Neurobiologist's Near-Brain-Dead Experience Convinces Him of Heaven's Reality

Dr. Eben Alexander is a Harvard-trained neurobiologist with impeccable credentials as a scientist and researcher. And until he fell into a coma from which his colleagues thought he'd never return, he was also a religious skeptic. What happened to Alexander during that coma changed everything for him, however, turning him into a believer about heaven. In his recent book Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife, Alexander tells what he experienced while in the coma and what conclusions he subsequently drew.
On November 10, 2008, Alexander woke up with a splitting headache that quickly devolved into seizures. He was rushed to the hospital where he worked, and his medical colleagues soon concluded that E. coli had attacked his brain in a very rare form of bacterial meningitis. He soon fell into a coma, and his colleagues gave him a near-zero chance of survival. They further said that even if he did survive, he'd be a brain-damaged shell of his former self.
"The part of my brain responsible for all higher neurological function went every bit as dark as the lower portion of New York City did during Hurricane Sandy," Alexander later wrote in a Newsweek article.
For seven days, Alexander remained comatose. Then while his doctors considered discontinuing treatment, he woke up. He went on to make a full recovery, something his colleagues said was an impossible medical miracle.
In his near-brain-dead state, Alexander found himself in a place of beauty, peace and unconditional love -- heaven. As he later explained, as a medical doctor, he was well aware of patients who'd had near-death experiences, but said that the real difference between their experiences and his own was that his brain was, "essentially, deader than theirs."
"Most near-death experiences (NDE)," wrote Alexander in Newsweek, "are the result of momentary cardiac arrest. The heart stops pumping blood to the brain, and the brain, deprived of oxygen, ceases being able to support consciousness." But that -- as Alexander said he'd have been the first to point out before his own experience -- doesn't mean the brain is truly dead. He went on to say that many doctors feel that the term "near-death experience" is "essentially a misnomer. Most people who had them were in bad shape, but they weren't really near death."
Alexander, however, was really near death. "My synapses -- the spaces between the neurons of the brain that support the electrochemical activity that makes the brain function -- were not simply compromised during my experience. They were stopped," he said. "Only isolated pockets of deep cortical neurons were still sputtering, but no broad networks capable of generating anything like what we call 'consciousness.'"
In other words, Alexander claims that all previous medical explanations for his experience could not apply in his case.
The doctors caring for Alexander have told him that according to all the brain tests they performed during his coma, "there was no way that any of the functions including vision, hearing, emotion, memory, language or logic could possibly have been intact," Alexander said. "That's why, just as I now no longer doubt the existence of the world of expanded consciousness that NDE subjects, mystics, meditators and countless other people have described for centuries, I also feel that my experience adds something new to those stories. It supplies a definitive new form of evidence that consciousness can exist beyond the body."
Eventually, Alexander wrote his book about all of this, Proof of Heaven, which quickly rose to the top of the New York Times Best Sellers list for nonfiction after only four weeks of publication. It is his story not only of his medical miracle, but of his experience of heaven.
Alexander believes that his vision of heaven could not have happened within his physical brain. In his book, he covers the nine leading scientific explanations that he and numerous colleagues put forth after his coma to account for his afterlife vision -- and he scientifically dismisses each one. He remains convinced of the existence of heaven and of a loving, personal God. His conclusions are not completely in line with the Christian testimony, for he now also believes in the reality of psychic experiences, such as telepathic communication. But his dominant assertion remains: His experience while comatose with his brain shut down is the proof of heaven's existence.
"I am as deep a believer in science, and the truth-respecting values that created it, as I ever was," Alexander wrote in Newsweek. "As such, I want to affirm again -- not just to my fellow scientists but to everyone -- that there is a larger, more real world out there."
Alexander is not the only medical professional to have been persuaded about heaven through a personal experience. Dr. Mary Neal's book To Heaven and Back tells a similar account of a kayaking accident that left her -- for all biological purposes -- dead. This happened to her in 1999. Although she was not a believer at the time, the experience and subsequent events of her life have caused her to become a follower of Jesus.
More on this story can be found at these links:
The Science of Heaven. Newsweek
Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife
The Big Questions
1. What role do heaven and an afterlife play in the whole biblical account? What role do they play in Christianity?
2. What role do heaven and an afterlife play in your personal faith? Can a person actually be a Christian without believing in eternal life? Why or why not?
3. If you've had questions about the existence of heaven, are you any more convinced about its reality because of Alexander's experience? Why or why not?
4. How do Easter and the resurrection of Jesus impact your understanding of and belief in eternal life?
5. Does the hope of entering heaven serve as a motivation for living faithfully now? Would you serve Jesus even if there were no promise of eternal life? Why or why not?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Daniel 12:2
Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (For context, read 12:1-4.)
It often comes as a surprise to people who don't regularly read the Bible to learn that in the Old Testament, there are very few references to the resurrection of the dead. In fact, in addition to Daniel 12:2, quoted above, the only other clear attestations to it in the OT are Isaiah 25:6-10a and Isaiah 26:19. (There are a few other verses that can be interpreted as references to the resurrection of the dead, including Deuteronomy 32:39; 1 Samuel 2:6; Job 19:25-26; Psalm 73:24; Hosea 6:1-3.). However, the three clear references are quite late in the timeline of the OT and thus suggest that the resurrection of the dead to an eternal life was not part of the early formulations of Israel's faith.
