During his years as a Benedictine monk, Tom Veitch formed lasting friendships with two spiritual visionaries, both who were former Trappists. As he approached his time of dying, one of those men, whose religious name was Elias, agreed to discuss in depth the whole extent of his spiritual life, covering a period of more than fifty years. Here, for the first time, Elias reveals how God came to him in dream and vision, moving him to abandon the world and take up the devotional life of a cloistered monk. He shares his investigations of the teachings of the East and his extensive involvement with the writings of C.G. Jung and with Jungian analysis. Finally, as he approaches death, Elias describes how he finds himself at peace with God and already immersed in the reality of the afterlife. This book is no fantasy -- it's the real deal. Patiently, and with considerable wisdom, Elias laid out for Tom not only the experiences themselves, but his thoughts about them based on a life-long study of theology, psychology and the great religions both west and east. Profound, but not a solemn book, The Visions of Elias is laced throughout with humor and a lightness of tone. As Elias said, he wasn't setting out to preach. He just wanted to tell his story for the record, for he knew that soon he would be going to the One who calls us all, and leaving this world forever. TOM VEITCH wrote the best-selling STAR WARS graphic novels DARK EMPIRE and TALES OF THE JEDI. He also authored creator-owned graphic novels for DC Comics and Marvel/Epic Comics, including THE LIGHT AND DARKNESS WAR (with artist Cam Kennedy), THE NAZZ (with artist Bryan Talbot), CLASH! (with artist Adam Kubert), and MY NAME IS CHAOS (with artist John Ridgway). In the early 1990s Tom and Cam Kennedy were invited by George Lucas to revive Star Wars comics, which had been dormant for half a decade. Their award-winning graphic novel STAR WARS: DARK EMPIRE has gone through many editions and helped pave the way for a Star Wars renaissance. Tom also conceived and originated TALES OF THE JEDI (aka Knights of the Old Republic), featuring stories that take place 4000 years before the time period of the Star Wars films. Less well known is the fact that From 1960 to 1965 Tom was an active participant in the literary scene on New York's Lower East Side, and from 1965 to 1968 he was a cloistered Benedictine monk in Weston, Vermont. It was at Weston that Tom met the two spiritual visionaries, both former Trappists, whose stories he shares in THE VISIONS OF ELIAS.