It has been suggested that we are living in The Age of Lazarus – that with the wonders of medical technology many of us have been brought back from death. And that means growing numbers of accounts of weird and wonderful glimpses of an afterlife.

In America, polls suggest that up to 5% of the population - that is 15 million - have had what are commonly called 'near-death' experiences.

Perhaps the most famous of them is Dr Eben Alexander. He is the neurosurgeon whose book Proof of Heaven, has been on the bestseller lists for two years. It details his experience during a coma, which he says led him from sceptical scientist to committed believer; he's now on a mission to tell the world that the soul lives on. And, in his latest book The Map of Heaven, that science and religion need no longer be at odds.

In Heart and Soul, Jane Little talks to Dr Alexander about science, religion and the afterlife. She also talks to leading researcher, Dr Bruce Greyson, who has collected thousands of accounts of near-death experiences, as well as to Dr Michael Shermer, who has yet to be persuaded that there is proof of life after death.

(Photo credit: Deborah Feingold Photography) Show less