Before these later developments in thought about afterlife, the OT does speak about death, of course, which was a reality of existence. But those who died were said to be "gathered to his [or her] people" (Genesis 49:33) or to descend into "Sheol" (Psalm 139:8), which was thought of as a repository where the dead went; it was marked by neither reward nor punishment. A "good death" in the earlier OT era was one where the person had lived in submission to God's rule and his or her normal life span had not been cut short (for example, Genesis 25:7-11).
The OT includes many other mentions of "heaven" or "the heavens" (for example, Genesis 1:1; 7:19), but in those cases, the term refers to one of the three cosmological divisions of the universe: the heavens, the earth and the waters under the earth (Exodus 20:4). In that usage, heaven/the heavens (sometimes called the "firmament") usually meant the visible sky, as in Genesis 1:8, but also occasionally meant the dwelling place of God, as in Psalm 11:4.
Questions: Why do you think the concept of eternal life beyond death for faithful human beings probably developed so slowly among people who were called to serve God? Does it surprise you that the Hebrew scriptures do not have many references to eternal life? What does this say about the nature of faithfulness with regard to God's people in ages past? What sort of discipleship would you practice if you did not believe in an afterlife?
Matthew 6:19-21
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (No additional context needed.)
By the time of Christ, the resurrection of the dead had become a common conviction among many Jews (see, for example, Mark 12:18-27). In the verses above, we see Jesus himself referring quite plainly to heaven. The fact that he doesn't explain what he meant by "heaven" suggests that he knew his hearers understood the term. The way Jesus uses "heaven" here also indicates that he considers it a future destination for those who have kept their priorities about "treasure" straight.
Questions: What will be valuable in heaven that isn't valuable here? Name as many things as you can. What do you imagine heavenly treasure is like? What do you treasure most in this life? How do you think you will experience these treasures in the next life? What are you most willing to give up in the next life?
John 14:2
In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? (For context, read 14:1-7.)
This is the clearest statement from Jesus about the next life that is recorded in the gospels. It has been interpreted in at least two ways:
1) When Jesus refers to "many dwelling places" in his Father's house, he is connecting to some common thought in his day that after death, people would be allotted a better or worse "location" in eternity depending on how virtuously they had lived their lives. But Jesus introduces a better understanding: After death, the place of Christians is with him -- with Christ himself. Thus he adds, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also" (v. 3).
2) The verse above is sometimes interpreted to mean that in the Father's house, one "dwelling place" is this life and another "dwelling place," which Jesus goes to prepare, is eternal life. Death, then, for the faithful, is stepping through the doorway from one dwelling place into the next.
Questions: Which of these two interpretations best explains Jesus' statement for you? Why?
2 Corinthians 5:1
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (For context, read 4:16--5:10.)
Here the apostle Paul makes a firm statement about the resurrected body and its eternal home.
Questions: Why do you think Paul uses "tent" to describe our earthly bodies and "house ... eternal in the heavens" to describe our heavenly body? Do you view heaven as a "fixed" existence, where nothing changes? Does the idea of a new "building" suggest to you that there might be change in heaven, growth and movement?
Hebrews 11:16
But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them. (For context, read 11:1-16.)
The "they" who "desire a better country ... a heavenly one" includes many Old Testament people, including Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah. Interestingly, these people all lived in the era before there was any developed understanding of heaven and eternal life. But here in the New Testament, the author of Hebrews includes these faithful people from that earlier era in the promise of eternal life and says they have a place in the heavenly city God has prepared for them. In other words, the mere fact that these people lived before the concept of eternal life had been established didn't exclude them from heaven. Rather, their faith in God includes them in eternity.
Questions: Is our faith directed toward the future or the present? Explain your answer. We often refer to someone who has died as having gone on to a better place. Do you think of heaven as "more of the same," like your present existence, but richer? How would heaven, in your opinion, be better than the present world? What would be changed?
For Further Discussion
1. Comment on Hebrews 11:1 as it relates to eternal life: "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" (NIV).
2. What have you sacrificed, economically, physically, or otherwise, in order to be faithful? Was this at least in part because of your belief in heaven?
3. How many ideas about heaven that are not biblically supported can you find in the following story?
    A rich man died and went up to the pearly gates for admission into heaven. When he got there, he asked St. Peter if he could have a special dispensation to go back to earth just long enough to gather some of his wealth and bring it into heaven with him. St. Peter said that this was a very unusual request, because nobody considered wealth of much use in heaven. But the man pleaded with Peter to check with the Higher Authority to see if permission could possibly be obtained. So Peter did, and to his surprise, word came back from God that the man would be allowed to return to earth just long enough to pack one suitcase full of whatever of his wealth he could fit into it.
    So the man was returned to earth for this brief errand. When he got there, he considered all the forms of his wealth. His cash would be no good in heaven, since everything there was free. His stocks and bonds were no good there because the companies they were invested in didn't operate in heaven. His property was too big to fit into a suitcase, as was his collection of rare paintings. Finally, he decided to bring some of his gold bullion, because gold holds its value so well. So he got a really big suitcase, and loaded it with gold bars from his safe.
    Then he returned to heaven lugging the suitcase. When he got to the pearly gates, St. Peter said, "Now, before you go in, I've got to check your suitcase to see that you aren't bringing anything other than wealth." "No problem," said the man, and he put the suitcase on St. Peter's desk. Peter opened it and a surprised look flashed on his face. In fact, Peter was dumbfounded. Finally, he said to the man, "You brought pavement?"
