From 'One Great Whole'- Disembodied Consciousness

 Scientists call [the] verifiable aspects of the NDE “veridical  perceptions”, perceptions of specific and unique events that  can be verified as true or false. Veridical perceptions are often  accurate depictions of events that the NDE experiencer’s  (NDEr’s) physical body could not have seen or heard and  that the NDEr could not have figured out through logic  or reasoning skills. The veridical perceptions normally  happen in stages of the NDE where the subjects experience  themselves in surroundings considered part of the “natural”  world. Moody reports a case in which a woman left her body  during surgery, traveled to the waiting room, and saw that  her daughter was wearing mismatched plaid clothes. While  the mother did not see her daughter that day physically, she  later mentioned this to her maid, who was astonished to hear  how she knew this fact and explained that she had dressed  the woman’s daughter so hastily that she had not noticed the  mistake. 

 Just as climbers scaling the top of Everest need to  know what temperatures and air conditions they will  face as they make their ascent, knowledge of the nature  of a person’s spiritual destination lets her know what  preparations will be required in order for the journey to  be successful.  

The evidence of the pre-mortal existence of the soul [1], coupled with the emotional innocence of children  testifies of a spiritual plane from which souls came that is  pure beyond description. NDEs give additional support to  this premise. In nearly every NDE described as pleasurable  that has a period where the subject goes beyond the natural  realm, there is a description of an incredible light that  encompasses everything. This light not only illuminates  the external surroundings, but pierces through the soul, making every aspect of one’s heart and mind open and  visible before all others present. [2] One effect of being in  such a place of authenticity is that people see themselves  as they really are, even beyond their own self-image, or  rationalizations of their behavior. There is no possibility of  making oneself different in one’s mind; every unconscious  motivation is manifest. The experience is described as  complete nakedness, all of one’s life actions, thoughts,  and desires opened, with every detail exposed in the light.  Every thought or intention is instantly manifest before all  others. It is impossible in this place to lie, to conceal one’s  feelings, or to even entertain a private thought:  

“Whatever anyone thought, however fleeting or  unwillingly, was instantly apparent to all around him,  more completely than words could have expressed it, faster  than sound waves could have carried it...What was it going  to be like, I thought with a sudden panic, to live forever  where my most private thoughts were not private at all? No  disguising them, no covering them up, no way to pretend  I was anything but what I actually was.”[3] In Return From  Tomorrow, George Ritchie notes what an uncomfortable  experience it would be to live in such a state of openness  before all if one’s thoughts and intentions were prideful,  angry, or full of judgment or resentment towards others.  “How unbearable. Unless of course everyone around me  had the same kind of thoughts.” [4] This casual observation  points to the difficulty of living in a place of such purity and  authenticity if one is not prepared to do so. He explains  understanding that living in this state of authenticity  before others in a realm of purity, with any embarrassment of one’s deepest self, would be much more uncomfortable  than living with others who had similar aspects of character  that they were not comfortable exposing, whether pride, or  lust, or hate, or bitterness, or deceit. While those who have  had such experiences do not claim to be in the presence  of God, those who returned from these experiences often  testify of “purity” as an energetic reality and explained  feeling uncomfortable to be near such purity while filled  with any degree of impurity of heart or intention.  

For this reason, nearly all scriptural texts exhort each  and every soul to purify their hearts and intentions,  understanding that “God is a discerner of the thoughts  and intents of the heart.”[5] In the course of the ‘Life  Review’, Ritchie is asked what he has done with his life and  searches for an accomplishment that would be of spiritual  worth: “I started to point out my pre-med courses, how  I was going to be a doctor and help people. But visible  alongside the classroom scenes was that Cadillac car and  that private airplane – thoughts as observable as actions in  that all pervading Light.” [6] Where the action of going to  Medical School may have seemed an admirable thing on  it’s own, this account demonstrates that beyond this life,  the intentions behind action are as important as the actions  themselves, and visible to others. Scriptures and NDEs set the standard of  human worth far beyond achievements, and beyond how  a person’s actions may appear on the surface to others;  spiritual worth is placed on the love and kindness shown  to other souls, and the state of one’s heart and intentions.  

There is a massive gap between objects and qualities  emphasized to be of worth in practical life, and the spiritual qualities given importance in these types of Near Death examples. The gap between these two different  value structures, those of the immediate world in contrast  to those of the world to come, works to create the slope  of this mountain. It is this gap which makes it an uphill  climb to pursue things of spiritual worth while in a place  which ignores them, or at times encourages one to hold  values in conflict with things of spiritual worth. As with an  actual mountain, it requires more effort to progress up a  steep pitch then to take a leisurely walk through a gentle  valley or downhill slope. Since it is more difficult to go  uphill, unless the climber sees value in the objective of  summating the mountain and therefore willing to do what  is required (however more difficult to keep moving higher  in elevation), any climber will certainly take what appears  to be the easier path. 

(See PDFs for the References which correspond to those marked here.)

 During his ministry among the Jews, Jesus told them that there were “other sheep” who would hear his voice:  “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” [2] After his  Resurrection, when Jesus sent the Apostles to preach to the Gentiles, many assumed that they were the other sheep to whom he was referring. But as Jesus said these  sheep would “hear my voice”, and the Gentile nations did  not ever hear his voice literally as did the those he walked  among during his ministry, question of the identity of  these other sheep remains unanswered in the Bible. Yet the existence of a 531 page record stating itself to be a temporal and spiritual history of “a remnant of the seed of Joseph, whose coat was rent by his  brethren into many pieces” or Joseph of Israel’s descendants, solves the  mystery of the identity of the “other  sheep”; its existence as another testament of Jesus Christ, according to  the promise of two or three witnesses, helps to establish the truthfulness of  important spiritual premises, none  more important than correctly  recognizing the redeemer of all  humankind.

 The record includes account of  the resurrected Jesus specifically appearing to a people whom he identifies as a “remnant of the house  of Joseph” [4], a branch of the tribes of Israel, and then declaring: “verily I say unto you, that ye are they of whom I said: Other sheep I have which are not of this fold;  them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice;  and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. And they understood me not, for they supposed it had been the Gentiles; for they understood not that the Gentiles should be converted through their preaching.  And they  understood me not that the Gentiles should not at any time hear my voice— that I should not manifest myself unto them save it were by the Holy Ghost. But behold, ye have both heard my voice, and seen me; and ye are  my sheep, and ye are numbered among those whom the  father hath given me.” [5]

(Revised edition coming later in 2026)