Heaven-Not Real

Part II (A) Dying Declarations Continued The relevance of dying declarations was explained above. With that in mind, let us explore more dying declarations from people who have touched the other side to discover and see what they have to tell us. Edward Payson, Harvard graduate, died in 1827. While lying in bed with his sister by his side: "In a letter dictated to his sister, [Payson] writes: "The celestial city is full in view. Its glories beam " its breezes fan " its odors are wafted " its sounds strike " and its spirit is breathed into my heart. Nothing separates me from it but the river of death " The Son of Righteousness [Jesus] has been gradually drawing nearer and nearer, appearing larger and brighter as He approached " It has often been remarked, that people who have passed into the other world cannot come back to tell us what they have seen; but I am so near the eternal world, that I can almost see as clearly as if I were there." Solomon B. Shaw, Dying Testimonies of Saved and Unsaved. 2004. Mr. J.T. Leise recorded the dying words of his mother: "About July 1st, of the same year she died, I got word to return home to see her die. On my arrival, I found mother very low, but having a strong faith in God. Mother"s disease was of a dropsical character. With limbs swollen, she would suffer intensely " The morning she died, about four o"clock, a sister and I were sitting by her bed fanning her, when she suddenly opened her eyes and said, "Children, is this death?" [She then added], "[h]ow beautiful; how beautiful."" Id. 18-19. Richard Baxter, ??: "I have pain, there is no arguing against sense, but I have peace." Id. 318. (how did he have peace?) Dwight L. Moody, 1899: "If this is death, there is no valley. This is glorious. I have been within the gates and I saw the children, Dwight and Irene [his deceased grandchildren]. Earth is receding. Heaven is approaching. God is calling me." Id. 318 Miss Martha McCrackin, ??: "How bright the room; how full of angels." Id. 316. Reverend Francis Brazee, ??: "They sing! The angels sing!" Id. 316. Gideon Ousley, 1839: "I have no fear of death." Id. 301-302. Samuel G. Bingaman, Williams, Oregon, recorded: "When I was a soldier in Memphis, Missouri, a comrade said to me, "I wish you would go over to that house yonder and stay with them to-night, for they are in a terrible condition there." " The house was dilapidated " the cellar was full of muddy water " it contained no furniture, not even chairs or bedsteads, nothing but an old trunk, on which an elderly lady sat, and held in her arms a little child, almost dead " on the floor lay another that had died but a few minutes before, and a third one was very low. The lady then pointed to an old pile of dirty bed quilts on the floor", saying, "There lies the mother"" [T]here was one of that family who was deeply penitent " it was the broken-hearted mother. At her request I often visited her " One day while calling to see her, I found her cold, and sinking fast. " But just as those dark billows of death were rolling over her "[s]he looked up and said, "How beautiful everything appears"I see things beautiful and lovely." Id. 298-300. Eva Greening, nine years old, 1887: "She realized that she must die [no cause recorded], about two o"clock on the day previous " While she was lying perfectly still and calm, she said, "I see stars " Bright lights, the stars of God. I see an angel." A few minutes before she died, [a neighbor] asked if she saw [him, the neighbor]. She shook her head. [No. He then] asked if she saw Jesus. She nodded that she did." Id. 292. Bruce Olson, missionary who has lived with the Motilone Indians of Colombia since 1961, wrote: "I found Adjibacbayra near death" I had assumed that he had a natural resistance to the disease. He not only contacted the disease, but he also had gotten pneumonia " He couldn"t eat. Two days after I reached him he slipped into a coma. His body was yellow, and flies were crawling across his chest " a horrible predicament for a man who had been strong " While I watched him, he blinked and woke up. "Bruchko [Adjibacbayra"s nickname for Olson] " my body hurts. I hurt everywhere." " I said, "You need to be quiet. We want you to be well. We want you to be strong." He shook his head, barely moving it. "No, Bruchko. I"m not well and I"m not strong."" His eyes " close[d], and he slipped off " Later he opened his eyes again. "Bruchko, I heard a voice like the spirits that talk when they try to kill you." I nodded. "But this voice called me by my secret name, by my real name. No one alive knows my real name, but this spirit called me by my real name. So I called to it and said, "Who are you?" and it said, "I am Jesus, who has walked with you on the trail."" His breath was coming with difficulty. "Help me, brother!" he whispered, looking at me" "But you can"t," he said. "I"m leaving. I can"t see. There"s only pain. God is here, and He wants to take me on the path we couldn"t ever find on our hunts, the paths that goes beyond the horizon to His home." Then he smiled, and his face looked for a moment like the one I knew. "Not alone," he said. "Not alone. I won"t walk it by myself. There"s a Friend who wants to take me. And He knows my name, my real name."" Bruce Olson, Bruchko. 163-164. (B) World Religions The following is a list of religions around the world. This should give us a clue if heaven is more or less believed in. 1.Assemblies of God (First heaven: atmospheric; Second: starry heavens; Third: God"s presence) 2.Baha"i Faith (life after death, but not specifically "heaven") 3.Baptist (Heaven) 4.Buddhism (Reincarnation; Enlightenment is a quasi-heaven, state of perfection) 5.Christian Science (Cyclical life, "death is a transition;" No reincarnation; Heaven is a "state of mind") 6.The Churches of Christ (Heaven) 7.Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints (Heaven, a "state" of happiness and peace) 8.Hinduism (Reincarnation and Karma; Life beyond death; belief in heaven ("a place where the gods reside")) 9. Islam (Heaven) 10.Judaism (Heaven) 11. Lutherans (Heaven, life after death in the presence of God) 12.Presbyterian (Life after death; heaven) 13.Quakers (Life after death; Heaven) 14.Catholics (Heaven, a "condition" not a place) 15.Seventh-Day Adventist (Death, "a sleep of total unconsciousness"; Heaven) 16.Unitarian Universalism ("Agnostic" about life after death; " ... simply do not know""; Denies hell, and does not claim to know if heaven does or does not exist) 17. United Methodist (Heaven, the resurrection of the body) 18. Unity (Reincarnation; Universal salvation, heaven is a state of consciousness) 19. Zoroastrianism ("Life force leaves the body" upon death; The soul sits near the "life force" less body chanting; Heaven, "the abode of song" or "best place," a physical place of happiness; a beautiful garden.) 20.Shinto (The spirit of man continues living, but, no heaven) 21. Confucianism (Small mentions of the afterlife and no mention of heaven as Christians would understand it.) 22. Taoism (Early heaven (ideal); Later heaven (disharmonious existence)) 23. Jainism (afterlife, reincarnation; When one becomes an arihant, they have achieved a state of perfect knowledge and happiness. Not clear about an outright heaven.) 24. Sikhism (Reincarnation, so life after death; No clear indication of "heaven") 25. Wicca (Reincarnation; "remain in a blissful realm") (B) 18 of the 25 most common world religions profess some belief in heaven. More people worldwide, by a vast extent, believe in life after death and a heaven. PART III In the final part of this debate, I will look at medical doctor"s testimonies and their experience in the ER, when their patients were confronting death. This should tell us whether these individuals were experiencing anything like what we have been discovering. -MSP