Shroud expert to speak March 11 at SLC
Jim Bertrand he presentation about the Shroud of Turin will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, March 11, at the Spiritual Life Center in Wichita. The event is free but donations will be welcome.
Few get the opportunity to view the actual Shroud of Turin, but if you live around Lincoln, Nebraska, that miraculous image is watching you.
Jim Bertrand, a member of St. Peter Parish in Lincoln, Nebraska, is the founder of The Holy Face Project that is placing the image on billboards around the city.
“I stepped out of my comfort zone to initiate this project in Lincoln and did everything I could on my part knowing that God would do the rest,” Bertrand told the Southern Nebraska Register a few weeks ago. “Knowing what I do about the Shroud, The Holy Face Project seemed an opportunity to share the message of the Shroud with even more people.”
He was inspired by a similar project promoted in Hilton Head, South Carolina, where Val Kelly, who saw billboards of the Shroud face in Ireland, wanted to duplicate the idea near her home and founded a similar project with help from her prayer group.
Bertrand has presented over 200 times
Bertrand has made over 200 presentations about the Shroud of Turin in the past six years to groups in 12 states, 18 dioceses, and New Zealand.
He taught high school science classes for 39 years before retiring in May from Pius X High School in Lincoln.
Now he has more time for his Shroud presentations.
“A lot has been learned about the shroud,” Bertrand said. “I’ve updated and spent hundreds of hours perfecting this talk, refining it so that it’s very up to date.”
Novices or experts of the Shroud of Turin will all learn something at the presentation, he said.
“Along with that, I think they’ll see some things they haven’t seen before in terms of some really high definition photographs and information about the Shroud they haven’t thought about or seen.”
Bertrand will have an actual size replica of the Shroud that is 15 feet by 4 feet for viewing at his presentation.
“That’s probably the only time they’ll ever get to see that. There are fewer than 50 of these in the world, so unless they plan on traveling to Turin, Italy, someday when it’s on display, this is the closest they’ll get to seeing the real thing.”
Want to learn more about the Shroud?
The presentation about the Shroud of Turin will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, March 11, at the Spiritual Life Center in Wichita. The event is free but donations will be welcome.