4. Respond to this, from a TWW team member's sermon:
    The Apostles' Creed states "I believe in ... the resurrection of the body." Most of us are so immersed in the business of living this life that we don't think too often about this matter of the resurrection of the body, and even when we do, we are apt to have a notion that after death our body decays and our soul sort of floats up to God and lives on. This concept is sometimes called "the immortality of the soul," and frankly, that is not what Christianity teaches. This mistaken idea has it that we can be separated into two parts -- a physical part that is mortal and dies, and a spiritual part that is immortal and cannot die. As long as one trusts God and follows Christ, there is perhaps no great harm in picturing things that way, but it does miss some important affirmations of Christianity about the sovereignty of God.
    Actually Christianity does not teach "immortality" (though we sometimes use that word as a kind of shorthand for "resurrection"); Christianity teaches resurrection, and it goes like this: When a person dies, his or her whole being dies -- body, mind, soul, spirit. But then, for those, as Jesus put it to the Sadducees, "who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection" (Luke 20:35), God, who gave them life in the first place, gives it to them again. We all go to the grave completely expired, every part of us 100 percent kaput. But then, in God's own time, he raises the faithful, not resuscitating the old body, but giving the person a new resurrected body.
    Resurrection is significantly different from immortality. To suggest that the soul is immortal puts it on a par with God. If our souls cannot die, then why do we need God? We'd have the ability to prevent our own extinction.
    As opposed to this idea of immortality, resurrection says that God comes to the faithful dead with a new gift of life and recreates us -- not just the soul part of us but all parts of us. The Apostles' Creed insists that Christians believe in the resurrection of the body, for in biblical thought, we are not just spiritual beings trapped inside a prison of flesh. Rather, the body is part and parcel of who we are, and resurrection tells us that after death, the faithful in Christ will function in eternity as full beings, distinct entities.
Responding to the News
This is a good time to reflect about what heaven and resurrection mean to you.

Closing Prayer
 
O Lord, thank you that Christ has gone to prepare a place for us in your house. Help us so to live that when the time comes, eternal life is the next step for us. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Argentina's Cardinal Bergoglio Becomes Pope Francis

On March 13, after Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was selected as the Roman Catholic Church's new pope, he took the name Francis in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, the 13th-century son of a merchant who spurned a life of luxury to live with and for the poor. The name, coupled with the simplicity of lifestyle the new pope had preferred even while a cardinal, and his longtime support for social justice issues and ministry to the poor, has led many observers to conclude that his time in the papacy will bring renewed emphasis within the Catholic Church to these matters. The new pope said he chose "Francis" after a cardinal colleague advised him to "Remember the poor."
Others have noticed that Pope Francis places a heavy emphasis on Jesus Christ and his forgiveness. In his first homily, he noted that "if we do not profess Jesus Christ, things go wrong. We may become a charitable NGO, but not the Church, the Bride of the Lord." One of the Lutheran members of the TWW editorial team commented that "at times, Bergoglio sounds more Lutheran than Roman Catholic -- at least, he reflects that portion of doctrine that both have embraced, if not always as fully as might be desired."
Pope Francis himself appears to be a humble recipient of God's grace. Even the traditional Fisherman's Ring the new pontiff received during the ceremony, representing the papal role in spreading the gospel, reflected his desire for simplicity. It was second-hand and not solid gold like those of his predecessors.
The new pope also represents a significant break with the past in other ways. He is the first pope to come from the Jesuit order, the first to come from the Americas and the first to come from the southern hemisphere -- which is noteworthy since the southern hemisphere is the only part of the world where Christianity is now growing. Francis is also the first non-European pontiff since Pope Gregory III (731 to 741).
Author and Vatican reporter John Allen believes that the choice of the name Francis sent a clear message to the church about the new pope's intention to let "the church of the spirit, a humble and simple community of equals with a special love for the least of this world ... shine through."
Beyond caring for the poor and creation itself, challenges within the Roman Catholic Church are also likely to occupy much of Pope Francis' time and energy. An article on NBC News identified seven areas ripe for attention, including dealing with corruption inside the Vatican, leading the church out of the clergy sex abuse scandal, improving relations with other faiths, winning the West back to the church, opening the ministry more fully to women and addressing the debate about celibacy for priests, dealing with demands for liberalization on social issues, and seeking to end persecution of Christians worldwide.
More on this story can be found at these links:
Thousands Pack St. Peter's Square for Pope Francis' Inauguration. CNN
Pope Francis in Plea for Poor as Inauguration Mass Held. BBC
Homily for Inaugural Mass of Petrine Ministry (Full Text). News, Vatican Today
Seven Challenges Facing Francis as He Starts His New Job. NBC News
Rich Man, Poor Man. New Yorker
The Big Questions
1. To what degree does the name we bear as followers of Jesus -- Christian -- set the tone for how you live? If possible, give some examples. How does that name influence what cultural and social issues you champion or stand against?
2. Does following Jesus mean taking him as the primary model for your character, morality and spirituality? Why or why not?
3. When have you used the "What would Jesus do?" question (often stated as "WWJD?") to help you decide how to handle a particularly difficult situation? In what ways did it help? Did it confuse matters in any way? What new clarity did it bring?
4. While most Protestants don't grant official sainthood status to any individuals today, we consider some people to be good Christian role models. Who do you know that has made Christianity attractive to you? What specifically did they do? In what ways does that person serve as a role model for you?
