Resurrection and Near Death Experiences

When I was a pastor I was often asked what I thought about “near-death experiences” (NDEs). We have all heard of these, and some of you may have even had such an experience. The media has certainly capitalized on this phenomenon, and many trees have been sacrificed to print books on the subject. In my years of ministry I have had several church members who have had these experiences. My mother, who refused to believe in the veracity of such strange occurrences since they did not fit her Baptist faith, changed her tune when she had one on the operating table.

Personally I do not know what to think of NDEs. There seems to be much to commend them as authentic in the sense of being real experiences of something beyond death. But the rational and questioning side of me has also observed that much seems to be purely subjective about these experiences, depending on who has them and what their cultural background may be.

What I do know is that those who have had a NDE have no doubt that what they experienced was real. Their response is usually, “If it’s happened to you, you know. Otherwise, you don’t know.” Since it has not happened to me, I do not know. I want to remain open-minded, but I don’t want to be gullible. I have to admit that the evidence for NDEs is impressive. For example, people who are blind (even from birth) report that they can “see” during these experiences. Another example: Dr. Jeffrey Long, a pediatrician, examines these experiences occurring with young children who give details they have “observed” (while being “dead”) which can be verified. Such evidence is even causing some theologians to consider what all this means as they construct their theology.

What I find so interesting about those who undergo these experiences is how they have changed. Almost without exception every person who has had a NDE changes in three ways:

*They no longer fear death. They are not eager to die, but death holds no threat for them. And so they are free to live their days without the paralysis of fear which afflicts so many mortals.

*Love becomes the most important characteristic of life. Ambition, superficial happiness, wealth, status, and power all fade into the background before the primacy of love. As one person said who had a NDE, “Now I know that love is the only measure of my life or any other life.”

*These people have an insatiable desire to learn and grow. They have touched what for them is profound mystery. They know there is far more to this universe and beyond. And they know they are blessed with the capacity to understand some of this mystery. Life becomes a banquet of delicacies placed on a never-ending and overflowing table of wonder and joy. And they have a sense that they are sharing in the very mind and heart of the Divine.

What I would like to suggest during this Easter season is that as Christians who believe in the resurrection of our Lord, our lives should already have these three characteristics. We share in the victory of Christ over death. Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. We and the whole creation are kept forever in the heart of God, and we can trust that our little lives will be woven into the splendid tapestry of time and eternity with a noble design of exquisite beauty. If death has no ultimate power over us, then we are free to live in joyful, risky, compassionate, and trusting ways.

The cross and empty tomb reveal to us the primacy of love. The secret behind creation, the grand design underpinning all that is, and the goal of all time and space rest in and are powered by the unconditional, indiscriminate, self-giving, and everlasting love of God. That love is what makes us sing, dance, rejoice, and risk. That is what makes life worth living and worth keeping in the heart of God long after the last star has flickered into oblivion.

And finally, if Easter points to God’s horizon of love and peace, mercy and justice, freedom and compassion, joy and growth, then of necessity we are a people open to the future. We are surrounded by and immersed in mystery. We ourselves are perhaps the greatest mystery in God’s good creation. There is so much to learn, so many ways to grow, so many paths to explore. When Easter is the horizon, then there are no limits to what we shall become in the likeness of Jesus. “Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, and neither has the heart conceived” what God has in store for this creation and for you and me.

Perhaps one day I will have a NDE and will understand more of what this phenomenon is all about. But far more important than such a subjective (objective?) experience is the faith we have been given through the victory of Christ over death. In Christ we trust that death is not the end. In Christ we know that love is what makes the world go round. And in Christ we know that we have only just begun. So the challenge is this: why don’t we act like an Easter people in a world of death, apathy, and cynicism?

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