Travis Simpkins: "The Templars and the Shroud of Christ" by Barbara Frale

The Templars and the Shroud of Christ

by Barbara Frale

Skyhorse Publishing, 2012

Brief Review by Travis Simpkins

Demonstrating a profound depth of knowledge, Barbara Frale proves once again that she is amongst the foremost authorities on the subjects of both the Knights Templar and the Shroud of Turin. With access to inside information, gained through her work at the Vatican Secret Archives, Dr. Frale offers a solid hypothesis in The Templars and the Shroud of Christ. A well known fact brought out in King Philip the Fair's inquisition of the Templar Knights during the early 14th Century is the mention of idol worship amongst the warrior monks… particularly the worship of a bearded male head called Baphomet. Dr. Frale suggests that the object referenced as Baphomet was not blasphemous but may in fact have been none other than the famous Shroud of Turin, kept in a reliquary and folded in upon itself so that only the head of Christ was showing. How the Templars came to possess the sacred relic and why they did not reveal it's existence to their accusers (and thus redeem themselves) are subjects that comprise the bulk of the book.

Barbara Frale theorizes that the Templars must have obtained ownership of the Shroud shortly after the violent sack of Constantinople in 1204 A.D. Reliable sources describe the Shroud as then being kept folded in a reliquary which only allowed the face on the cloth to be seen… a visual presentation which may have inspired the many "mandylion" depictions of Christ's solitary head in Eastern Orthodox art. The Templars protected and worshipped the Shroud, but kept it secret for various presumed reasons including the humanizing bloodstains and possible traces of Judaic script on the cloth. Much more is revealed in the text.

Of particular interest is the great care offered in illustrating how the Templars themselves may have perceived the Shroud, which likely differed from the modern viewpoint. Frale states, "The definition of the Shroud is best understood if we try to understand the theological concept of Icon, which is not simply the same as a holy image. Icons, in a sense, live and give life; they can bestow real benefits on the spirituality of the faithful." This is further explained in the practice of the Templars wearing thin strands of linen around their tunics which were never removed, even during sleep. Early on these linen strands had touched the Holy Sepulchre, later on they must have been blessed by another Icon sacred to the passion of Jesus Christ… namely the burial shroud which held his crucified dead body and witnessed his resurrection.