'The Accidental Prophet' to share the near-death experience that made him a believer

Belief in God and the insight that one person can make a difference are among the lessons former celebrity image consultant Peter Anthony, known as "The Accidental Prophet," experienced after being pronounced clinically dead.

He immediately saw that a lack of love and compassion led to the fall of great nations and says he gained instant understanding of quantum physics.

He says there was no judgment as his life passed before him. He saw areas where he could have been better, and he accepted his mistakes. He remembered a scene from his life years before of his sister coming to his locker while they were in high school and her telling him happy birthday.

He wanted to thank her and tell her that he loved her, but because members of the football team stood within earshot, he told her he'd talk to her later.

She was killed by a drunk driver later that night.

Instead of judgment, he felt the "Ascended Master" say, "You can do better."

It was 11:11 p.m. Nov. 11, 1987, when Anthony died after an illness. He chose to return to his body, and he's been sharing his message of love and compassion to sold-out crowds since then, he says.

"What I learned on the other side," he says, "when I clinically died and had my life reviewed and had my conversation with God, it's a very simple formula I learned: It's called love, kindness and compassion."

Anthony will be the main speaker at Welcome Home's annual Demystifying Death & Dying enrichment series at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Unitarian Universalist Church on Navajo Drive.

The event is the first in a series of five evening sessions scheduled from September through March. Other sessions are titled "Conscious Caregiving," "Death Cafe," "Grief and the Holidays, "Death Over Dinner" (a discussion over a meal) and "Living While Dying" (a film screening). The enrichment sessions will be followed by an all-day conference in April on the series' main theme. There's no fee for the evening sessions, but Welcome Home will ask for donations.

"It's all about giving the community opportunity to come and learn about end-of-life care," says Sherry Campbell, executive director of Welcome Home, a hospice for people who are terminally ill and homeless.

"I think people do want to talk about it, but they're scared. They think if they make a living will then it's going to happen to me."

People need to get with family members and discuss their end-of-life wishes, says Campbell. And they shouldn't be afraid to knock on the door of someone who is dying.

"Many people die in isolation because others don't know how to visit them," she says.

Anthony says his near-death experience changed his life.

As a freelance image consultant, he worked with many well-known names in television such as Dan Rather, Diane Sawyer, Lesley Stahl and Bob Schieffer. After his near-death experience, he no longer considered his talent to be an artist. He became a producer, international psychic and paranormal investigator and author. His latest book is "The Accidental Prophet."

He previously called himself agnostic. He now says he's a believer.

He previously stuttered. Now his speech impediment is gone.

Contact Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.