5. What is the purpose of the church? In what ways might the selection of a new pope benefit not just the Roman Catholic Church, but the whole church worldwide? Do you think people of faith beyond Christianity equate Christianity with Catholicism? Does this make the selection of a leader of the Catholic Church more significant in terms of the way Christianity is viewed in the larger world? What does this say about the way you judge or prejudge non-Christian faiths? What or who do you make to stand for a whole faith?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Matthew 16:18
And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. (For context, read 16:13-20.)
Revelation 2:17
To everyone who conquers ... I will give a white stone, and on the white stone is written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it. (For context, read 2:12-17.)
Great significance is being given to the name chosen by Pope Francis to represent his papacy. In the scriptures one sees the importance of a name change, from the name Peter given by Jesus to Simon to the new name promised in Revelation to all who stand up to persecution.
Questions: Do you have a nickname, or have you been given a name, that represents something essential about you? When your title changes, is that in effect a name change, and what does it mean for your relationships with others and your view of yourself? What title or name is given to people called to leadership within your congregation or denomination?
Luke 4:18-19
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. (For context, read 4:16-21.)
Early in his ministry, Jesus visited his hometown synagogue, where, when invited to read the Scripture, he read the words above from Isaiah 61:1-2. Then, after sitting down, he commented, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing" (v. 21), indicating to the congregation that he was taking those words from Isaiah as a description of the work he had come to do.
Questions: To what degree should the words of Scripture Jesus chose to characterize his ministry also characterize our efforts as Christians? Why? What Scripture would you choose if you wished to typify your own ministry? If there is a Scripture verse on display on a plaque, stained glass window or inscription in your church, what does it say about your congregation's mission and ministries?
John 2:14-16
In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. He told those who were selling the doves, "Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father's house a marketplace!" (For context, read 2:13-22.)
The standard Christian belief about Jesus is that two complete natures -- the divine and the human -- dwelt within him. In other words, Jesus was and is both God and man. With that in mind, Bible commentators sometimes point to this incident in the temple as an example of the human side of Jesus -- as if to say, "See, even Jesus blew his top once in awhile!" Using the incident that way, however, is misleading, for it implies that even Jesus wasn't Christ-like all the time -- as if "Christ-like" were an adjective with some meaning that was not tied to the Jesus we meet in the New Testament.
Looking at the kindness, humility and voluntary suffering of Jesus, we are apt to think that "Christ-like" mainly means being a doormat for others. Yet that is not what Jesus did. This temple incident, while perhaps more extreme than some other actions of Jesus, is not out of character for him. In fact, it is exactly within his mission of calling people to live holy lives following the holy God. Given that, Jesus could not let the money changers doing business in the temple go unchallenged.
Questions: What characteristics easily come to mind as examples of Jesus being "Christ-like"? Is anything Jesus did not "Christ-like"? Explain your answer. When have you been consciously aware of Jesus being an example for you?
1 Peter 2:20-21, 23
If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do right and suffer for it, you have God's approval. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps. ... When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. (For context, read 2:11-25.)
Although our format here allows us to quote only a few verses, it's worth taking the time to read the entire context (2:11-25) for these verses. That's because the whole section is concerned with how Christians should live in society so that others may "see your honorable deeds and glorify God when he comes to judge" (v. 12). In the whole passage, Peter has developed specific advice for Christians based on the behavior of Jesus himself.
Thus, in the quoted portion above, Peter points out that Jesus has left us "an example, so that [we] should follow in his steps."
In effect, Peter is saying that Christians must not divide life into compartments where each section has different -- and sometimes incompatible -- principles of behavior. What guides us in our relations with fellow Christians ought also to come into play in our relations with strangers, store clerks, politicians, homeless persons and celebrities. In all situations, we should be guided by the example of Jesus.
Questions: When have you been aware of compartmentalizing your life? What discord did that cause you? How can we de-compartmentalize our lives?
Titus 2:9-10 (NIV)
Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive. (For context, read 2:1-15.)
In Titus 2, Paul gives advice to Christians in various life stages (older men, older women, younger men, younger women) as well as those Christians who are slaves, as in the two verses quoted above.
Slavery in the Roman Empire was an economic, not a racial, institution, and it was not possible for Paul to end it. But he tells those in forced servitude to behave like Christians nonetheless, "so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive" (italics added).
That seems like good advice for all Christians, regardless of their social standing.
Question: What do you consciously do to made Christianity attractive to others?
For Further Discussion
1. The cardinals followed an established procedure to select the new pope, and several of them referred to the process as a way of seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This process has been in place, with few changes, since A.D. 1059. What methods are used in your denomination for selecting leaders? In your congregation? In what ways do those methods assume the guidance of the Holy Spirit? In what ways do other factors that you might consider less spiritual influence the outcome? Is there a "white smoke" moment in those processes?
2. What do you think it means that the greatest growth areas of Christianity (not just Catholicism) are now in the southern hemisphere? Why might Christians in those parts of the world want to send missionaries to the north?
3. In today's world, it seems as if advertisements and self-help articles emphasize putting ourselves first and improving ourselves even to the detriment of others. Are we to put others first, or to put others as equals with ourselves? Is it possible to put the welfare of others first? Is this an authentic way to live?
Responding to the News
This is a good time to consider who our role models in the faith are, and what we can learn from them.
