Buzz
The enigma of what lies beyond death has intrigued humanity for ages. Individuals hold varied beliefs, with answers spanning from complete oblivion to the fulfillment of all imaginable dreams. For just as long, humanity has sought to outwit death. Some stories suggest they might have succeeded.
10. Alexsei Kuliabko
Aleksei Kuliabko, a Russian scientist affiliated with the Physiological Laboratory of the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg during the early 20th century, achieved groundbreaking progress by 1902. He successfully revived the hearts of animals that had been detached for up to five days. By 1903, he advanced his experiments to human hearts, starting with a three-month-old infant who had died naturally. Two days post-death, he managed to restart the heart's beating.
While resurrecting an entire human was a monumental leap, Kuliabko's ambition knew no bounds. His achievements and resurrection experiments garnered global attention, with editorials praising his progress and predicting imminent success in reviving human heads and eventually whole bodies. The boundary between science fiction and reality began to blur, and Kuliabko emerged as a symbol of scientific progress, often depicted in staged promotional images with unsettling focal points.
As the tales go, Kuliabko ventured to reanimate a full human body. Utilizing the corpse of a man who had died during surgery a day prior, and aided by pharmacist and chemist Fyodor Andreyev, Kuliabko infused the deceased's veins with a solution of calcium chloride, potassium chloride, sodium chloride, sodium bicarbonate, dextrose (a British scientist's creation for sustaining heart function), and adrenaline. The heart resumed beating, and the man reportedly emitted a death rattle, startling the assistants. After maintaining the heartbeat for 20 minutes, Kuliabko ceased the experiment.
9. John Lacy
John Lacy, an English justice-of-the-peace, became entangled with the 18th-century French Prophets movement and was foretold to be the instrument for reviving Thomas Emes.
The French Prophets criticized numerous Anglican doctrines, including the contradiction of priests wearing black, which they associated with the Devil. Influential figures like Lacy bolstered the Prophets' influence as they expanded into London, though their actions alarmed more than they convinced.
Lacy was among the movement's followers who asserted they were periodically inhabited by a divine spirit. He professed to produce automatic writings under the Holy Spirit's influence, a state he couldn't recall afterward. Additionally, he conveyed his prophecies in Latin, Greek, and French. While he insisted it was glossolalia, skeptics noted his fluency in French and education in Greek and Latin, despite his poor pronunciation.
This progression led to claims of miraculous healings, and by 1708, Lacy was set to resurrect Dr. Thomas Emes, a fellow believer. Emes passed on December 22, and a young prophetess foretold his resurrection for May 25. In the interim, followers donned green ribbons as a mark of righteousness, and Lacy persisted in his healing acts. On the anticipated day, approximately 20,000 spectators gathered to witness the event.
The miracle never occurred, and Dr. Emes did not return from the dead. Lacy's unsuccessful attempt shifted public sentiment from belief to mockery, despite his prior written reservations about the event's feasibility.
8. Lorenzo Snow
In 1889, Lorenzo Snow, a prominent Mormon leader and Elder, assumed the role of President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles during a tumultuous period in Mormon history. Recently released from prison after being convicted under anti-polygamy laws, Snow took the helm of the church. In 1891, he reportedly performed one of his most astonishing miracles.
Ella Jensen, Snow's niece, passed away at 10 a.m. on March 9 while he was delivering a speech. Upon learning of her death, he rushed to her home and stood by her side. After requesting consecrated oil, he anointed her and declared, “Dear Ella, I command you, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, to return to life, for your mission is not yet complete. You shall live to fulfill a great purpose.” Snow reassured her parents and departed. An hour later, she awoke and asked for Snow, crediting him with calling her back to life.
7. Lazzaro Spallanzani And Anton Van Leeuwenhoek
Lazzaro Spallanzani, an 18th-century Italian scientist, is renowned for his contributions to the spontaneous generation theory. He was deeply intrigued by the ability of certain animals, like worms, frogs, and salamanders, to regenerate lost body parts. Additionally, he achieved the remarkable feat of reviving minuscule creatures from a lifeless state.
