LINCOLN (SNR) – Jim Bertrand of Lincoln, a member of the American Confraternity of the Holy Shroud, will give a presentation Oct. 8 on the Shroud of Turin, a linen burial cloth that is believed to have covered the body of Jesus after His crucifixion.
The talk will begin about 5 p.m., after the 4 p.m. Mass Oct. 8 at St. Peter Church, 4500 Duxhall Dr., Lincoln. The presentation is free and open to all. It will take place in Bishop Vasa Hall, with an actual-size replica of the shroud present for viewing.
Bertrand has given more than 250 presentations on the artifact. Measuring 14.5 feet long and 3.5 feet long, the Shroud bears the image of a crucified man, with evidence of wounds on the head, hands, feet and side.
He purchased the replica shroud for his talks with the help of the Knights of Columbus Council #10510 and the PCCW of St. Peter Parish in Lincoln. When Bertrand retires from giving Shroud presentations, he said the replica will be returned to his parish and put on permanent display.
Bertrand said he first read about the Shroud in 1981. National Geographic magazine featured photos from a 1978 scientific study called the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP). The team leader of that project, Dr. John Jackson, and Bishop Michael Sheridan of the Diocese of Colorado Springs, founded the American Confraternity of the Holy Shroud in 2014 to help people learn about the shroud and grow closer to Jesus.
Bertrand struck up a friendship with Jackson during the scientist’s 1996 visit to speak about the Shroud in Lincoln, and summarized into a PowerPoint presentation the 148-page Critical Summary on the Shroud. He said the Summary was a collection of four decades of research. That presentation became a pilot program of training people to present factual information about the Shroud.
Bertrand has presented in parishes throughout the state and even across the country. In 2023 he is already scheduled to give presentations in Georgia, Rhode Island, Florida, Michigan and Oklahoma.