Closing Prayer
O God, bless the ministry of Pope Francis that your will might be done through him. Help us to do your will as well. In Jesus' name. Amen.

The Bible Premieres on the History Channel

When the History channel's miniseries The Bible aired its first episode on Sunday, March 3, it drew that network's biggest audience of the year -- some 13.1 million viewers. For perspective, this is roughly the same number of viewers as the Fox hit series American Idol received recently.
Created by Mark Burnett, who also produces reality shows including The Apprentice, The Voice and Shark Tank, The Bible series will air in five two-hour episodes, with the final one on Easter Sunday.
Burnett, an avowed Christian, and his wife, Roma Downey, star of the former TV series Touched by an Angel, shot The Bible in Morocco over six months.
"We believe our Bible series has the potential to reach not only those who already go to church but could reach a whole new generation of people who have never been to church," Burnett said in a YouTube video. "People that may never have read the Bible will get to see those Bible stories in this series."
In a webcast to pastors, Burnett explained that his success with the reality shows opened the door with "powers within Hollywood" to "make a faithful Bible miniseries."
In the same video, Downey said, "We've told the stories of the Bible in a way to grab viewers' attention and draw them in to want to know more."
While the miniseries has been praised by many viewers and some high-profile figures in the Christian world, including Rick Warren and Jim Wallis, some readers of the Bible have pointed out that in places, the Bible stories are conflated or miss an important point. At least one scholar, Joel Hoffman, argues in a Huff Post Religion blog that biblical stories intended as fiction and those intended as history are treated in the miniseries as the same, "thereby misrepresenting the nature of the Bible to its viewers." (Some other scholars would disagree with Hoffman's fiction/history split of the biblical material.)
Many viewers had a positive overall impression of the series. Jim Wallis, a Christian leader in the field of social change, also wrote in the Huff Post Religion blog, but he told of watching the first episode with his young sons, who were excited to see dramatizations of Bible stories they already knew and to learn ones they didn't know.
TWW team member Stan Purdum commented, "On balance, would I prefer that a TV network do a series on the Bible versus not mentioning the Bible? Yes! Frankly, I'm glad the Bible is getting the exposure, even if it's not perfectly done. The series may teach a little 'what's in the Bible' to some who would never read it, and that's a good thing."
TWW team member Frank Ramirez commented, "There was a time when believers and nonbelievers in America were familiar with the Bible, whether as literature or as the Word of God. Biblical stories and phrases were part of everyday currency. That cannot be said to be the case today. A television show may be one way to raise the level of biblical literacy."
More on this story can be found at these links:
Burnett's "Bible" Opens Big on Cable TV. News Max
The Bible. History Channel
"The Bible" Series: An Invitation to "Change the World." Huffington Post
God's Word, the Greatly Abridged Version. New York Times
The Bible Isn't the History You Think It Is. Huffington Post
The Big Questions
1. How important is knowing what's in the Bible to living a Christian life? Why? How important is it to know the whole Bible as opposed to "favorite" stories and passages? Why? Are some messages of the Bible more important than others? Which ones, and why?
2. Burnett states that it was his success with "general market" TV shows that paved the way for network executives to be open to his producing The Bible. Could that route be considered God's plan? Why or why not? Do you consider the making of this series a work of mission by Burnett and Downey? Why or why not?
3. To what degree is exposure to bits and pieces of the Bible preferable to no exposure at all? To what degree is exposure to Bible stories without someone to explain their application to one's spiritual life preferable to no exposure at all? Is the Bible a spiritual smorgasbord from which we can pick and choose what we wish to live by? Why or why not?
4. What things do you do to grow in biblical knowledge? The TV series emphasizes the stories in the Bible, but there are other types of literature in it as well, including worship and meditation (e.g., Psalms) and doctrine (e.g., the Pauline epistles). How important are these other literature type in the Bible, and why?
5. Is it possible that The Bible miniseries could have any negative effect on viewers? If so, in what way, and how should the church address that?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. (For context, read 119:97-112.)
The psalmist uses many different Hebrew words in this portion of the psalm to indicate the guidance provided by God. We translate these words as "law," "testimony," "mandate," "rules" and others, and sometimes are content with the bare translation "word." Perhaps this indicates that "the whole counsel of God" is what provides light: not merely the laws ("Thou shalt!") but also the testimonies ("God did this!").
Questions: In what specific ways is the Bible a "lamp to your feet"? When has the Bible served as a light in a dark place? How were you able to better navigate through a crisis because of God's word? Were there occasions when it seemed as if this light either did not help or did not apply?
Nehemiah 8:1, 3
... all the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had given to Israel. ... He read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, ... and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law. (For context, read 7:73b--8:12.)
The "people" in this scene are Jews living in Judah several years after the end of the Babylonian exile. They were descendants of those who had been in exile. We don't have a lot of information about what life in exile was like, but at least some students of the Bible contend that under the Babylonians, public worship of Israel's God and a practicing priesthood were not permitted. If that is so, then presumably the only religious instruction the people of Judah had was what they got from their parents or in "house churches." And of course, in those days, people didn't have Scripture scrolls in their homes. So the exile and post-exile generations probably had little knowledge of the Scriptures.
And so, for those standing in the rebuilt Jerusalem, the reading of "the law of Moses," which they had not heard before, was a call for them to adopt the Scriptures as their own. Nehemiah 8:1 indicates that the Lord had given the Scripture to Israel, the community in covenant with God. Thus, in effect, if the people standing now hearing them read wanted to be part of the covenant community, they had to place themselves under the Book of the covenant, and live by it.
