New museum in California offers immersive experience of the Shroud of Turin

An interactive museum dedicated to the Shroud of Turin, which some believe was Jesus’ burial cloth, opened its doors to the public Wednesday at the Christ Cathedral campus in Garden Grove, California.

The $5-million exhibit, “The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience,” features 360-degree projection theaters, replicas of the shroud, interactive kiosks, and a life-size sculpture of Christ. Conceived over three years and funded through private donations, the 10,000-square-foot museum presents visitors with a life-size laminated visual of the shroud showing the faint image of a man with wounds similar to those described in accounts of Christ’s crucifixion.

The original shroud—a 14-foot-long, 3.5-foot-wide cloth—remains in a bulletproof, climate-controlled case at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy. It was last displayed publicly in spring 2015.

The Vatican has described the cloth as a powerful symbol of Christ’s suffering while making no definitive claims about its authenticity. Carbon-dating of cloth fragments has placed its origin in the 13th or 14th century, though many believers, including some scientists, argue those results may have been affected by contamination. They point to evidence that the cloth contains pollen from Jerusalem and features a weaving pattern unique to the first century.

“My hope is that people of faith will have stronger faith, people who are doubting will come to belief and people with no faith will begin the questioning process and then come to faith,” said the Most Rev. Timothy Freyer, an auxiliary bishop at the Diocese of Orange, which now occupies the former Crystal Cathedral complex built by televangelist Robert H. Schuller.

Among the exhibit’s highlights is an immersive recreation of the resurrection, where visitors sit in a replica tomb and watch as the shrouded body disappears in a flash of light. The experience also features replicas of artifacts associated with the crucifixion, including the spear believed to have pierced Christ’s side and the crown of thorns.

Philip Rizzo, a parishioner from Huntington Beach who previewed the exhibit, noted how the scientific aspects of the display strengthened his connection to the material. “We’re tangible beings, not just spirit and light,” Rizzo said. “Science really helps make that connection.”

The exhibit stems largely from the work of Dr. August Accetta, a gynecologist who founded the Shroud Center of Southern California in 1998 after his own study of the cloth led to his conversion from agnosticism to Catholicism. Accetta collaborated with scientists including John Jackson, a nuclear physicist who led the 40-person Shroud of Turin Research Project in 1978. That study concluded the shroud was not a manufactured artwork and contained actual human bloodstains.

Some researchers, including Accetta, believe the image was created by radiation. “On the shroud, you see four centimeters of anatomically correct information encoded in two microns, which is about half the thickness of a strand of hair,” he explained. “We can’t even begin to understand that, let alone reproduce it.”

Rev. Robert Spitzer, founder of the Magis Center, a nonprofit using science to support Catholic beliefs, noted the shroud bears “perfect blood stains down to the edges,” which would not occur if a cloth were simply pulled from a body. Like Accetta, Spitzer theorizes the markings were caused by particle radiation at the moment of resurrection.

The California exhibit was created primarily by Othonia, Inc., a Rome-based organization dedicated to studying the shroud. Nora Creech, director of Othonia’s U.S. operations, explained that the founder, Rev. Hector Guerra, dreams of establishing 100 similar exhibits worldwide. Previous installations exist in Jerusalem, Rome, Poland, Mexico, and elsewhere in the United States, though the Garden Grove location is the first to feature immersive technology.

Rudy Dicthtl, one of the scientists from the 1978 research team, recalled handling the actual shroud. “We saw the cloth as something that had the potential to be the burial cloth of Christ,” he said. While acknowledging the scientific evidence remains inconclusive, he added, “As a Christian, I do believe it is the burial cloth of Christ.”

The exhibit is expected to remain at the Christ Cathedral campus through at least 2030, giving visitors a chance to engage with one of Christianity’s most debated and studied artifacts through both faith and scientific perspectives.