Do Near-Death Experiences Provide a Rational Basis for Belief in Life after Death? Andrew J. Dell’Olio Published online: 15 December 2009 # Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2009 Abstract In this paper I suggest that near-death experiences (NDEs) provide a rational basis for belief in life after death. My argument is a simple one and is modeled on the argument from religious experience for the existence of God. But unlike the proponents of the argument from religious experience, I stop short of claiming that NDEs prove the existence of life after death. Like the argument from religious experience, however, my argument turns on whether or not there is good reason to believe that NDEs are authentic or veridical. I argue that there is good reason to believe that NDEs are veridical and that therefore it is reasonable to believe in the existence of what they seem to be experiences of, namely, a continued state of consciousness after the death of the body. I will then offer some comments on the philosophical import of NDEs, as well as reflections on the current state of contemporary philosophy in light of the neglect of this phenomenon. Keywords Near-death experiences . Life after death, belief in . Argument from religious experience . Materialism . Physicalism . Naturalism . Contemporary philosophy I The question of whether there is life after death is a perennial philosophical one. A positive answer to this question might allay one of the more pressing of human SOPHIA (2010) 49:113–128 DOI 10.1007/s11841-009-0154-z A. J. Dell’Olio (*) Department of Philosophy, Hope College, 126 East 10th Street, Holland, MI 49423, USA e-mail: adellolio@hope.edu