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Does the Soul Survive?: A Jewish Journey to Belief in Afterlife, Past Lives & Living with Purpose
Near-death experiences? Past-life regression? Reincarnation? Are these sorts of things Jewish? With a blend of candor, personal questioning and sharp-eyed scholarship, Rabbi Elie Kaplan Spitz relates his own observations and the firsthand accounts shared with him by others, experiences that helped propel his journey from skeptic to believer that there is life after life. From near-death experiences to reincarnation, past-life memory to the work of mediums, Rabbi Spitz explores what we are really able to know about the afterlife, and draws on Jewish texts to share that belief in these concepts―so often approached with reluctance―is in fact true to Jewish tradition. "The increasing interest and faith in survival of the soul may grow into a cultural wave that is as potentially transformative for society as the civil rights movement and feminism. A renewed faith in 'the soul's journeys’ will call for a reassessment of our priorities, and will enable traditional religions to renew and transform their adherents."
―from the Introduction
―from the Introduction
288 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 2000
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July 9, 2015Most people think that Judaism doesn't believe in reincarnation. This book goes on to explain that if you take a look at some of the classic rabbinic literature, you'll find ample evidence of such a belief. The news that there is room for belief in reincarnation in Judaism will come as a shock to many Christians who base their idea that we don't believe in reincarnation on their belief that Jews don't either. This will, and should, cause a lot of reexamination of what we believe and why we believe it.
But that's not why I decided to read this book. I read it because the review in Library Journal mentioned that it was how a skeptic came to believe in not only an afterlife, but past lives. And as I read about his experiences with mediums who seem to have told him things about his family that he didn't even know until checking with other family members after the fact, I wondered what the great debunker The Amazing Randi would have to say. And I finished this book saying the only thing that I could, in all honesty, say..."I don't know."
But it is a fascinating read, and I highly recommend it to anyone who's ever thought about the question...skeptic or not.
But that's not why I decided to read this book. I read it because the review in Library Journal mentioned that it was how a skeptic came to believe in not only an afterlife, but past lives. And as I read about his experiences with mediums who seem to have told him things about his family that he didn't even know until checking with other family members after the fact, I wondered what the great debunker The Amazing Randi would have to say. And I finished this book saying the only thing that I could, in all honesty, say..."I don't know."
But it is a fascinating read, and I highly recommend it to anyone who's ever thought about the question...skeptic or not.
October 11, 2022
The book being reviewed here is of critical significance in a world where the intellectual elite is operating nearly in a consensus that the ONLY objective realities in our universe are those that are derived from mass-energy in space-time. In other words, by a near-consensus, the top university-based intellectuals declare that any suggestion that there exist mental powers transcendent to brain-generated powers is pure superstition and is incompatible with the “scientific worldview” – a worldview which is declared to be irrefutably supported by all credible evidence. The book under review here promotes strong evidence that such a physicalist-materialist, anti-mental and anti-spiritual outlook is gravely in error – all to the detriment of the millions (or billions?) of people who subscribe “religiously” to that worldview.
For just one example of evidence that the scientific community is NOT willing to objectively consider, analyze, and entertain the possibility that science is too limited in its scope, I will quote from “Does the Soul Survive?” as follows:
“For years afterward, Dr. Mayer met with people who claimed to have telepathic gifts. They could not rationalize their receptivity, explaining only that it was not unlike using their faculty of sight, but this moved her to believe more firmly that they did have the gift of extraordinary knowing. As an academic, she also examined the data from research studies on telepathy at leading universities, especially Stanford and Duke. She concluded that many of the studies met the rigorous demands of controlled experimentation and that the conclusions supported extraordinary knowing. She found that most scientists refused to even consider the data, because it did not conform to their assumptions of how the world works.” (This is from page xix.)
Incidentally, Dr. Mayer, mentioned in the above quotation, was a psychoanalyst who taught in the psychology department of the University of California at Berkeley. The matter of how Dr. Mayer came to involve herself in research on paranormal phenomena is discussed in the book under review. Dr. Mayer’s eleven-year-old daughter had her small harp stolen. She badly wanted the harp to be retrieved, and when a friend of Dr. Mayer suggested that she consult a “dowser” if she was willing to try anything, she paid attention. Dared by her friend, Dr. Mayer contacted the American Society of Dowsers. The story reveals how a person in Arkansas was contacted, and it is discussed how he provided information that led to finding the harp (I won’t go into details). Upon her success with the consultation of a dowser, Dr. Mayer had her worldview seriously challenged, and here’s how she reacted (quoting from the book under review):
“After repossessing the harp, Mayer declared to herself, ‘This is a game changer!’ The dowser’s inexplicable knowledge prompted her to want to know more about remote viewing and telepathy and raised the bigger question of whether there is more to reality than the materialistic model of space-time.”
