By Gretchen Keiser

“Accept we pray, this Exhibition of the Turin Shroud, and grant that those who look upon it may have their hearts open to things which can be seen only by the eyes of faith. By the Holy Spirit, use it to preach your Gospel of Salvation with power and grace to those who have not heard it, turn the hearts of those who resist it; and bring home to your fold those who have gone astray; that there may be one flock under one shepherd, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Dedication Prayer)

The many leaders of Christian denominations in Atlanta gathered on the upper level of the Omni Aug. 16 to dedicate the photographic exhibit of the Shroud of Turin.

It was a fulfillment of a dream for Episcopal priest Father Kim Dreisbach, another one which has unfolded since June 1981 when an Atlanta center for the continuing study of the Shroud of Turin formed around the passionate interest of a few people.

Some nine months ago, despite obstacles, the center succeeded in bringing to Atlanta the high-quality exhibit of back-lighted photographs and transparencies showing the linen burial cloth and explaining its history and recent scientific studies of it. The cloth itself is kept in a cathedral in Turin, Italy; upon it is the image of a crucified man, believed by many to be the image of Jesus after he was removed from the cross and laid in the tomb.

Since the exhibit came to Atlanta last November – for a six-month stay at the Peachtree Center and now in donated space on the upper level of the Omni shopping mall – Father Dreisbach had hoped for an ecumenical service to bless and dedicate the exhibit. When the service was arranged and the schedules worked out, the ecumenical service fell on Aug. 16, the feast day in the Greek Orthodox calendar of the Holy Mandylion, the date on which the Shroud was believed to have been first exhibited in the city of Constantinople in 944 A.D.

Archbishop Thomas Donnellan officiated at the reading of the Evening Office of the Holy Shroud. Bishop John of Atlanta, the Greek orthodox bishop; Bishop Elect C. Judson Child, Jr. of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta and Presiding Bishop Frederick H. Talbot of the African Methodist Episcopal Church co-officiated. The American Lutheran Church, the Lutheran Church in America, the Atlanta Baptist Association, the Atlanta Presbyterian Church, the United Methodist Church, Mount Paran Church of God and the Christian Council were also represented.

Such a gathering was believed to be a unique event internationally in showing ecumenical support for the Shroud as one means of drawing people to the central Gospel message of Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection. The impact upon Father Dreisbach, as he left that evening, was to recall the faces of the many people he has come to read about and know whose work and dedication have sustained interest in the Shroud over the centuries, the priest said. The thoughts included “a prayer and a hope that we could do justice” to the task, he noted. Among those involved in setting up the service were George O’Day and Larry Melear, both active in the archdiocese.

The photographic exhibit was planned as a part of the 1978 study of the Shroud carried out by a group of American scientists with the permission of church officials and others responsible for its safekeeping. At the conclusion of the unprecedented study, the exhibit was expected to tour world museums, but technical problems prevented that from taking place.

The Atlanta Center has worked since to try to keep the exhibit permanently in Atlanta as the centerpiece of a research center and library devoted to the topic of Shroud study. Using donations at the exhibit, the Center is now within $10,000 of the $116,000 needed to buy the exhibit and supporting materials. Once enough money is raised to buy the exhibit, fund-raising is expected to begin to find and staff a permanent home for it.

In addition to support from the religious community the exhibit is receiving increasing attention from municipal officials. Mayor Andrew Young and his wife and a representative of Gov. Joe Frank Harris came on the evening of the service. Also present was Fulton County Commissioner Lee Roach who noted that the exhibit, in its quality and subject matter, could only enhance, and reflect well on any city where it was housed. More than 30,000 people have toured the exhibit since last November.