My mother died of a brain tumour in 1976. For the last two weeks of her life she was in a coma, in the hospital. She was completely non-responsive. As I sat by her bed, I wondered. "Where is she?" Obviously, her physical body was there, in front of me, in the hospital bed. It was her soul that I wondered about.
As a Christian, I believed that humans are made up of body and soul. The body is physical, made of matter, created by God to live on earth for a limited time, and then to die. I was in the process of witnessing the final stage of Mom's bodily existence. It was heartbreaking, because she was the best parent anyone could ever have been privileged to have.
It would have been more bearable if I could have been assured that her soul or spirit, her essence, the part of her that knew and loved me, her grandchildren, our other family members and friends was no longer there, or perhaps was poised on the brink of eternity, ready and anxious to shed this gravely-ill body and proceed on the journey to her heavenly home.
I asked the devout hospital chaplain who had presided at the passing of numerous patients. "Father Michael, where is Mother's soul right now?"
He tried but he couldn't give me an answer that satisfied me. "Maybe God has some matters to take up with her before she goes. Or, perhaps she's using up some of her time in Purgatory."
That really didn't suffice. God was soon to have all eternity to sort things out with Mother. Besides, the Sacrament of the Sick, which she had received, removed all punishment due to sins committed during life. She shouldn't have to spend any time in Purgatory. Those were his best guesses, so I didn't press for more. But I continued to wonder.
For over 30 years, I've continued to wonder. The puzzle had become extended during this time, it now included those with brain injuries, Alzheimer's sufferers, even surgical patients under anaesthetic. Where is the person's soul during these times?
The body is physical, but the soul is spirit. Anaesthetics, trauma or disease should not be able affect the spirit, should it? Then, one night recently I finally heard an answer that made sense to me.
I've formed the habit of listening to the "Coast to Coast" radio program with George Noory on my Sony Walkman during the night. It helps when I can't sleep, and George's soothing voice doesn't disturb my slumbers, when I do nod off.
Some of the guests have very far-out ideas, some have vivid imaginations, and others are very interesting. One evening, a call-in listener who had been pondering the same puzzle as I had, came up with what seemed to me to be a reasonable explanation.
The brain is physical, it is part of the body. Its function is to collect information from the earth plane, using the five senses and to transfer the data to the mind. The brain is like a computer. It gathers information and transmits it to the mind. The computer can be damaged, or it can crash entirely.
The mind, or soul is spirit. During life, it receives and processes information the brain transmits. The mind thinks, makes decisions, feels emotions, knows people and places the body has been in contact with during life. The mind is superior to the brain. It is eternal.
When the brain becomes diseased, unconscious, or anaesthetized, the computer stops working. The mind is still present and functional, but the connection to the brain has been broken.
Where is the mind, during these times? Probably hovering near, as radio, TV and electrical waves are always around us, even when no receiving device is plugged in.
When the brain is out-of-order, the mind doesn't break through into the physical realm to make its presence known. When the brain dies, the soul or mind proceeds to its eternal home.
I have no theological authorities to confirm this theory, I can only state that it satisfies me. After more than 30 years, I feel I know where Mother's mind was during those final days when she was in a coma. Thanks to "Coast to Coast", George Noory and the unknown call-in listener, I wonder about it no longer.
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