That was what led Dr. Mayer to do research on remote viewing, telepathy, etc. Her personal encounter with a situation where “psychic power” came to her daughter’s aid, by retrieving the precious harp, led her to reconsider her entire worldview, and she commenced to write the book: “Extraordinary Knowing: Science, Skepticism, and the Inexplicable”.
Incidentally, one might do well to never buy into the view that skeptics are unbiased. They are about as prone to bias (bias in favor of THEIR vision of reality) as are people who are committed to religious outlooks.
Rabbi Spitz, the author of this book, was earlier in his life skeptical of any sort of afterlife. However, he explains in the book that he changed his worldview after encountering different sorts of evidence not only of a soul that survives death, but a soul that (oftentimes) is reincarnated. His belief in reincarnation is quite strong. While it is doubtful that any serious skeptic concerning an afterlife would even read such a book as this, even if such a person read it, the evidence in favor of an afterlife would likely be repudiated as coincidental, mere superstition, or utterly non-compelling. Few people fundamentally alter their basic worldview in any major way, even when provided evidence contrary to the outlook being held. Yet, there are people who are open-minded and teachable enough (one might also say humble enough) to radically transform their decades-held picture of reality. The professor mentioned above (Dr. Mayer) was just such a person. When confronted with overwhelming evidence contrary to her materialistic outlook, she declared that this constituted a “game changer”. Thereupon, she open-mindedly began to do serious research on studies of paranormal phenomena.
This book deserves credit for compiling considerable evidence supportive of a human “soul” that survives the death of the body, and it also lends substantial support in favor of reincarnation. It is engagingly written, and offers both views skeptical of its thesis and views that are supportive. The latter outweigh the former.
For just one example of evidence that the scientific community is NOT willing to objectively consider, analyze, and entertain the possibility that science is too limited in its scope, I will quote from “Does the Soul Survive?” as follows:
“For years afterward, Dr. Mayer met with people who claimed to have telepathic gifts. They could not rationalize their receptivity, explaining only that it was not unlike using their faculty of sight, but this moved her to believe more firmly that they did have the gift of extraordinary knowing. As an academic, she also examined the data from research studies on telepathy at leading universities, especially Stanford and Duke. She concluded that many of the studies met the rigorous demands of controlled experimentation and that the conclusions supported extraordinary knowing. She found that most scientists refused to even consider the data, because it did not conform to their assumptions of how the world works.” (This is from page xix.)
Incidentally, Dr. Mayer, mentioned in the above quotation, was a psychoanalyst who taught in the psychology department of the University of California at Berkeley. The matter of how Dr. Mayer came to involve herself in research on paranormal phenomena is discussed in the book under review. Dr. Mayer’s eleven-year-old daughter had her small harp stolen. She badly wanted the harp to be retrieved, and when a friend of Dr. Mayer suggested that she consult a “dowser” if she was willing to try anything, she paid attention. Dared by her friend, Dr. Mayer contacted the American Society of Dowsers. The story reveals how a person in Arkansas was contacted, and it is discussed how he provided information that led to finding the harp (I won’t go into details). Upon her success with the consultation of a dowser, Dr. Mayer had her worldview seriously challenged, and here’s how she reacted (quoting from the book under review):
“After repossessing the harp, Mayer declared to herself, ‘This is a game changer!’ The dowser’s inexplicable knowledge prompted her to want to know more about remote viewing and telepathy and raised the bigger question of whether there is more to reality than the materialistic model of space-time.”
That was what led Dr. Mayer to do research on remote viewing, telepathy, etc. Her personal encounter with a situation where “psychic power” came to her daughter’s aid, by retrieving the precious harp, led her to reconsider her entire worldview, and she commenced to write the book: “Extraordinary Knowing: Science, Skepticism, and the Inexplicable”.
Incidentally, one might do well to never buy into the view that skeptics are unbiased. They are about as prone to bias (bias in favor of THEIR vision of reality) as are people who are committed to religious outlooks.
Rabbi Spitz, the author of this book, was earlier in his life skeptical of any sort of afterlife. However, he explains in the book that he changed his worldview after encountering different sorts of evidence not only of a soul that survives death, but a soul that (oftentimes) is reincarnated. His belief in reincarnation is quite strong. While it is doubtful that any serious skeptic concerning an afterlife would even read such a book as this, even if such a person read it, the evidence in favor of an afterlife would likely be repudiated as coincidental, mere superstition, or utterly non-compelling. Few people fundamentally alter their basic worldview in any major way, even when provided evidence contrary to the outlook being held. Yet, there are people who are open-minded and teachable enough (one might also say humble enough) to radically transform their decades-held picture of reality. The professor mentioned above (Dr. Mayer) was just such a person. When confronted with overwhelming evidence contrary to her materialistic outlook, she declared that this constituted a “game changer”. Thereupon, she open-mindedly began to do serious research on studies of paranormal phenomena.
