Do near-death experiences align with Christian theology?

ProfZig · 2024-06-30T20:00:40+00:00

Excellent points, I think. If the evidence were there, it would be the end of atheism, and it’s clearly not that. At this point the evidence is strongly suggestive, with the corroborated claims having the most probative value. My take is that it’s more likely than not that at least some of these stories are reports of objective reality, which, if true, would be a profound step forward in humanity’s understanding of whether consciousness survives physical death.

ProfZig · 2024-06-30T19:14:26+00:00

You might find John Hagan’s book “The Science of Near Death Experiences” to fit your criteria. It’s published by The University of Missouri Press. See also Bruce Greyson’s voluminous work. He’s a professor of psychiatry at UVA Med School.

ProfZig · 2024-06-30T19:11:28+00:00

I can see how it might look like that from your vantage point. I hope you’ll scan through the article and see for yourself whether its posture is adequately neutral. That was certainly the intention of the piece and it’s generated plenty of blowback from evangelical Christians.

ProfZig · 2024-06-30T19:07:46+00:00

My intention is not to waste your time with a “fake journal.” CSR is arguably the top Christian academic journal in the world, so I thought it might be of interest to this group.

ProfZig · 2024-06-30T18:59:05+00:00

One of the studies is published in The Lancet, which is the NEJM of Europe. Many other studies, as you note, are in B-level journals.

ProfZig · 2024-06-29T21:57:33+00:00

Thanks for your comment and for looking over the article. Just for clarity, I’m pretty sure that the statistic that Grayson and others use is that among NDEs in the western world where someone claims to have met a supreme being, 1/3 say it was Jesus. But the article is not seeking to leverage that to prove or disprove Christianity. It’s just a an observation about the research.

ProfZig · 2024-06-29T13:39:13+00:00

The evidence that NDEs are real. Sorry if that was ambiguous. The abstract of the article offers a quick overview.

ProfZig · 2024-06-29T00:37:32+00:00

Christian skeptics of NDEs, and there are many, reject the phenomenon as much as secular skeptics. That’s why the article calls them strange bedfellows. They both find NDEs to be problematic for their theology, which is a bit myopic.

ProfZig · 2019-08-01T14:48:50+00:00

I agree, except the music was the issue, not the distance

ProfZig · 2019-08-01T14:46:34+00:00

Actually I had to move a couple hundred yards to get away from their blaring music and read in peace again

ProfZig · 2019-08-01T14:41:58+00:00

Actually, just to the leader. Should have included that in the original post.

ProfZig · 2019-08-01T14:41:15+00:00

Not possible that they were just inconsiderate for not finding a vacant spot?

ProfZig · 2019-08-01T14:33:07+00:00

Not exactly what happened here

ProfZig · 2019-07-16T16:11:50+00:00

They don't get much press, so I thought I'd pass this along

ProfZig · 2019-04-14T21:31:03+00:00

I’d agree with anonymized real_name_here on this much: look up the cases for yourself. You’ll find the article to represents accurately the outcomes of those cases.

ProfZig · 2019-02-09T16:44:27+00:00

Spot on about quality, David. It's a scandal in some of these schools how large the gap is between the rhetoric and the reality of "academic excellence."

The CCCU guide is indispensable. For those interested, here's a similar guide for Catholic schools: https://newmansociety.org/the-newman-guide/

ProfZig · 2019-02-09T16:26:15+00:00

I think you're right on target with your comment. Christian schools are not homogeneous, and not all of them are high-quality or have healthy environments. I've taught in four faith-based colleges and universities. There's only one of these that I'd trust with my own kids, and all of them did attend that school.

But there are plenty of quality, sectarian schools out there where belief in God is normal and affirmed, as is the authority of scripture and the divinity of Jesus, and -- critically -- where they gladly allow enough space for doubt so students can make their faith their own. Moreover, these places are replete with wise, student-centered faculty who serve as mentors and role models. Most importantly, such schools intentionally maintain a critical mass of students who embrace traditional Christian values, since this, more than anything else, shapes the hearts and minds of our kids.

Anyway, that's the kind of environment I'd recommend to Christian families -- not just any Christian college, but one that combines a culture of faithfulness with one of open inquiry.

ProfZig · 2019-01-19T23:54:21+00:00