The people of this new generation did just that. The words they heard first placed them under conviction, and they wept (8:9). Then, as they continued to hear the words, they began to rejoice (8:12). In those moments, the Scriptures, written during previous generations, became the word of God to them. It became the basis of their community's existence and the rule of their lives from that time forward. Their faith and practice were to be dominated by it.
Questions: In what ways have you put yourself "under" the Bible and made it your book? Do you tend to view scripture as a watchdog, a guardian, a book that scolds or condemns, a book that redeems and sets free? A combination of some or all of these? When have you felt particularly convicted by what you read or heard? When did you rejoice?
Romans 15:4
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. (For context, read 15:1-6.)
Paul here says that the Christian fellowship should be shaped by the study of Scripture, and from that study, we draw instruction, encouragement and hope.
Questions: How well do you have to know what's in the Bible to draw ongoing instruction, encouragement and hope from it? Why?
Romans 16:25-27
Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith -- to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen. (No additional context needed.)
In this doxology at the end of his letter to the Romans, Paul mentions the "prophetic writings," by which he means the Old Testament (the New Testament hadn't been written yet). Note that he says that those Scriptures can disclose "the proclamation of Jesus Christ ... known to all the Gentiles."
Questions: Do you believe the Scriptures still have that kind of power? How are we to make the Scriptures known today to those not inclined to read them?
2 Peter 1:19
So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. (For context, read 1:16-21.)
Remember when the author of Psalm 119 called God's word "a lamp to my feet and a light to my path"? Here Peter says something similar, referring to Scripture as "a lamp shining in a dark place," and he urges his audience to "be attentive" to it. The Greek translated here as "prophetic message" is literally "prophetic word."
Question: Assume you are talking to someone mostly unfamiliar with the contents of the Bible but who has just seen and liked The Bible miniseries. What might you say to that person to encourage him or her to continue learning by actually reading the Bible?
For Further Discussion
1. If you viewed any of the miniseries, what was your reaction? Do you feel the TV stories were faithful to the biblical account? Did you think any of the stories missed the point or glossed over elements of prime importance? What parts did you really like?
2. What role did the Bible play in your coming to faith to begin with? What role does it play in your ongoing Christian journey?
3. Respond to this, from a sermon by Ellsworth Kalas: "You see, the Bible comes to us out of human experience, and thus it speaks to experience. It is not a systematic theological document; far from it. It is ... a magnificent hodge-podge of experiences, and responses to experiences. And all of these experiences, of course, have to do with the ultimate experience of our human relationship to Almighty God. It may be the story of a brother killing his brother, or a woman seducing her father-in-law, but the stories will be to the same point, the human soul and its God. The lead character may be a king, a shepherd boy, a buffoon, a wise man, a harlot, a homemaker or a saint; but the point at issue for that lead character will always, eventually, be the matter of his relationship to the Lord of the universe. And in some strange and wonderful way, this potpourri all comes together in a remarkable unity."
4. While a television series on the Bible involves some measure of interpretation (one has to choose which stories to tell and what emphasis to place on them), doesn't even the act of reading involve interpretation? All interpretation involves some filters -- that is to say, our life experiences, our preferences, our faith background all influence the way we receive stories, whether we read them or they are interpreted for us from the pulpit or in Sunday school. What biblical filters are brought to the table in your TWW group? Talk about the way different members of the group receive and interpret Scripture.
5. For most of history, Bible reading was Bible listening (since many people could not read). Does a television program serve as a means of Bible listening? How is a program similar to or different than other familiar interpretative materials, such as hymns, stained glass windows, artwork, church plays, etc?
6. Comment on this: J.B. Phillips, a British scholar and Bible translator, once said that while paraphrasing some Old Testament books, it sometimes seemed to him as if he were working with bare wires without the electricity being turned off!
Responding to the News
This is a good time to review your own Bible-reading plan and decide how you are going to continue to learn what's in the Bible, and what version works best for you.

Closing Prayer
The ancient church has a specific prayer concerning the Scriptures, which may be a fitting closing to this lesson: "Blessed Lord, who has caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning, grant that we may therefore hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of Your holy Word we may embrace and ever hold fast to the blessed hope of everlasting life, which You have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, ever one God, forever and ever."
For a shorter prayer, you may use: Thank you for all the ways you speak to us through your word, O Lord. Help us to be faithful and ongoing students of the Scriptures. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Sudden Sinkhole Swallows Sleeper

A week ago Thursday, the ground beneath the Seffner, Florida, bedroom where Jeff Bush, 37, was sleeping opened up and swallowed him. Despite a frantic rescue attempt by his brother, who was also in the house, he could not be reached. Authorities have since deemed the hole too unstable to attempt a recovery of his body, which is not visible in the chasm.
On Monday, following a brief ceremony, Bush's family placed a few mementos, notes and flowers in the bucket of a backhoe with an 80-foot arm, which then dropped them into the estimated 60-foot-deep hole. Workers then began filling the gaping hole with gravel. It is now considered the victim's grave.
The house in which Bush and other members of his family lived has been condemned and demolished due to the unstable ground beneath it. Two neighboring houses have also been vacated due to potential danger from sudden sinkholes.
