laws of nature. This includes healing after consumption, or permanent preservation defying the laws of organic decay. Most famously we are going to look at the substance of the Body and Blood taking on the appearance and physical attributes of human flesh or blood. 21. The famous Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano from the 8 th century. A monk suffered from severe doubts of the real presence. Meaning, he didn t believe that at the moment of consecration the bread became the actual Body of Christ and that the wine became His Blood. While saying mass one morning and uttering the words This is My Body.This is My Blood, he noticed blood dripping from the white host. At first he was terrified, but then filled with indescribable joy. The monk turned to the faithful attending the Mass and said to them, Here is the real Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He has made visible to me, that I may no longer be a disbeliever, but a believer. This slide shows the scientific findings. Have you seen that blood type before?

5 22. Read slide. Some scientist have even observed the heart beating as if alive. Church leaders are always careful to test potential miracles and rule out natural causes. Last year, in Utah, a Host that had been dropped and kept in water appeared blood red after days. However, after a thorough investigation, the red substance turned out not to be blood but rather mold. So the Church isn't quick to label every case like this miraculous. But sometimes, after healthy skepticism and cautious investigation, there's no other conclusion that can be drawn. 23. Buenos Aires 24. Because I m Polish, and recent technology was used for new findings. 25. Given the common conclusion from scientists that these miracles cannot be artificially created or replicated by human hands even with today s most advanced technology leads to empirical evidence of miracles. Those who deny the authenticity of these miracles cannot provide convincing counter- arguments based on objective scientific evidence because there is none. Those who claim to be objective are in reality bound by their prejudices and fear of the supernatural. Because declaring the authenticity of such miracles would require declaring oneself for Jesus and acknowledge Him as God, which has serious personal implications. It ultimately would mean conversion. 26. Conclusion: Much of what we just discussed focused on the science of biology, especially the biology of Christ Incarnate. By looking at the Shroud of Turin and the Eucharistic miracles, we know that Jesus continues to surpass the laws of nature to this day. We also know Jesus Christ is truly present, body, blood, soul, and divinity, in the Eucharist! As created in His image, we know that we are body & soul. As women, our bodies, like the Virgin Mary s, have a special biological function in making a yes to God to create life within us. For this reason, we invited Rowena Crist to talk the science behind your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you. So before taking your questions and handing over to Rowena, I leave you with these words: