reflection

Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey Into the Afterlife

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HeavenA Neurosurgeon’s Journey Into the Afterlife

Near-Death experiences otherwise known as NDE’s are controversial. Thousands of people have had them, but many in the scientific community have argued that they are impossible. Dr. Eben Alexander was one of those people.

A highly trained neurosurgeon who had operated on thousands of brains in the course of his career, Alexander knew that what people of faith call the “soul” is really a product of brain chemistry. NDE’s, he would have been the first to explain, might feel real to the people having them, but in truth they are simply fantasies produced by brains under extreme stress.

Then came the day when Dr. Alexander’s own brain was attacked by an extremely rare illness. The part of the brain that controls thought and emotion (and in essence makes us human) shut down completely. For seven day Dr. Alexander lay in a hospital bed in a deep coma. Then, as his doctors weighed the possibility of stopping treatment, Alexander’s eyes pooped open. Her had come back.

Alexander’s recovery is by all accounts a medical miracle. But the real miracle of his story lies elsewhere. While his body lay in comma, Alexander journeyed beyond this world and encountered an angelic being who guided him into the deepest realms of super-physical existence. There he met, and spoke with, the Divine source of the universe itself.

The story at first sounded like a wild and wonderful imaginings of a skilled fantasy writer. But it is not fantasy Dr. Alexander says. Before he underwent his journey, he could not reconcile his knowledge of neuroscience with any belief in heaven, God, or the soul. That difficulty with belief created an empty space that no professional triumph could erase.

Reading this book has continued to remind me of how great God really is. It doesn’t matter who you are or what traditions/belief you come from, God uses anyone at any moment in their lives to carry out his work.

By: Webster Vital

Being Present as a Form of Healing: QIRC Reflection

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Dialogue in the happening...
Dialogue in the happening…
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Vincentian Art Exhibit

I think I’m getting the hang of Quarterly Inter-Religious Celebrations (QIRC). This was my second QIRC on staff, and 4th or 5th QIRC overall, I believe. It was very different going from hosting to presenting on the evening’s theme, Healing A Wounded World Through Art, – I found the former to be significantly less challenging than the latter, which is stressful for obvious reasons. That said, I had a fantastic time.

One of the things that caught me off guard was how empowered I felt in my religious identity while speaking about it to others. In the past, I have been unwilling to identify with a specific tradition or faith because I had been unwilling to claim ownership over what I believed. I understand now that this is because I had been looking for the ‘perfect’ religion. Without ever realizing it (and, indeed, oftentimes hiding behind a mask of feigned ambivalence), I was hailing religions like cabs – only to leave each taxi the second that their route to my destination varied from the one I desired. ‘There’s got to be a cabbie that has thought about this route before, someone who knows exactly what it is that I should do,’ I thought to myself. Since then, I have come to understand that only I can chart this route, because only I have had my life of experiences. As a result, I’ve begun to take ownership over what I believe; love it even. And it seems as though now that I love what I believe, people are more interested in hearing me talk about it – and now that people want to hear what I have to say about Buddhism rather than what others have to say,  it is easier for me to find delight in my identity. I want to hear what I have to say. I suppose that is the healing that I will take from the QIRC as a whole.

Islamic Art Exhibit
Islamic Art Exhibit

I also couldn’t possibly write a reflection without commenting on Morgan Spears’ performance. God, what a stupendous, brave, and vulnerable piece of art. And how much more challenging and perfect could it have possibly been for our night’s theme? I had personally invited her to perform, but had no idea that her poem would be so personal and self-revolutionary. I think the most powerful part of the entire evening for me was when, after Morgan performed, she came over to my booth to thank me for asking her to be a part of the evening. She looked me in the eyes with an expression that said ‘sorry if that got out of hand…I kind of lost track of myself’, and I told her that she was incredible, and then she just smiled and we both laughed and hugged. She said that she was super nervous to open herself up the way she did, but I could see in her face how grounded and lucid the experience had left her feeling. Morgan’s performance, more than perhaps anything else at the QIRC, invited the audience to engage in radical transparency, heartfelt expression, and most importantly, the kind of listening that one can only learn by calling out for God and enduring the silence before Her/His reply.

