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Do animals have souls?

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Rambozo

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I've heard souls defined in different ways, and I am open to the idea of animals having souls.

However, since the consciousness of animals is less complex than that of humans, I would assume that, if animals have souls, they are less complex than human souls.

So, while people can deny that humans and animals have souls by insisting that their material bodies are all that exists (something, which, I believe can be debunked), I am open to hearing others thoughts on the subject.
 


Do animals have souls?​

No. The Bible says that both animals and humans are souls. (Numbers 31:28) When the first man, Adam, was created, he was not given a soul but “became a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7, footnote) A soul is composed of two things: the “dust from the ground” and “the breath of life.”

Can souls die?​

Yes, the Bible teaches that souls can die. (Leviticus 21:11, footnote; Ezekiel 18:20) At death, animals and humans return to the dust of the earth. (Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20) In other words, they cease to exist.

Do animals sin?​

No. To sin means to think, feel, or do something that violates God’s standards. In order to sin, a creature must be able to make moral decisions, but animals lack this ability. They usually act according to instinct during their limited life span. (2 Peter 2:12) At the end of their life span, they die, even though they do not sin.
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/502019179
 
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Do humans? Citations?
 
I'm not aware of anyone saying that the idea of an immortal soul comes specifically from the Bible, just as how the theory of gravity doesn't come from the Bible. I believe Plato was an early thinker who speculated about such a thing.
 
Rambozo said:
I'm not aware of anyone saying that the idea of an immortal soul comes specifically from the Bible, just as how the theory of gravity doesn't come from the Bible. I believe Plato was an early thinker who speculated about such a thing.
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Plato was a pagan...so there's that...the immortal soul does not come from the Bible though, you're right about that...
 
Daisy said:
Plato was a pagan...so there's that...the immortal soul does not come from the Bible though, you're right about that...
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Plato was pre-Christian.
 
Rambozo said:
And that has what to do with the concept of an immortal soul? I guess I'm confused.
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Pagans were known for their belief in the immortal soul...
 
Humans are animals too.
 
Individual said:
Humans are animals too.
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That's an arbitrary category invented by humans, and there's certainly no reason that we have to use such a categorization.
 
Rambozo said:
And that has what to do with the concept of an immortal soul? I guess I'm confused.
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Thats all a soul is, a (religious) concept. And a rather silly one at that.
 
Gordy327 said:
Thats all a soul is, a (religious) concept. And a rather silly one at that.
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The idea that murdering people is wrong is a "religious" concept, but that doesn't make it silly.

"Religious" seems to just be a word you use for anything you don't like or don't understand.

The evidence, on the other hand, indicates that souls exist.
 
Rambozo said:
The idea that murdering people is wrong is a "religious" concept, but that doesn't make it silly.

"Religious" seems to just be a word you use for anything you don't like or don't understand.
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The topic is soul, not legal issues. You cant even follow the topic in your own thread. You're bad at this. Still waiting on that evidence for souls.
 
Rambozo said:
That's an arbitrary category invented by humans, and there's certainly no reason that we have to use such a categorization.
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Humans (Homo sapiens) are classified as follows: Domain: Eukaryota, Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Primates, Family: Hominidae, Genus: Homo, and Species: sapiens.

What would you suggest we use instead?

In addition, language, beliefs, morals and gods were created by humans too.

As we have increased our knowledge and understanding about what exists naturally in the world in which we live, we humans have become quite creative.

IMO, if it has a brain, it has what we call a soul. When the body dies or the brain is deprived of oxygen, the soul dies.
 
The material body is all that exists according to scripture. There's no such thing as the soul being a separate part of the person or animal and that it survives physical death. When the person or animal dies, the soul dies because the person or animal is the soul.


"The soul that sinneth, it shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him." (Ezekiel 18:20 -- English Revised Version)
 
Gordy327 said:
The topic is soul, not legal issues. You cant even follow the topic in your own thread. You're bad at this. Still waiting on that evidence for souls.
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It's been provided. And it's been demonstrated to you that the idea of a soul has nothing to do with religion. You're not remotely informed on the subjects you speak of, or what constitutes evidence.

But I'll continue. Stop saying that evidence "isn't evidence", when it clearly is.

Have scientists found proof of the human soul? Experts say the evidence Is more than just spiritual

Scientists are investigating the concept of the soul. Studies on nuns during spiritual experiences showed unusual brain activity. Researchers like Dr. Stuart Hameroff suggest consciousness might persist after death. Professor Charles Tart researched out-of-body experiences. Philosopher Thomas...
economictimes.indiatimes.com
 
no. Neither do people really.
 

Out of body experiences and their neural basis: They are linked to multisensory and cognitive processing in the brain - PMC

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

We can actually simulate these experiences with drugs and the like. Its kinda like dreaming in a way. Its a material phenomena.

The way the article you linked talks about neural pathways that are typically stimulated during religious practice. This is no surprise because they are often linked with deep sleep and meditation, nothing surprising there. These are indeed natural processes that can come about via different mechanisms.
 
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Why does damage to the brain completely change one’s personality? This should not happen if our personality and consciousness is immaterial and not an emergent property of our brains. Why can i not just will myself to not be autistic?
 
No, thoughts aren't something material, for example.

Even if you want to claim that the brain is required to have thoughts, dreams, and such - the thoughts, dreams, and such themselves are not material.
 
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