Into the Light: Real Life Stories About Angelic Visits, Visions of the Afterlife, and Other Pre-Death Experiences

241 Pages·2007·3.29 MB·English

by  John Lerma

INTO
THE
L IGHT
N
REAL LIFE STORIES
ABOUT ANGELIC VISITS,
VISIONS OF THE AFTERLIFE,
AND OTHER
PRE-DEATH EXPERIENCES
John Lerma, M.D.
NEW PAGE BOOKS
A division of The Career Press, Inc.
Franklin Lakes, NJ
Copyright © 2007 by John Lerma
All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright
Conventions. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any
form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known
or hereafter invented, without written permission from the publisher,
The Career Press.
INTO THE LIGHT
EDITED BY JODI BRANDON
TYPESET BY EILEEN DOW MUNSON
Cover design by Dutton and Sherman
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lerma, John.
Into the light : real life stories about angelic visits, visions of the
afterlife, and other pre-death experiences / by John Lerma.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-56414-972-5
ISBN-10: 1-56414-972-2
1. Near-death experiences—Anecdotes. I. Title.
BL535.L433 2007
133.901’3—dc22
2007036199
I would like to dedicate this book
in loving memory of
my father, John Lerma, Sr., and
my Great Aunt Eladia “Tia Lala” Rodriguez
for her kindness and unconditional love
on earth and now in the heavenly realm.
N
This book is also dedicated with total love to
my mother, Carmen Lerma, and children:
Daniella Lerma,
Mark Lerma,
and Ariana Lerma.
Four beautiful examples of God’s love.
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Our love is with wholeness and interconnection;
Our separateness is but fear;
Our birth, our death, our birth;
And so goes this exhilarating play of God.
—John Lerma, M.D.
N
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Contents
Preface 9
Introduction 17
The Last Days of Life
Chapter 1 21
Negotiating With Angels
Chapter 2 45
The Smile
Chapter 3 49
A Change of Heart
Chapter 4 63
The Dreamer
Chapter 5 73
Angel Feathers
Chapter 6 89
Deep Remorse
Chapter 7 101
The Angelic Nurse
Chapter 8 115
Father Mike
Chapter 9 129
Heaven in Room 212
Chapter 10 145
MiMi and the Confirmation
Chapter 11 151
Redemption
Chapter 12 167
The Phone Call
Chapter 13 177
The Circle Completes Itself
Chapter 14 185
The True Believer
Chapter 15 195
A Test of Faith
Chapter 16 213
The S Factor: The Supreme Act of Love
Conclusion 223
Appendix 225
Evidence for Pre-death Visions of the Afterlife
Bibliography 231
Index 233
About the Author 239
Preface
’m often described as a high-energy individual, and most
people want to know why I specialized in hospice and pallia-
Itive medicine. Even my family could not figure it out at first.
They said, “You spent all that time learning to heal people,
and now you want to help them die?” Or, “Why would you
want to spend so much time with people who are about to die,
isn’t it depressing?” Some people seem to think hospice doc-
tors should be serious and talk in a soft voice, but those who
are dying do not want that at all. They want to be treated the
same as everyone else, as they are the same as everyone else.
They want you to joke with them, laugh, and do silly things to
amuse them and keep them engaged in life. The terminally ill
yearn for these joyful attitudes, as they ultimately grasp the
meaning of life and death, and an understanding that this phase
of life should be celebrated and honored as the beginning of
an awe-inspiring journey—a journey that leads us into the arms
of our loving Creator.
During medical school, and as an intern, I had to contend
with the onset of the AIDS epidemic, and it was devastating.
The predictions for the infected population were dire. I gained
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