Florida is one of several states prone to sinkholes due to limestone bedrock that can dissolve as acidic water leaches into the ground. Across the nation, thousands of sinkholes open each year, sometimes swallowing vehicles or buildings, though many of the holes develop over a few hours, giving people time to remove themselves from harm's way. There are only a few known incidents where people have died in sinkholes.
TWW team member and Florida resident James Berger comments that this sinkhole "taps into a primeval, archetypal fear of being swallowed by the earth. Think of every sci-fi story or phantasmagorical image or poster you've ever seen -- the earth opening up and swallowing you whole. We think earthquake. But what if there was no earthquake, but the earth swallowed you?"
Jeremy Berlin, writing for National Geographic, used similar imagery: "The sinkhole that swallowed a sleeping Seffner, Florida, man last Thursday night was like a monster from a nightmare. Suddenly and without warning, a mouth 20 feet (6 meters) wide opened beneath 37-year-old Jeff Bush and inhaled his entire bedroom."
More on this story can be found at these links:
Florida Sinkhole Now Considered Victim's Grave. Detroit Free Press
Florida Sinkhole Visible After Victim's Home Demolished. Los Angeles Times
Sinkhole Science: A Primer. National Geographic
The Big Questions
1. Thousands of other people across America also died on the same day as the sinkhole opened, but this particular death seems to have struck a chord with many people. Why do you think that is the case? What larger fears does the idea of being suddenly swallowed by the earth tap into?
2. Why do you suppose so much of folklore is filled with dragons, monsters, giant creatures from the depths of the sea or from below the surface of the earth? What is the origin of such ideas, and what are the related fears? Does any of this translate into biblical stories? If so, which one?
3. To what degree are biblical images of final judgment and going "down" to hell related to our concern about the earth giving way beneath our feet? How much are images from movies based on biblical events influential in the way we view events such as the sinkhole?
4. What determines who falls victim to acts of nature that seem random, capricious and final? How do we square events like these with the understanding that we have free will and that our actions ought to determine consequences? Why do these events seem so unfair?
5. What metaphorical "sinkholes" do you worry about in your life? When have you or when has someone you know experienced a totally random act that shocked or surprised you? Did others question whether you deserved this or not?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Genesis 1:1-4
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. (For context, read 1:1-5.)
Genesis 1:2 states that, prior to God's creative actions, the aretz (earth) was tohu (formless) and bohu (empty). The meaning of these latter two terms is disputed, ranging from considering them to be a reference to something outside of our created universe of space-time to being the names of mythological monsters existing in the indeterminate chaos prior to God's activities. In any event, it was something totally beyond our ken, and God created the world that we now experience.
Question: Respond to this: One testimony of the opening words of the Bible is that not even chaos, disruptive and "mindless" as it may be, can stop God.
Psalm 28:1
To you, O LORD, I call; my rock, do not refuse to hear me, for if you are silent to me, I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. (For context, read 28:1-9.)
Here, the psalmist calls God "my rock," which is a common image in the Old Testament for God (see, for example, Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 18:31; Isaiah 17:10, but there are many more). As used in these verses, "rock" seems to denote the eternal strength and unchangeableness of God (i.e., "Rock of Ages"). At the same time, the Rock that is God is a place of shelter from the wind and in the rock's shadow, from the heat (see Isaiah 32:2).
Yet it can also mean something like "a solid place on which to stand," indicating that trusting God means that the ground does not get yanked out from beneath one. As the psalmist says above, if God is silent, "I shall be like those who go down to the Pit [the place of the dead]," but his confidence is that God does hear him.
Jesus declares that those who hear and practice his words are like a man who builds his house on the firm foundation of a rock (Matthew 7:24-27). Jesus renames his disciple Simon to be "Peter" (petros, a piece of rock) in acknowledgment of his confession that Jesus is "the Christ the Son of the Living God," which he proclaims the "rock" (petra, mass of rock) upon which he will build his church.
Elsewhere in the New Testament, the apostle Paul applies the rock image to Jesus (1 Corinthians 10:4).
Questions: Read Jesus' remarks in Matthew 7:24-27 about the house built on sand versus the house built on rock. How does the Old Testament "rock" image for God add to your understanding of his comments? Shouldn't that "Rock" be there for everyone when they need it? Does the psalmist seem to square the image of God as the Rock with random acts of danger which have always been a part of people's lives?
Psalm 139:8
If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. (For context, read 139:1-12.)
Romans 8:38-39 (NIV)
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (For context, read 8:28-39.)
Here are two biblical testimonies about God in the "depths." The psalm reminds us that even SHEOL -- the place of the dead -- cannot keep God out. And in Romans, the apostle Paul not only wrote that death can't separate us from God's love, but he also said that neither can "angels" or "demons" or "powers" -- a term by which he likely meant supernatural forces, agents of darkness and even "things that go bump in the night" (see also what Paul said in Colossians 2:15).
Questions: The Message paraphrases Romans 8:38-39 as follows: "I'm absolutely convinced that nothing -- nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable -- absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us." What is it about "unthinkable" things that is frightening? Why? How does Paul's testimony here help?
What does Paul say that could or should provide comfort in the face of random events? Where is/was God in sinkholes, tsunamis, volcanoes and earthquakes?
Isaiah 27:1
On that day the LORD with his cruel and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will kill the dragon that is in the sea. (For context, read 27:1-13.)
