Atheists---we have had a bitter quarrel tonight, so on a calming note--how do you account for N.D.E's?

Question

Documented Near Death Experiences---which though on many continents in many eras document the same experiences? Are those all lies too?

Answer 1

At age 23, my mother was pronounced legally dead by a doctor who would go on to become president of Harvard Medical school. She saw herself laying there dead and she saw all the activity of those around her. 3 hours later she woke up in the morge. One of her nurses told her what had happened and the description matched what my mother saw while she was dead. She lived another 44 years.

Answer 2

It should be pretty obvious that when a person is dying, in a state of shock, etc. their brain isnt necessarilly going to be working correctly. Of course most people who come close to death are simply unconscious for it and dont remember a thing. This happened to my fundamentalist christian cousin, in fact. Was in a coma, remembered nothing. Not a suprise.
People on many continents and throughout history also have probably just about all had dreams of flying. This is a very common dream and pretty universal. But that doesnt mean humans can fly, right?

Answer 3

All brains do the same things during a "hard boot" - the same chemicals are released into the bloodstream - an adrenaline dump can make a person feel remarkably calm. There are the same misfirings in the same areas of the brain - just as all people who suffer a heart attack report similar experiences, so too do all those who have flatlined and been recuscitated. It's medical and psychological, not supernatural.

Answer 4

Regardless of whether NDE's are real or not, I'd like to know how you explain the NDE's that happen to members of OTHER religions? What about the Muslim NDE's, or the Hindu NDE's, or the Buddhist NDE's, or even the Native American NDE's? Not every near-death experience has matched up perfectly with the Bible; in fact, many haven't. What about them?

Edit: Let me also add that atheists and agnostics have also had near-death experiences, and very few from my research have experienced what the Bible said they would experience.

Answer 5

Documenting an internal experience is not exactly hard science.

And you will note that air force test pilots, when subjected to high G training will experience the same feelings and sensations as the blood/oxygen can't reach their brain and it starts shutting down. In essence, your brain starts a spectacular light show and does other unpredictable things because of the (for it) unusual state it is in. Perhaps it is merely a byproduct of a dying brain, or perhaps it is a 'coping' mechanism to reduce the trauma of dying.

Answer 6

Having a 'spiritual' experience like an NDE does not prove the existance of the Christian God. Neither does it prove that there is no God.

The notion that a chemical creates the NDE isn't proven, and there are NDE cases which makes such explanations look contrived, biased, and silly. It a matter of opinion until you've had one - why don't you interview ppl who have - I would think that NONE of them would accept such an explanation.

Answer 7

Bitter quarrel? More like you being destroyed repeatedly, every time your post.

Near death experiences are easily explainable by way of decreased oxygen and chemical phenomena in the brain. Seriously, do you have ANY argument for ANYTHING besides, "If I don't understand it, God did it?" Do you?

Answer 8

And what about the documented reincarnation cases? The same can be said for those. Are those all lies too? They are from your perspective.

I don't know if reincarnation is real. Just making a point.

Answer 9

As others have noted: NDE symptoms are hallucinations produced by an oxygen-starved brain as it dies. These hallucinatory symptoms have been duplicated in scientifically controlled studies.

Answer 10

Lack of oxygen to the brain, causing hallucinations. Easy.