Paul & NDE's

[Scrawly]

"I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know--only God knows."(2Cor.12:2).

Do you think there is any relation to such experience(s) and Paul's experience?

[theophilus]

Do you think there is any relation to such experience(s) and Paul's experience?

No. Paul said he heard things that no one can tell. People who have NDEs are always eager to tell others what happened and their accounts contradict each other.

[Scrawly]

No. Paul said he heard things that no one can tell. People who have NDEs are always eager to tell others what happened and their accounts contradict each other.

Right, but do you believe the nature of her experience, and the nature of Paul's experience had absolutely no similarities whatsoever? Would you simply categorize this woman's "revelations" as hallucinatory and Paul's revelations as from God? Or perhaps other spiritual forces are at play providing these sorts of "revelations"?

How do you envision Paul's revelations? Do you believe he received these revelations/outer-body experiences in the context of ecstatic prayer (tongues, etc.), or perhaps under great duress and crying out to God? Or in a more serene setting of meditating on the Scriptures where he perhaps fell into a trance-like state? Was he just going about his day or actively seeking such revelatory experiences?

[Faber]

No. Paul said he heard things that no one can tell. People who have NDEs are always eager to tell others what happened and their accounts contradict each other.

Plus they rake in a lot of money selling books. What was that boy's name again? Oh yes: Malarkey.

[theophilus]

Right, but do you believe the nature of her experience, and the nature of Paul's experience had absolutely no similarities whatsoever? Would you simply categorize this woman's "revelations" as hallucinatory and Paul's revelations as from God? Or perhaps other spiritual forces are at play providing these sorts of "revelations"?

Paul's experience was clearly from God; the woman's was not. It could have been demonic in origin or a hallucination or a combination of both, but that isn't important. The only thing that matters if the fact that they are not true.

How do you envision Paul's revelations? Do you believe he received these revelations/outer-body experiences in the context of ecstatic prayer (tongues, etc.), or perhaps under great duress and crying out to God? Or in a more serene setting of meditating on the Scriptures where he perhaps fell into a trance-like state? Was he just going about his day or actively seeking such revelatory experiences?

Since he didn't give us any details it is useless to speculate. The only thing we need to know about any revelation is its source. The method by which it was transmitted is irrelevant.

[One Bad Pig]

Right, but do you believe the nature of her experience, and the nature of Paul's experience had absolutely no similarities whatsoever? Would you simply categorize this woman's "revelations" as hallucinatory and Paul's revelations as from God? Or perhaps other spiritual forces are at play providing these sorts of "revelations"?

How do you envision Paul's revelations? Do you believe he received these revelations/outer-body experiences in the context of ecstatic prayer (tongues, etc.), or perhaps under great duress and crying out to God? Or in a more serene setting of meditating on the Scriptures where he perhaps fell into a trance-like state? Was he just going about his day or actively seeking such revelatory experiences?

IIRC in Paul's time some Jews would meditate on the vision scenes in Ezekiel and Isaiah, and there is some speculation that Paul was doing just that on the road to Damascus when he encountered the Risen Christ.