This book deserves credit for compiling considerable evidence supportive of a human “soul” that survives the death of the body, and it also lends substantial support in favor of reincarnation. It is engagingly written, and offers both views skeptical of its thesis and views that are supportive. The latter outweigh the former.
August 30, 2017
Elie Kaplan Spitz is a man who never spent much time wondering if the soul survived death, because he was raised and educated not to wonder. Wondering could be dangerous. It could lead to "magical thinking". Best to stay thinking in the here and now. And this way of thinking was strongly expected of him, because he was a rabbi. Yet, there were too many twilight zone incidents involving those who were ill, and those who had died . . . .
Thus, off Rabbi Spitz goes searching, exploring both Jewish teachings and more contemporary metaphysical ideas, such as those on near-death experiences, past life regressions, after-death communication and mediums. He seems to hit it off quite well with Dr. Brian Weiss, the past life regression author. That was no surprise. Both men are Jewish and highly educated; Dr. Weiss, an Ivy League trained psychiatrist; Rabbi Spitz, a Boston U. School of Law graduate; and both are highly intelligent writers, who still can easily communicate with the masses.
Rabbi Spitz even trains with Dr. Weiss to do past life regressions, in his pursuit of discovering what is true and what is not. He appears to reach the conclusion that reincarnation is a reality, but that not all past life regressions are true. Even one such regression he underwent himself excited him, but left him thinking he may very well have made it up. One of the most amusing incidents in the book involved the author doing a past life regression with someone; and being instructed to bring his subject back to her current life, where he was suddenly struck with a frightening idea: What if she didn't want to come back?
Not that Rabbi Spitz becomes a New Age junkie or anything. Au contraire, he obviously still sees the dangers of "magical thinking" all the way through the book. But he also sees the "proof" that maybe the soul does indeed survive death; and maybe knowing that helps many, many people live in a less frightened and more hopeful manner. All this his has led him to put together a very well written, intelligent book for those interested in life after death and other metaphysical topics.
Thus, off Rabbi Spitz goes searching, exploring both Jewish teachings and more contemporary metaphysical ideas, such as those on near-death experiences, past life regressions, after-death communication and mediums. He seems to hit it off quite well with Dr. Brian Weiss, the past life regression author. That was no surprise. Both men are Jewish and highly educated; Dr. Weiss, an Ivy League trained psychiatrist; Rabbi Spitz, a Boston U. School of Law graduate; and both are highly intelligent writers, who still can easily communicate with the masses.
Rabbi Spitz even trains with Dr. Weiss to do past life regressions, in his pursuit of discovering what is true and what is not. He appears to reach the conclusion that reincarnation is a reality, but that not all past life regressions are true. Even one such regression he underwent himself excited him, but left him thinking he may very well have made it up. One of the most amusing incidents in the book involved the author doing a past life regression with someone; and being instructed to bring his subject back to her current life, where he was suddenly struck with a frightening idea: What if she didn't want to come back?
Not that Rabbi Spitz becomes a New Age junkie or anything. Au contraire, he obviously still sees the dangers of "magical thinking" all the way through the book. But he also sees the "proof" that maybe the soul does indeed survive death; and maybe knowing that helps many, many people live in a less frightened and more hopeful manner. All this his has led him to put together a very well written, intelligent book for those interested in life after death and other metaphysical topics.
November 25, 2025
The book is a good read. It is an honest discussion, including Jewish sources, of the afterlife and past lives. Rabbi Spitz is a rationalist, like most of us, and has his doubts about both these things, but comes to the conclusion, after reading about, seeing and hearing others experience connections with people who have died, or, under hypnosis, experience past lives. I found it a compelling read and recommend it.
July 10, 2020
I just had to many books floating around and it took me awhile to get to this one. But it's good. I wanted to know the beliefs of Judiasm with afterlife and this fit the bill. It was long winded here and there, but gave me the info I was looking for.
November 13, 2015
This book has some powerful moments. I am not sure I am completely convinced by all of the stories but it provides straightforward and detailed discussion of how the author changed his attitudes on the subject of afterlife. The book also does a nice job of discussing the topic from a Jewish point of view.
April 30, 2016
This is written in clear language and is interesting but...for me personally it didn't offer the comfort I'd been looking for. In truth, though, I think that's just my own need for answers when there aren't any.
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August 4, 2011Fascinating, and sometimes a little bit creepy.
June 9, 2012
Couldn't get through it . Lots and lots of testimonials, nothing I haven't read before. Perhaps I would have found some new insights if I'd stayed with it, but it just didn't hold my interest.
February 23, 2017
Didn't add much new, but was a fairly good summation. This book was in my opinion more biased than most (the author didn't question things I would have).
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews