The Shroud of Turin, believed by some religion experts to be the burial cloth of Jesus of Nazareth, is an unlikely research topic for a medical doctor living in the West End.

But author and Whittier Place resident Dr. Gilbert R. Lavoie, M.D., defied that notion Tuesday night in a talk he presented at the Hampshire House. The event was the latest in the Authors Among Us series hosted by the Beacon Hill Civic Association.

Dr. Lavoie, a specialist in internal and occupational medicine for more than 20 years, pursued a medical and scriptural study of the Shroud of Turin. The Shroud has long been debated by scientists, scholars and Christians, some who defend and some who disagree with the claim that it was used as Jesus' burial shroud.

Theorists are split between those that believe it's the actual burial shroud, those that say it's just an artist's rendering and still others who say it's a burial shroud, just not Jesus'.

Lavoie's new book, Unlocking the Secrets of the Shroud, was recently published by Thomas More publishers, and features 224 pages of heavily cited research, plus photographs documented Lavoie's personal experiments and research on the artifact.

Dr. Lavoie first became interested in the Shroud after reading Dr. Pierre Barbet's book, A Doctor at Calvary, while attending Boston College as an undergraduate. The book piqued his curiosity, and sent him on a 30 year-long quest for answers. Eventually his research led him to Turin, a city in northern Italy, where he laid eyes on the shroud for the first time.

Lavoie presented photographs, diagrams and charts explaining his research. His diagrams showed the directional pattern of scourge marks seen on the the shroud, how clotted blood marks could have been transferred to the fabric and microscopic pictures showing the thread patterns in the fabric. 

Alice Hart, a Charlestown resident and personal friend of Lavoie, attended the talk. "I bought the book, and I think it's amazing. The image itself is very captivating. If it's not man-made, and not a natural phenomenon, then to me, it has to be a miracle," she said.

"I learned more about it as a skeptic. By taking a skeptical approach, and having a skeptical attitude -- asking 'why?' I found that the skeptical attitude finds the answers. Because if it wasn't real, it wouldn't be there," said Dr. Lavoie.

But while Lavoie stops short of drawing any conclusions in his book, favoring instead a clear presentation of the data, he admits to having reached a personal conclusion on the shroud's authenticity. "I'm not a skeptic any more, there's too much data that tells the story," he said.

The Beacon Hill Civic Association's "Authors Among Us" series sponsored by the Beacon Hill Civic Association is a monthly event held at the Hampshire House, and is open to the public. Tickets are $20 for members and $25 for non-members. Visit Beacon Hill Civic Association for more information.