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Feb 22, 2006 11:00 pm US/Eastern
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Does Heaven Exist?
by Ukee Washington
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―
Heaven may be mankind's ultimate mystery. What most of us do understand is, if you do good in this life and you go there in the after-life.
CBS 3 Anchor Ukee Washington talked to three people with three perspectives on paradise and one man who said he saw it.
In the Holy Bible, heaven is spoken of as being the dwelling place of God, a joyful destination that millions of people of many cultures believe in and some have experienced.
"I felt myself leaving my body," said Bob Shutter.
Shutter is a guidance counselor in Bucks County. He was eight-years-old and enjoying a summer day in a pond with his older brother when he slipped on a rock, hit his head, and went under.
"I could see a real bright light," said Shutter. "Felt as if I was walking down a path of love."
Shutter's journey was interrupted when his brother finally pulled him up.
"I heard a voice and it said to me, 'It's not your time, you gotta go back, it's not your time,' and my brother pulled me out of the water," said Shutter.
It was a heavenly experience he will never forget and according to recent polls, most of us believe in, but will it really be like it is in the movies and why the fascination?
"Haven is a place everyone wants to go," said Anthony Destefano.
Destefano has a degree in theology and is the author of "The Travel Guide to Heaven," that is a best seller in 19 countries.
"Were just not getting the answers to the question that we yearn for and so that's why there's an interest in the after life," said Destefano. "The main thing to understand about heaven is that its real."
He said we will reunite with loved ones who have passed on and even our pets have a place in heaven.
Still though, expect a devil a time explaining the heavenly light to others.
"This is what naturally happens when the brain is deprived of oxygen," said Dr. Andrew Newberg.
Dr. Newberg is a neuroradiologist at the University of Pennsylvania. His research blends spiritual and scientific perspectives in order to explain near death experiences.
The brain starts to lose its peripheral ability to process information and that may account for some of the tunnel-type effect. Maybe as your being deprived of the last vestiges of the visual system you get this kind of very bright light," said Dr. Newberg.
But Shutter believes there is something on "the other side."
"I think on the other side is a very peaceful place. I know there are spirits on the other side," said Shutter.
For now, Shutter's "spirit" continues to shine brightly with his daughter, family, students, and friends. He said his spirit that was forever changed that one summer day.
The long time school guidance counselor does not consider himself an angel on earth, but said, "A normal person with a duty to fulfill and to help people."
His own personal slice of heaven on earth.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)