Spallanzani collected sediment from a rain gutter and observed it under his microscope. He named the tiny organisms he discovered il Tardigrado, or “slow-stepper,” and found that reintroducing water to their environment could restore them to life.
Decades earlier, in 1702, Dutch scientist Anton van Leeuwenhoek made a similar discovery with another group of microscopic organisms. Known today as rotifers, Leeuwenhoek observed that while they appeared completely lifeless when dry, adding water revived them. Though impressive, rotifers can only survive in a dried state for a limited time.
Studies on Tardigrades in the 1940s suggested that dried specimens could potentially be revived after up to 120 years. While this claim remains unverified, it has been confirmed that Tardigrades can be reanimated after being dried for as long as eight years. Scientists remain uncertain about the exact mechanism, but they believe these creatures enter a state of near-death, retracting their heads and legs and reducing their life processes to about 0.01% of normal function. It is also theorized that they produce a protective chemical as they dry, though the full secret to their survival remains a mystery.
6. Elijah Pierson
In the early 19th century, religious movements were flourishing across the United States. Elijah Pierson and his wife, Sarah, were part of a group that embraced extreme beliefs, including fasting to the point of emaciation, experiencing visions, constant prayer, living a modest lifestyle, and harboring disdain for the poor. After establishing a home to help women of ill repute rediscover their faith, Sarah contracted tuberculosis.
Elijah believed this was a test of his faith and documented a vision in his journals where God assured him of Sarah’s recovery. God also instructed him to adopt the name Elijah the Tishbite, signifying his role as the next great prophet. Following this, Elijah assembled his followers at Sarah’s bedside to anoint her and pray. After her death, he interpreted it as a divine mandate to resurrect her.
Elijah once again gathered his followers and conducted prayers and rituals over her coffin during the funeral. Among the attendees was her father, John Stanford, a minister who later expressed feeling “ill and depressed in mind” after witnessing the event. Unsurprisingly, Sarah did not return from the dead.
The story continued when one of Pierson’s followers persuaded him that Sarah’s spirit would return through another person. The follower even identified the vessel for Sarah’s spirit as Frances Folger, a woman she claimed would eventually bear his child.
After Sarah’s passing, Pierson fell into profound despair, exacerbated by the strange events surrounding him. Following a mysterious poisoning, Pierson died on July 28, 1834. The sole suspect was Isabella Van Wagenen, the former housekeeper of the Pierson family, later known as Sojourner Truth. Van Wagenen filed and won a libel lawsuit against Folger over the allegations.
5. The Society For The Recovery Of Persons Apparently Drowned
Established in 1774 by William Hawes and Thomas Cogan, the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned continues to operate today as the Royal Humane Society. Cogan was the first to translate a Dutch study on reviving drowning victims by introducing air into their lungs. Concerned by the high number of deaths in the Thames, Cogan proposed to Hawes the creation of a society to disseminate this life-saving knowledge. Despite initial ridicule, they persisted.
The mockery didn’t last long, as King George III endorsed the society in 1783. Beyond spreading awareness, they set up a network of doctors and surgeons operating from homes and pubs along the Thames. They supplied resuscitation tools and even provided incentives to those performing rescues and to pub owners for offering their premises.
However, the reward system aimed at encouraging life-saving efforts soon led to abuse. Teams exploited the system, with one person feigning drowning and another pretending to revive them. The scam became so prevalent that the society switched from cash rewards to issuing certificates.
4. Sergei Bryukhonenko
In 1925, Sergei Bryukhonenko unveiled his “autojektor” at the Second Congress of Russian Pathologists. This device circulated blood through a body into a glass container, where it was artificially oxygenated and returned to the subject. During the demonstration, he maintained a dog’s head alive for 100 minutes, though the audience remained largely unimpressed.
