Customer Reviews

Oviedo Cloth, the

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A petite, short paperback written by a Brit and published by a British press which serves as the earliest specific introduction of English-speakers to a supposed relic from the burial of Jesus of Nazareth. This relic is a piece of linen about the size of a face towel and was presumably used to cover the face of the expired Jesus while still on the cross and until his arrival at the burial site. Housed in the Cathedral of San Salvador in Oviedo, Spain, the so-called "Sudarium" has a more clearly traceable history than the Shroud of Turin, with the bodily fluid stains of which the stains on the Spanish relic show remarkable convergence. The book includes some illustrations, and outlines historical and scientific research on the Sudarium, discussing how this historical research casts doubt on the accuracy of the latest carbon dating of the Shroud of Turin. Written unevenly if with conviction, and with less than the best editing, it is marred by prejudicial statements against the doctrine and piety of the Roman Catholic Church, precisely the Church whose doctrine and piety has been and continues to be responsible for preserving the relics which have so engaged the author's interest and aroused his defense!

Guscin's book is clearly written and understandable. It is arranged in good sequence. The information is credible. I accept that no matter how many facts are found out about the sudarium and or the shroud, there will always be persons who cannot and will not accept anything that indicates a supernatural act/ intervention. Yet, in this case, science is being used by many persons and groups to support the belief that both cloths are a testament to a historical fact - the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. Guscin's book is a valuable addition to the large amount of work being done to further demonstrate the truth, the historical facts, and yes-the divine intervention of our natural laws of physics. Science is supporting these claims. I highly recommend this book to those who trust the carbon dating process as being an infallible scientific test - which has been proven - scientifically - that it is not. I thank Mr. Guscion for his labors in bringing this information to us= Louis VElasquez

This book's title suggests a book dedicated to the subject of the Oviedo cloth - and for large portings of the book this is exactly what you get. But from the outset the author seems determined to attack head on any comments / theories that have been derived from the Shroud of Turin that go against his beliefs and rubbish them. Thus his text bites off more than it can chew. He tries dismissing the work of Kersten, and the trio that wrote "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" with non-existant arguments and very dismissive language.

Large parts of the book are dedicated to the discussion of the Shroud of Turin rather than the Oviedo cloth. This may be seen by many as a bonus, rather than a flaw, but then its title should have reflected this.

Parts of the text are so heavily involved with the Bible and Christianity, and a defence of it, that i feel the book would be beter titled "Why i am a Christian"! The author attacks authors for drawing conclusions from evidence that fits a certain hypothesis they are trying to push, yet he does the exact same thing when stating that the plural fluids on the cloth are a sure sign of death.

The part that detracted from the decent scholarship of this book was the section in which the author details what would have been needed for a forger to forge the Shroud of Turin. The sarcastic tone of the 5 page description is woeful. The points have already been made and the author's commentary does not add value to his arguments.

Overall, however, this book contains an excellent description and summary of the colelctive evidence of the Shroud and the Oveido cloth. The last chapter tries to do too much and instead loses the focus, and objectivity of the earlier chapters. Nonetheless its a worthy read and something that anyone interested in the Shroud of Turin must read.

3/5

Mr. Guscin brings two things to this subject which remains relatively unknown outside Spain. First, he presents a reasonably believable discussion on what the Pañolon is and why such an article should be in Spain at all, and second he offers a thoroughly believable explanation of the fluid stains and what they mean.

At that point, he disgresses off into yet another argument about the Shroud of Turin. There is little middle ground about the Shroud: either you believe it's authentic or you don't. Hauling all that baggage into this discussion serves little purpose. For that reason, I give this book four instead of five stars. People who are interested in the Shroud, the Pañolon itself, or Spanish history will find it very interesting.

For the record, there are three times a year that you can actually see the Pañolon in Oviedo's Cathedral: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and for reasons that are obscure to me, December 13th. Other times you can see the box that holds it, and a big photo of the article.