The books of Job, Psalms and Isaiah all mention a creature named "Leviathan." While it's not certain what animal is being referred to, some Bible scholars believe it is the great white shark. Certainly the Leviathan in Job 41 could be the shark, for verse 14 comments, "There is terror all around its teeth." While sharks are God's creatures, we as human beings have gut-level fear reactions to some things, and for many of us, the whole idea of encountering a shark in the water is one of them.
Throughout history, terrors of nature, such as sharks and other predators, came to symbolize evil and chaos -- coming from "the deep" (places we know little about and thus that frighten us). And things that frighten us sometimes get exaggerated. Psalm 74:14 speaks of Leviathan as a dragon in the waters, a creature with several heads. And the Isaiah verse above refers to it as "a twisting serpent." Rather than trying to attach the name Leviathan to a specific creature, it's probably better to leave it unidentified and let us fill it in with something that terrifies us.
What that is will differ with each of us. For some, it may be a dark depression; for others, a crippling phobia. For still others, it could be the specter of a wasting illness, or the fear of loss of independence due to aging. Some worry about dreadfully bad choices their grown children have made, and the terrible consequences they must pay as a result. Many fear losing their job or becoming the victim of a crime. Some face the prospect of lost faith and others the fear of hell itself. Most of us can be rattled by the unexpected intrusions of chaos into our lives, where not only the orderliness we strive for but also the meaning we had clung to is suddenly taken away.
In the book of Job, God makes a point of demonstrating to Job that Leviathan and another unidentified beast, Behemoth (Job 40:15), are just toys as far as God is concerned. The biblical faith is anti-monster and, even more so, triumphant over monsters.
The world may not be safe, but in God we can be secure. To paraphrase the Christian essayist G.K. Chesterton, "it is not that we know that monsters exist, but that monsters can be beaten."
Question: Note that Isaiah declares above that God will "kill the dragon that is in the sea." How would you apply this verse to your life today?
Luke 13:4-5
Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them -- do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did. (For context, read 13:1-5.)
This rhetorical remark from Jesus helps us at least with the question of whether disaster victims are somehow more deserving of trouble than others. In the context of Luke 13, some people told Jesus about some Galileans who were slaughtered by order of the Roman prefect Pilate while they were in the process of offering sacrifices. Jesus responded with a rhetorical question: "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?" (v. 2). Then he added another example, asking about 18 people who were killed when a tower collapsed on them. Were they somehow worse offenders than others?
Clearly the answer Jesus wanted his hearers to come to was "No." His object here, however, was not to challenge the common belief in his day that trouble came to people who most deserved it, but rather to make the point that the coming judgment of God was inescapable and that all would face it. Still, his comments show that Jesus did not buy the notion that disaster -- or sinkholes -- sought out people who "deserved" the trouble. Jesus further showed his conviction that incidents of weather, geology or accident were not routinely used by God for reward or punishment when, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said that God "makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous" (Matthew 5:45).
Questions: Imagine that the house with the sudden sinkhole was directly across the street from your house. Would you take the fact that your neighbor had been swallowed and you had not as any kind of message to you from God? If so, what message might it be? Why?
Revelation 21:2
And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, ... (For context, read 21:1-8.)
This is from John of Patmos' vision of the new world God will bring. Remembering that we are trying to apply earthbound spatial and directional concepts to a heavenly realm that is surely not bound by them, we note that this holy city comes "down" out of heaven.
Question: However much we may, in our adult minds, remind ourselves that heaven is not high in the sky and hell is not deep in the earth, many of us subconsciously still think of good things coming from "above" and bad things from "below." But what is this verse and its context really telling us?
For Further Discussion
1. Comment on Numbers 16:28-34:  And Moses said, "This is how you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works; it has not been of my own accord: If these people die a natural death, or if a natural fate comes on them, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord creates something new, and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up, with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol, then you shall know that these men have despised the Lord."
    As soon as he finished speaking all these words, the ground under them was split apart. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, along with their households -- everyone who belonged to Korah and all their goods. So they with all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol; the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. All Israel around them fled at their outcry, for they said, "The earth will swallow us too!"
2. In view of the sinkhole story, comment on Deuteronomy 33:27 (NIV): "The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."
3. In 1741, the American clergyman Jonathan Edwards preached a sermon to his Connecticut congregation titled "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," in which he emphasized that hell is a real place. (See the full sermon here.) He used vivid imagery to awaken his audience to the horrific reality that awaited them if they continued without Christ, but said that God has given human beings a chance to rectify their sins and be spared. One quote from the sermon: "We find it easy to tread on and crush a worm that we see crawling on the earth; so it is easy for us to cut or singe a slender thread that any thing hangs by: thus easy is it for God, when he pleases, to cast his enemies down to hell. What are we, that we should think to stand before him, at whose rebuke the earth trembles, and before whom the rocks are thrown down?" How does this kind of theology jibe with your reading of the Bible?
4. View this painting of The Last Judgment by the 16th century artist Pieter Bruegel. What do you think caused him to choose the visual imagery he employed for this work?
5. Rephrase what Jesus said about the tower of Siloam to imagine what he might have said outside the sinkhole to reporters and family members.
Responding to the News
This is a good time to remember that God does not call the faithful to live in fear, but in the confidence of being children of God. "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, 'Abba! Father!' it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ ... " (Romans 8:14-17).
Closing Prayer
O Lord, be with the family of Jeff Bush that they may be comforted in this time of loss. In Jesus' name. Amen.