Ian Wilson (Christianity)
Encyclopedia
Ian Wilson is the prolific author of religious and scientific books. He often mixes the two while examining such topics as the Shroud of Turin
or life after death.
, south London, during World War II
and some of his earliest memories are of the Blitz
. Neither of his parents was religious. His school was nominally Church of England
, but during scripture classes he was always, as he put it, "the number one sceptic". He graduated in Modern History from Magdalen College, Oxford
.
He first came across the Shroud during the 1950s, when he was in his mid-teens, in an illustrated article by World War II hero Group Captain Leonard Cheshire
. It was the famous image on the negative of the Shroud that dealt the first blow to his formerly complacent agnosticism
. In 1972 he converted to Roman Catholicism.
He has written and presented a three part Channel 4
TV series based on his book Jesus: The Evidence.
He lived in Bristol
, England for twenty-six years and now resides in Brisbane
, Australia
with his wife, Judith. They have two sons, Adrian and Noel.
Shroud of Turin
The Shroud of Turin or Turin Shroud is a linen cloth bearing the image of a man who appears to have suffered physical trauma in a manner consistent with crucifixion. It is kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, northern Italy. The image on the shroud is...
or life after death.
Life
He was born in ClaphamClapham
Clapham is a district in south London, England, within the London Borough of Lambeth.Clapham covers the postcodes of SW4 and parts of SW9, SW8 and SW12. Clapham Common is shared with the London Borough of Wandsworth, although Lambeth has responsibility for running the common as a whole. According...
, south London, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and some of his earliest memories are of the Blitz
Blitz
-Armed conflict:*The Blitz, the German aerial attacks on Britain in WWII. The name Blitz was subsequently applied to many individual bombing campaigns or attacks.*Blitzkrieg, the "lightning war", a strategy of World War 2 Germany-People:...
. Neither of his parents was religious. His school was nominally Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, but during scripture classes he was always, as he put it, "the number one sceptic". He graduated in Modern History from Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
.
He first came across the Shroud during the 1950s, when he was in his mid-teens, in an illustrated article by World War II hero Group Captain Leonard Cheshire
Leonard Cheshire
Group Captain Geoffrey Leonard Cheshire, Baron Cheshire, VC, OM, DSO and Two Bars, DFC was a highly decorated British RAF pilot during the Second World War....
. It was the famous image on the negative of the Shroud that dealt the first blow to his formerly complacent agnosticism
Agnosticism
Agnosticism is the view that the truth value of certain claims—especially claims about the existence or non-existence of any deity, but also other religious and metaphysical claims—is unknown or unknowable....
. In 1972 he converted to Roman Catholicism.
He has written and presented a three part Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
TV series based on his book Jesus: The Evidence.
He lived in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, England for twenty-six years and now resides in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
with his wife, Judith. They have two sons, Adrian and Noel.
Publications
- The Turin Shroud: The Burial Cloth of Jesus Christ?, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15042-3
- Mind out of Time?: Reincarnation Claims Investigated, 1981 ISBN 0-575-02968-4 (Reprinted in 1982 under the title All In The Mind)
- Jesus: The Evidence, 1984
- The Exodus Enigma, 1985
- The Evidence of the Shroud, 1986
- Worlds Beyond: From the Files of the Society for Psychical Research, 1986 ISBN 0-297-78604-0
- Undiscovered: The Fascinating World of Undiscovered Places, Graves, Wrecks and Treasure, 1987 ISBN 0-688-07278-X
- The Bleeding Mind: An Investigation into the Mysterious Phenomenon of Stigmata, 1988 ISBN 0-297-79099-4
- The After Death Experience: The Physics of the Non-Physical, 1989 ISBN 0-688-08000-6
- Stigmata: An Investigation into the Mysterious Appearance of Christ's Wounds in Hundreds of People from Medieval Italy to Modern America, 1989 ISBN 0-062-50974-8
- Superself: The Hidden Powers Within Us, 1989 ISBN 0-283-99656-0
- Holy Faces, Secret Places: An Amazing Quest for the Face of Jesus, 1991 ISBN 0-385-26105-5
- The Columbus Myth: Did Men of Bristol Reach America before Columbus?, 1992 ISBN 0-671-71167-9
- Shakespeare: The Evidence: Unlocking the Mysteries of the Man and His Work, 1994 ISBN 0-312-11335-8
- In Search of Ghosts, 1996 ISBN 0-7472-4707-2
- The Blood and the Shroud: New Evidence That the World's Most Sacred Relic Is Real, 1998 ISBN 0-684-85529-1
- Jesus: The Evidence, 2000 ISBN 0-89526-239-8
- The Bible Is History, 2000 ISBN 0-89526-250-9
- The Turin Shroud: Unshrouding the Mystery, 2000 ISBN 1-85479-501-5
- Life after Death: The Evidence, 2001
- Past Lives: Unlocking the Secrets of Our Ancestors, 2001 ISBN 0-304-35474-0
- Before the Flood: The Biblical Flood as a Real Event and How It Changed the Course of Civilisation, 2001
- John Cabot and the Matthew, 2003 ISBN 9781550811315
- Nostradamus: The Man Behind the Prophecies, 2003 ISBN 0-312-31790-5
- Lost World of the Kimberley: Extraordinary New Glimpses of Australia's Ice Age Ancestors, 2006 ISBN 1-741-14391-8
- Murder at Golgotha: A Scientific Investigation into the Last Days of Jesus's Life, His Death, and His Resurrection (Griffin,U.S.; 2007) ISBN 0-312-36662-0
- The Shroud : the 2000-Year-Old Mystery Solved, 2010, ISBN 978-0-593-06359-0