Experience Description:

On Sunday evening around 8:30 pm and after my parents left I collapsed in my bed. The fever hit me like a brick. A person visiting the man next to me asked me if I was okay and I said 'yes'. Then I passed out.

All I remember for the longest time was a black void. I heard nothing, saw nothing and felt nothing. Then I was in a tunnel made of stone. The tunnel was lit but I could not see any end to it. I was stationery in the tunnel but I was not touching the tunnel. The following things happened to me as soon as I was in the tunnel. I could see, I had no pain whatsoever (with a temperature of 106/107 you are in pain) and the greatest feeling of peace and contentment came over me. This feeling is very difficult to explain. There are no adjectives to adequately define this unforgettable feeling. It was all encompassing. Nothing in this world is like it!! Just as this feeling came over me, I started to move and realized that this tunnel had an end.

At the end of the tunnel was the brightest white light that I have ever seen!! When you looked at it, the light did not hurt you like our sun would. I knew that when I touched that light that I was going to die. The light was God. I was not afraid of going there. Then as I was moving towards the light, I realized that I would be leaving my mother and sister with my alcoholic father. I was not going to go. I was going to protect my mother and my sister. The harder I fought not to go the faster I was moving. I fought not to go with every ounce of strength in my being!!! As I touched the light... I was back in the hospital bed.

I was griping the sides of the bed with my hands. The fever had gone, the swelling in my testicle had gone, and I was in a pool of sweat. I was not in my body when I was in that tunnel. I had a form but it still is not clear to me what kind of form that I had. The doctors could not explain why the fever and swelling went away. No medications that they gave me from Thursday through Sunday broke the fever. I was told, and I have read, that if a person has a prolonged high temperature as I did that I should have brain damage. The lord let me live to protect my mother and my sister. He also let me live to become a teacher. I went to college to become an accountant not a teacher. But he guided me to teaching. When I was fifteen, I had a calling to become a priest and I turned the lord down. He led me to teaching. This NDE of mine caused me never to fear death. After we leave this world, there is no pain of any kind. I will never forget that feeling of peace and contentment!!!! I was also left with the understanding from this NDE that money and material things do not matter.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: August 1959

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Illness 'Life threatening event, but not clinical death' I was in the hospital because of a severe virus infection that settled in my left testicle. I was admitted on a Thursday. I had a temperature that started at 105 and stayed between 106 and 107 until Monday morning. Nothing the doctors did made the fever go away nor the swelling. I saw my temperature charts.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Wonderful

Did you feel separated from your body? Yes I clearly left my body and existed outside it

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? More consciousness and alertness than normal At the very instant of entering the tunnel.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? At the very instant of entering the tunnel.

Were your thoughts speeded up? Incredibly fast

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening all at once From the instant that I entered the tunnel, time just flew!!! Everything happened ultra-fast.

Were your senses more vivid than usual? Incredibly more so

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. The light was intense but did not hurt to look at it and the form I had was transparent.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. I did not hear anything in the tunnel nor before the tunnel in the black void.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? Neither

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? Yes As stated before, it was a tunnel made of stone and was lit.

Did you see any beings in your experience? Neither

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? No

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? A light clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see an unearthly light? Yes It was the brightest white light that I have ever seen.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? Clearly mystical or unearthly realm

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Unbelievable peace and no pain!!!

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Incredible peace or pleasantness

Did you have a feeling of joy? Incredible joy

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? Neither

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about the universe

Did scenes from your past come back to you? Neither

Did scenes from the future come to you? Neither There have been many, many times when I have known things were going to happen and they did. I knew that I was going to win a 2002 Chevy truck in April of 2002 when I bought the raffle tickets. I won the truck in October. I knew that my mother was critically ill before it happened in 1975.

Did you come to a border or point of no return? A conscious decision to 'return' to life

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Moderate CHRISTIAN/ROMAN CATHOLIC

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Yes I do not fear death. I know that when I leave this world I will be with the lord and he let me live when I was seventeen to protect my mother and my sister.

What is your religion now? Moderate CHRISTIAN/ROMAN CATHOLIC

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes I do not fear death. I know that when I leave this world I will be with the lord and he let me live when I was seventeen to protect my mother and my sister.

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? Definite being, or voice clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? Neither

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Yes I knew that when I touched the light that I was going to die. The light was God!! I was not afraid to die. To this day I am not afraid to die.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? No

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes As stated above.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? Not to fear death, God does exist. I always believed in God before the NDE but the NDE confirmed it. Death is not the end, it is the beginning of something new and better. After death there is no pain!!!!

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes I never talked about the experience with anyone except to my parents and my priest after it happened. They just listened and made no comment. I did not talk about the NDE until I read Dr. Raymond Moody's book 'Life After Life'. That was in 1976. I would tell my students about my NDE to get them to read!!! I used it as a 'hook' to get them to read more. Read anything to become more aware! I did not talk about it for seventeen years.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? No

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was definitely real I was not in my body because I did not have any pain of any kind. The light and the unbelievable feeling of peace were the most real things that I have ever experienced.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real You cannot forget the light and peace!!!!! There is nothing in this world like it.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? No