By Father John Catoir |  Catholic News Service

Have you ever had an out-of-body-experience? Hundreds of books have been written about it going back centuries. They generally report that the sensation of being lifted out of one's body happens unexpectedly. You find yourself looking down on yourself below. It happened to me once, and it had a powerful influence on my life.

Recently, I read an article that said any theory claiming a supernatural explanation for these experiences is wrong. It leads to "a kind of dualism," the article said, separating the body from the mind. The very idea of the human soul is dismissed as pious fantasy.

The article said experiments have demonstrated that nothing is leaving the body during what we call an out-of-body experience. But I wonder, how could they know that, since they only acknowledge visible, empirical evidence?

Apart from not putting up any real proof, the assertions reveal the typical bias one comes to expect from skeptics. They deny the very existence of the supernatural.

The lab experiments carried out were not discussed in depth. The articled called the out-of-body experiences "harmless illusions." Some neuropsychologists speak of them as "doppelganger experiences," referring to human happenings where the subjects feel as if they are floating outside of the body and are able to view themselves from above.

Some people who have experienced them believed they were fully awake when it happened. Others say they felt as if they were in a semi-sleep state. Some say it is possible that the soul or spirit is able to detach itself from the body because isn't that what happens at death? Some compare it to the rare mystical experience called bilocation -- being in two places at the same time -- often cited in Christian literature and which some saints are said to have exhibited.

The major problem I have with those who deny these experiences are that they fail to take into account the increased peace, joy, courage and faith following an out-of-body event.

I know because it happened to me back when I was an army soldier in 1955. One night during my evening prayers, I felt myself rising out of my body. I was astonished to see my body below me. I felt oddly liberated. I was filled with wonder and exhilaration. I don't remember hearing any words, but I was aware of God's presence. It ended a short time later, but the aftertaste has lingered with me to this day.

After years of fear and confusion about my vocation, dating back to high school, I was finally able to surrender following that experience. My fears washed away, the agonizing period of indecision ended. A peaceful certainty came over me. I became convinced that God was really calling me to follow him.

Flushed with clarity and confidence after my experience with this supernatural event, I went forward with my vocation and was ordained a priest on May 28, 1960.