Until next quarter!

Josh Graber ’14

Standing In Unity Against Violence

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As winds blew through the Chicago skyline on Wednesday the 18th of September, a group of student leaders from the United Muslims Moving Ahead DePaul University on-campus organization decided to hold a candle-light vigil. The vigil was a call for students and faculty to stand together in unity against violence occurring all over the world. During the Unity Vigil the students gave their respects to the United States Ambassador Christopher Stevens who was serving in the US embassy in Libya. We came together on an evening to condemn the violent protests that erupted as a result of the movie “Innocence of Muslims” which meant to insult the Prophet Mohammed (Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him). We also stood together against violence happening within the Syrian Crisis, the daily shootings in Chicago’s neighborhoods, and anywhere else across the world.

As an Interfaith Scholar, there was nothing more meaningful that night than to be supported by faculty members and students representing diverse faith and spiritual backgrounds standing shoulder-to-shoulder in unity against violence. The importance and significance for us all to experience and share each other’s feelings about certain on-goings around the world is something that this world needs more of. But to then take it a step further by building a support system, and embracing one another in a time that calls us to do so, is hopefully an eternal bond that each one of us can use.

The Muslim Chaplain at DePaul Abdul-Malik Ryan, reached out to the DePaul community through an email inviting his colleagues and students to attend the vigil, “In light of the continued violence here in Chicago and around the world, and especially the violence that is being presented as a motivation of ‘religious faith,’ the students want to make a strong statement that the DePaul community, and especially people of all faiths here at DePaul stand united against violence and as witnesses for peace and justice.” Chaplain Abdul-Malik stressed the fact that Islam as a religion condemns violence and prohibits the killing of innocent people.

Another member that is dear to the DePaul community and a representative from the University Ministry Office and Assistant Chaplain of the Office of Religious Diversity, Katie Brick shared a piece from the Superior General Gregory Gay, who wrote about Vincentian non-violence. Chaplain Brick read out a few quotes in which General Gray characterized non-violence as though it should be used as a means of “creating harmony based on diversity, rather than using diversity as a justification for violence.” This phrase stood out to me personally because it embraced the theme of unity – the purpose and reason to why we were all standing together.

On September 25th, President Barack Obama spoke to the United Nations General Assembly stating, “We have taken these positions because we believe that freedom and self-determination are not unique to one culture. These are not simply American values or Western values – they are universal values.” Standing together as a strong and diverse DePaul community acknowledging the pain and creating a safe space that creates the chance for all of us to embrace one another, and to share our experiences with one another.

Our shared presence at the Unity Vigil affirmed to me and to the rest of the DePaul Community that brotherhood and sisterhood exists in a diverse form on campus. The Unity Vigil was also a way for the DePaul community to spread awareness about the violence going on in the world. And as I write this blog post I can’t help but sing the words of the song written by India Arie, “There’s hope, it doesn’t cost a thing to smile, you don’t have to pay to laugh, you better thank God for that.”

Dana Jabri ’15

Open Space: Take Two

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About six months ago, I wrote a commentary regarding an interfaith event on campus: Open-Space. I gave an honest critique of the event and its struggle to gain student involvement. Now, six months later, I am again reflecting on an Open Space event. At the end of this summer members of the DePaul community gave this approach to organizing a “second go.”

Open Space is a method of convening, dialoguing, and planning, but the catch is that the attendees set the agenda; they start the conversation on their own terms. In the context of a University Ministry Leadership retreat, 50 some DePaul students participated in an Open Space. We congregated in a retreat center conference room and students created breakout sessions based on topics they wanted to discuss. Everything from commuter student needs, to an interfaith art exhibit, to post-graduation service opportunities; students gathered to reflect, share, learn and organize. Each session included an individual who wrote down valuable information. Notes taken during sessions were later typed and shared via email with everyone who participated in the event.

The large amount of participants allowed students to experiment and take chances. They more readily used the “law of two feet” and floated between sessions, starting new conversations, and participating at their own desire. In my opinion, this added not only to the diversity of topics, but also opened the door to creative possibilities. Some students even decided to relocate to a local pier for some yoga. What remained consistent (amongst this variety of topics) was the initiative taken independently and collaboratively by students.

The effect of enthusiasm amongst student leaders in conjunction with the support of the University Staff allowed for a prosperous flow of ideas. This exchange was solidified in the group’s ability to document and share information post-Open Space event. An establishment of transparency through this sharing of ideas – and more importantly a commitment to the fulfillment of those ideas – has allowed the energy captivated at the Open Space to carry into the academic year. I hope that future Open Space events, particularly those facilitated by the DePaul Interfaith Scholars, will invite the DePaul Community at large to gather at this forum of possibility. I also hope that we can into serious consideration past pilot programs, such as this second attempt, when organizing future Open Spaces.

Caelin Niehoff – 2013

Freshmen Connections Retreat Reflection 2012 – DePaul

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I’m a bit of a retreat junkie, so it was with no hesitation that I signed myself up for the Catholic Campus Ministry Freshmen Connections Retreat. I’ve been drawn to CCM ever since I arrived on campus and have since made myself a permanent fixture in their office on the first floor of the Student Center. I was only ever told good things about the retreat, so I signed myself up to see for myself how much fun it could be. I am not the most outgoing person, so the idea of meeting other freshmen who had an active investment in their faith was just too good an opportunity to pass up. So with all these thoughts in my mind, I found myself on Friday, September 21st being hustled off to the Cenacle Sisters’ Retreat and Conference Center not exactly knowing what to expect.

I was not left disappointed. The entire retreat was a rousing 24 hour ordeal filled with much laughter, prayer, singing, dancing and talking. Talking truly was the backbone of the experience. We listened to talks given by upperclassmen and their experiences at DePaul, we talked to each other in small groups and even in one-on-one sessions, and we spent solitary time engaging in discussion with God through silent prayer. We were always encouraged to open ourselves up to each other and to allow our vulnerable sides to be visible so that we could all come together in one community with the love and guidance of God. I know that within those 24 hours I felt a part of something much larger than just myself and my own concerns and worries. I was a member in a faith-filled community where I was just free to be myself.

That’s the wonderful thing about retreats. There’s just something about being thrown together with people of all walks of life bound together by one common purpose that just forces you to let your true self show. I was willing to be silly and loud and to laugh because I knew no one was judging me and I wasn’t judging anyone in return. I opened myself up to my share group and expressed thoughts and memories that I normally wouldn’t have easily shared with others. I let myself grow closer to God by growing closer to those around me. That’s an experience I couldn’t have achieved if I had not gone on Freshmen Connections last weekend. That experience means everything to me.

I’ve been told that you can judge the success of a retreat once it’s over and everyone goes out into the real world to apply everything they learned about themselves and their faith. If that’s the case, then Freshmen Connections is already proving to have been a very successful retreat. Walking through campus I have seen pockets of my fellow freshman ‘retreatants’ sitting down and chatting together. I began to see friendships grow as the retreat continued to blossom. This past Sunday night at Mass, Becca was an alter serving for the first time here at DePaul, Shannon was playing the oboe for the liturgical choice as Katie sang, Nick was greeting parish members as a part of hospitality and scores of the freshmen ‘retreatants’ were sitting in the pews all coming together in the community of mass. It’s my hope that all of us freshmen continue on our faith filled journeys here at DePaul and that we’ll rely on each other when the road gets rough and will always be here for one another.

That’s what Freshmen Connections gave us; a community where we all belong.

Mace Ranazzi – Freshman, Catholic.

Double major History/English. Minor in Classical Studies.

From: Grand Rapids, MI. Favorite film: Titanic.