Dr. Hugh Ross, a Christian author and astrophysicist, has shared some fascinating ideas about why he believes there’s an afterlife.
At 79 years old, Ross has spent a lot of time thinking about the big questions in life, like what happens after we die. He combines his knowledge of science with his faith to explain why he thinks there’s more to existence than just the physical world we see around us. Here’s a deeper look at his thoughts, explained in simple terms.
First, Ross talks about the universe and how incredibly vast it is. Scientists can only see a part of it because light takes time to travel, and there’s a limit to how far we can see. The part of the universe we can observe is about 93 billion light-years across, but the whole universe might be much bigger—maybe even infinite.
Ross says this vastness points to something beyond our understanding, like a Creator who exists outside of space and time. He believes this Creator made the universe and everything in it, and that this Creator’s existence suggests there’s a spiritual realm beyond our physical world—what many people call heaven.
Next, Ross looks at the Bible. He says that while the Bible has been interpreted in many ways over the years, it has proven to be surprisingly accurate when it comes to history, science, and geography. For example, the Big Bang theory, which explains how the universe began, matches up with the Bible’s idea that the universe had a beginning and is constantly expanding. Ross points to a verse in the Bible, Isaiah 42:5, where it says God created the heavens and stretched them out. He thinks this shows that the Bible’s message comes from a source beyond human knowledge—a divine source. This, he says, is evidence that there’s a spiritual realm beyond our physical world.
Ross also brings up UFOs. For years, people have reported seeing strange objects in the sky that they can’t explain. Between 1947 and 1969, the U.S. Air Force even investigated over 12,000 UFO sightings. Ross thinks these unexplained phenomena could be signs of a non-physical reality—a realm that exists beyond the dimensions of our universe. He believes this could be connected to the idea of a spiritual realm or afterlife.
Another clue Ross mentions is near-death experiences, or NDEs. Many people who have come close to dying report seeing bright lights, feeling peace, or even encountering loved ones who have passed away. While some scientists say these experiences might be caused by things like oxygen deprivation in the brain, Ross notes that many NDEs can’t be explained so easily. He talks about a cardiologist named Michael Sabom, who used to be skeptical about NDEs but later wrote books documenting cases that couldn’t be explained by science. Ross believes these experiences are evidence that there’s a transcendent realm beyond our physical world.
Finally, Ross talks about the power of prayer. He says that studies have shown people who are prayed for by believers in the Christian God often recover faster from surgeries or illnesses than those who aren’t prayed for. He thinks this shows that prayer has a real, measurable effect, which suggests there’s a spiritual realm influencing our physical world.
In the end, Ross’s ideas are a mix of science and faith. He uses what we know about the universe, the Bible, UFOs, near-death experiences, and prayer to make a case for the existence of an afterlife.
Whether or not you agree with his conclusions, his thoughts encourage us to think deeply about the mysteries of life and what might lie beyond the world we can see. It’s a fascinating way to look at one of humanity’s oldest questions: Is there life after death?
