Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife
Abigail Alvarado
Rhetoric & Composition - English 1302
September 18, 2014
Abstract
Eben Alexander is a neurosurgeon who believed for many years that when people explained their near death experiences it was just the hard wiring of the brain. Of course ,though, he had refined medical training. It wasn't until Alexander had caught a rare disease which caused him to fall into a coma and had a near death experience himself. Alexander talks about his journey towards the afterlife in his book which leads to many questions to everyone as to whether it really happened or if it was all just a hallucination. The paper talks about how he recounts what happened during his experience
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He describes her as "a beautiful girl with high cheek bones and deep blue eyes...[g]olden-brown tresses framed her lovely face" (Alexander, 2012, p. 40). She was also riding on a butterfly wing, as he recalls, and it just seems to be a way a novelist would describe an angel guiding someone lost in heaven. There was nothing to make it sound different or stand out. It makes it hard to believe it's Alexander trying to prove heaven is real rather than just writing a story.
Later on in the book Alexander talks about the core where he saw "[b]ig, puffy, pink-white [clouds] that showed up sharply against the deep blue-black sky" (p. 45). Everyone who thinks of heaven, thinks of clouds. It is not uncommon for anyone to describe heaven that way. It is very stereotypical and made it no different that anyone else's image of heaven. "A sound, huge and booming like a glorious chant, came from above, and I wondered if the winged beings were producing it" (Alexander, 2012, p. 45) is also another stereotype of what people say you'd hear when you're in heaven. Again, not enough proof.
There was a section where he mentions how he came into contact with God and received knowledge that was not taught but stored. It seemed that everyone who might have gone to church had heard the "knowledge" of what God was giving to Alexander. Maybe if he had gone more into depth and detail to what the knowledge he "stored" from his
Father: Although I believe Alexander has true belief in his own divinity, I can accept that he exploits it to use as propaganda to gain loyalty within the Persian Empire. Propaganda is necessary, although many Macedonians do not see the correlation to Alexander’s divinity. Without this dramatized status there is no blind following from the Persians. Alexander proved himself
Throughout pre-unification China, the Mandate of Heaven was used as a justification in the acquisition and eradication of dynasties. The Mandate of Heaven, the idea that a ruler reigned only with the blessing of the heavens, was seen as a way to legitimize a dynasty and its ruler. Although it may seem as if a heavenly mandate gives a ruler absolute power, this is actually not the case. Instead, Mencius, a philosopher who emphasizes benevolent governance, asserts that a ruler can both acquire and lose the heavenly mandate based on his behavior and the treatment of his subjects. If a ruler is not equitable, in other words, the Mandate of Heaven can be withdrawn and bestowed upon a more qualified ruler. Thus, although the mandate sounds
In verse 15, Paul writes, "We who are Jews by birth and not 'Gentile sinners" Paul seems to be telling his gentile reader that the Torah has no bearing on their salvation. I feel that he purposely or inadvertently gives the law merit more merit than intended by suggesting that Jews are not sinners because they received the law. He draws a distinction between himself and "the gentile sinners" yet he is telling his audience that the ways, some of which are still a part of his own way of life, are irrelevant. He seems to almost make a separation of culture and religion. He seems to be saying that the rectitude of the Jews dates from birth, because the Jewish religion is a part of their culture. Peter claims to
in this world, and they are effects derived from a cause. The effects in turn
The Counsel of Heaven on Earth is a book written by Ian F. Jones on the topic of Christian counseling. Jones makes sure to let his readers know that this book is not meant to be a guide for Christian counseling; he in no way means to advocate a particular methodology, system, or school of thought. Instead, Jones is “[trying] to identify and explain the essential features of Biblical Christian counseling. No attempt has been made to engage in formal theory building or to develop systematically any counseling strategies or techniques. [His] intention is to show how the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, provides counselors with the blueprint for developing an effective counseling ministry”.
