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Comment on Wikipedia Text: description of the Shroud of Turin
. . . in referece to the wikipedia text,
description of the Shroud of Turin
the opening paragraph is an accurate description with a Neutral Point of View (NPOV). However some points need to be addressed:
It is correct to say that those who believe it is a burial cloth of Jesus also believe that his image was somehow recorded on its fibers at or near the time of his proclaimed resurrection; for no one really knows how the images were made and thus when they were made. For instance, some who think that the image might be a natural phenomenon, such as an amino/carbonyl reaction, do not think that a resurrection event was related to the image formation.
The use of the word believers is a bit loaded. What does it mean in this context? For instance, a Jewish shroud scholar, Barrie Schwortz, believes that the shroud is very likely authentic -- archeologically, scientifically and historically -- without being a Christian.
The word believer is not mutually exclusive to the other categories listed. There are scientists, historians, and writers who are believers in the shroud's authenticity. Some, but not all, are also Christian believers in the resurrection at some level of understanding.
It is also not clear from the phrase "intense debate among" followed by a list. For instance, there is significant debate among scientists. Moreover, it is correct to say that the majority of scientists who have actually examined the shroud or forensic evidence removed from the shroud "believe" that it is authentic or possibly authentic. But, again, not all.
Skeptics argue that most of the scientists who were permitted to examine the shroud and shroud material were already believers and thus predisposed to advocate a pro-authenticiy position. That most were believers is probably true. That these same scientists were not honest to the rigors of scientific methods is without foundation. And not all who were Christian believers, initially believed that the shroud was authentic.
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