Near death experience of Howard Storm

[Catholic_Lady]

Perhaps you are right.

It just seems like someone who is a strong atheist would *want* to try their best to attribute non religious significance to their experience. It seems that would be their immediate, go to rationale. At least this is what I've gathered from talking to all of you. This is why I am considering the possibility that what happened to them was indeed something very very real. SO real that not even extremely skeptical, strong atheists were be able to "rationalize" their way out of it once it happened to them.

Sorry for only replying now... I've tried to keep up to date with this thread while being otherwise engaged (or e-engaged, in this case )

I understand that you would see it as a radical shift in this Storm person's life.
But, as has been addressed a few times, one must question the story from its very beginning.
- Was he really a "strong atheist"? Perhaps, perhaps not. We cannot tell and, from your own account here, only his daughter is on record as saying something that agrees with the father - conflict of interest - the question remains. For a guy that claims to have been so vocal, prior to this event, there is a remarkable silence from his audience. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, but it does hint to it.
- If he was indeed such a "strong atheist", your observation is correct. He would likely try to rationalize his experience within his own context. That he apparently came out a believer, is indicative that either he is poor at rationalizing it, or that he's lying. Why would he lie? to sell books, apparently... With all the fiction out there, religious fiction doesn't seem like a stretch of the imagination, to me.
So, the whole story smells fishy...

Yes, I did not find anyone talking about him being an atheist before the incident, but I did not find anyone saying he wasn't, either. He keeps saying he was, so it seems as though if he weren't, there would be people saying things like "ummm, no, I knew him. He was definitely a Christian." Or something. 

Not saying he definitely WAS an atheist, just weighing the possibilities. It could be that he is exaggerating about being such a staunch one. Who knows.  

Though we've established that it least probably is a lie because he didn't JUST sell books. If that's all he had done, ok, I could maybe see that. But he did far more than that. He quit his job of 15 years, went to seminary school, became a pastor, and dedicated his life to Christianity. I don't think someone who is an under cover atheist would pretend to be a Christian to that extent.