TV: Face Of Jesus (History Channel)

During my ongoing Insomnia situation, recently, I watched the History Channel's special on revealing the face of Jesus Christ via computer-assisted reconstruction from the Shroud Of Turin (I only knew about this from Martin Atencio who mentioned wanting to see it).  It was a fascinating documentary showing how scientists can extrapolate just about anything they want with evidence that they do *not* know the end result of (as opposed to proving and re-proving "facts" as they already know them).

Brought up several times was the fact that the Shroud in question has been "carbon dated" previously as only being a few hundred years old.  Then "facts" surrounding the pattern of the weave in the Shroud, drawings made in other countries that have to do with the Shroud supposedly, and most interestingly to me, how Man's Bible documents the opening of Jesus' tomb, Mary and the Disciples' interpretations of what they say, and best of all, analysis of how light and/or radiation could (by man's definitions) produce the infamous imprints of what they believe to be Jesus onto the cloth.

I don't have a real opinion either way as to whether this really is the burial cloth of Jesus.  I see no reason for it to be important, personally.  It's *fascinating* from a scientific view, which was the point of this TV special, certainly.  Scientists constantly make discoveries which constantly get debunked as "better methods" come about (was the carbon dating wrong?).  Historians connect the dots of things that could very well be unrelated, or could be misinuterpreted (drawings of someone in a shroud found in other countries).  And then there's the Catholic Church, which many believe to be manipulators of historical fact to promote their own agenda (or other denominations which paint the Catholic Church in a highly negative light - including the one I was raised in).

In any case, the scientific methods and "proofs" presented in this special were fascinating, as well as the end result - a full-body representation of what they believe Jesus Christ looked like.  I guess if He had been portrayed in a way vastly different than the many paintings/drawing already seen for two centuries, maybe this would have been "even more fascinating".  Comments on the eye brows and lashes were funny (to me).  The extra "rag" possibly used to wrap the face of the person in the Shroud also presented interesting ideas (though I felt that it was not explored fully - how could his face be so clear in the head-area of the Shroud if it was double-wrapped, yet the rest of his body was not, and was less-visible in the Shroud?).

Anyway.  An interesting show.  I agree completely with the gentleman who repeatedly stated that we will "never know" (at least on this plane of existence) whether this is truly the Shroud that He was wrapped in after death.  Barring time-travel (oops, many people think that's impossible - oh well).