A year and a half later, the media discovered Bryukhonenko’s experiments, catapulting him to fame. The public was furious, not because of the gruesome nature of his work, but due to the lack of government funding and support he received. This outrage prompted a significant grant from the People’s Commissariat for the Protection of Health, and news of the Russian experiments spread widely. Even George Bernard Shaw joked that if the claims were true, he would consider having his head preserved to focus on writing without life’s distractions.
Reports suggest Bryukhonenko advanced his experiments by testing the autojektor on a human. He obtained the body of a man who had committed suicide and connected it to the machine three hours post-death. After several hours, the device allegedly worked its eerie magic: the heart restarted, sounds emerged from the throat, and the man’s eyes opened, staring at the doctors. Like Kuliabko’s team, the scientists were so terrified by their success that they shut the machine down after just two minutes.
3. John Dee And Edward Kelley
Tales of John Dee, an astronomer and advisor to Queen Elizabeth I, and Edward Kelley occupy a mysterious space between history and legend. According to Lancashire folklore, Dee and Kelley were called to St. Leonard’s Churchyard one night in the late 16th century. A wealthy local man had recently died, taking the secret of his fortune to the grave.
Dee and Kelley exhumed the grave, and according to the tale, Kelley conducted the ritual over the decaying corpse. Despite the body’s decomposition, the dead man’s eyes reportedly opened, and he disclosed the location of his hidden fortune. He also shared otherworldly insights, allegedly predicting the fates of several locals. The dead man’s predictions proved accurate.
Interestingly, centuries later, archaeologists discovered a real buried treasure. The church where Dee and Kelley supposedly performed their nocturnal resurrection is near Preston, where a significant treasure was unearthed in 1840. Known as the Cuerdale Hoard, it consisted of approximately 8,600 silver coins and other artifacts, making it the largest Viking-era silver find ever recorded. The coins were handed over to the British Museum, with each excavation team member retaining one coin. It was later determined that the hoard was buried between 905 and 910, likely by Vikings recently expelled from Ireland.
2. Smith Wigglesworth
In 1907, Smith Wigglesworth evolved from a timid speaker into a dynamic Pentecostal figure. Initially training as a plumber, he was swept up by a wave of faith and belief. Over time, he developed the conviction that illness represented a spiritual battle between God and the Devil within an individual. He maintained that unwavering faith was the sole requirement to overcome any affliction.
Wigglesworth traveled across Europe and the United States, attracting crowds numbering in the tens of thousands, despite Sweden banning his practice of laying on hands. Despite his fame and reported successes, both his wife and daughter died young. He attributed his inability to heal them to his own spiritual inadequacy at the time.
Stories about Wigglesworth claim he didn’t just heal the sick but also resurrected the dead. Followers asserted he revived at least 14 individuals, including a man lying in his coffin at a funeral home. Wigglesworth reportedly lifted the man, leaned him against a wall, and commanded him to live. After two failed attempts, the man allegedly coughed, stood up, and walked out of the funeral home alive. Another account describes him reviving a close friend. Upon learning of his friend’s illness, Wigglesworth arrived to find the man’s wife mourning. After praying upstairs, the friend reportedly rose from death and lived many more years. Wigglesworth began his first U.S. ministry in 1914.
1. The Dead Raising Team
Led by Tyler Johnson, the Dead Raising Team is a Christian healing group inspired by Matthew 10:8—“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.” While Jesus addressed the Apostles, the group believes the directive applies to all believers. As of 2014, they claimed to have resurrected 11 people through faith and prayer.
Johnson stated his reputation often grants him access through police barricades to pray for accident victims. However, he withholds the names and details of those he has revived. He does, however, offer training at their School of Resurrection for those interested in learning the practice.
The Dead Raising Team isn’t alone in asserting the power of prayer to revive the dead. Another group, Global Awakening, actively seeks opportunities to practice their resurrection techniques. A frequently mentioned example involves an American heart surgeon who reportedly revived a patient by combining prayer with the use of a defibrillator.