• Writes about James, brother of Jesus, who was called the Christ. Stoned to death in A.D. 62. Pg.78
In the novel More Joy in Heaven, written by Morley Callaghan, Kip Caley has a quest for a new life after prison. As he gets used to being a freeman he learns more about what he really wants in life. When Kip finds out what it is that he is searching for in his new life, like in all tragedies, it is too late. Because he is not sure if Julie, the girl, or the parole board is what he wants, he spends too much time trying to find out and when he knows it is too late. In his search for a new life Kip knows that he is a free man and wants to show it to the people while he says that he does not want to be viewed constantly by the public.
The people were devastated and afraid that they had lost him. The two ideas are relevant to each other and support the author’s idea; that Alexander was perceived as a God to his people. However, the switch in time periods makes the book more difficult to understand than if it was explained chronologically.
According to Kevin Nelson, a neuroscientist and the author of “The Spiritual Doorway in the Brain,” adults often have a sense of looking back over a life; young children, lacking that perspective, tend to report “castles and rainbows, often populated with pets, wizards, guardian angels, and like adults, they see relatives and religious figures, too.” It’s hard to convey to anyone who grew up without the idea of God just how fully the language, stories and “logic” of the Bible can dominate a young mind, even perhaps especially the mind of a toddler (Nelson, The Spiritual Doorway in the Brain”20-21.) There have been various accounts taken over the years regarding near death or life after death experiences. A known account of this situation is taken from Colton Burpo, in which a bestseller book published in 2010 and motion picture released in 2014 known as “Heaven is for Real” is based on. In 2003 three year-old Colton claimed to have visited Heaven during a near death experience where an emergency surgery was performed on him to save his life. Colton recounts the details of his amazing journey with childlike innocence and speaks about things that happened before his birth... things he could not possibly know. The next is the story of Dr. Eben Alexander, who is a proclaimed neurosurgeon and writer coming from a lineage of scholars and medical doctors. He
Faith and reason can be viewed as opposites. Faith is an element of belief, something an individual does not necessarily require a reason for accepting without reason. For example, an individual’s reason for believing in God may not seem too rational when they are trying to explain them. They may not even stand up to criticism. On the other hand, reason is constructed as a formula. Faith is basically something we believe in, like something we learn in church. Reason is something we learn in school, such as a math formula.
1. Upon entering the bar for the first time, Frank displays many of the motivational theories listed in the book. Frank enters the bar in order to find a place for his homosexual preferences to be shown. Instinctually he prefers men to women and is driven into the dark alley and the bar by this biologically determined need. We learn from his wife’s reaction when the girls are having daiquiris that she and Frank are not having sex very often which according to the book is a basic need, so Frank according to the drive-reduction approach is driven to the bar to fulfil himself. This lack of sex that he is having at home also can lead to the application of the Arousal approach to motivation where Frank is trying
Considering my thoughts on the afterlife is something I have done several times in my life. My views and beliefs have changed over the years regarding this subject. My Catholic upbringing was probably where my first views came from. They were the traditional heaven and hell beliefs and also of purgatory. Today my thoughts are not so black and white.
This is my longer analysis of the Kingdom of Heaven. Appreciate any feedback. [SPOILER WARNING]
A couple quotes from people who said they felt nothing; “Overdosed on heroine, EMT’s said my heart stopped. Didn’t see anything, just like sleeping with no dreams.” and “Pure,perfect, uninterrupted sleep,no dreams.”. A quote from someone who felt like they could see what was happening while dead; , “I do remember a little bit of the ambulance ride, but not from my own body. It was seriously the strangest thing I have ever experienced. It could have been a dream, but I saw my own unconscious body completely flatlined in the ambulance. I remember the EMT who was in the ambulance with me (whom I did not see before I passed out)”. And here is a quote from someone who had an interaction; "I was standing somewhere. There was a fog all around me, and I saw my best friend (who at the time I'd been fighting with and he'd stopped talking to me) come out of the mist. He told me that I couldn't go yet, that I have to keep trying, and if I promised not to give up, he'd see me back on Earth. I wordlessly agreed, and I was instantly pushed (into?) my body.".
If so, then justification by faith would be of no need or value but if