Nothing in Nature Indicates That Spiritual Human Souls Exist

by Raymond Fontaine Ph.D. - August 2005

E-mail no. 8: I Tell Pope Benedict 16 That's My Belief.

    Greetings, Your Holiness. I hope that you are enjoying your new life in Rome. For today's discussion, I have chosen a crucial question: do spiritual human souls exist? Do they possess the glorious properties and functions that most Catholics believe? Or perhaps human souls don't exist at all. That's what I believe.

   Before we tackle this question of spiritual human souls, let me recall what we said about God's existence in an earlier discussion. We agreed that the magnificent designs in nature presuppose a supremely intelligent Designer who created them. The designs are physical; we observe them; they exist and so does their Designer. Thus our rational knowledge of Nature's God is solidly based on evident designs in nature.

   On the contrary, as regards spiritual human souls, we observe nothing in nature that requires them. As scientists progress in their understanding of nature, they discover realities and activities that explain what formerly was considered a mystery. Scientists do not resort to spiritual forces or causes to explain how the human body functions.

   Non-scientists, however, are not restricted in their quest for knowledge. If physical phenomena turn up for which they have no rational explanation, their imagination can provide non-physical and non-material causes.  

   And so, my friend, this is where I stand. My reason is the only faculty that I trust to provide me the truth. I know what the Church teaches. My reason no longer trusts the Church for the truth about spiritual human souls. However, I'll listen attentively to what you tell me about spiritual human souls. 

    In 1995 I took care of my brother, Robert, afflicted with cancer. The night before he died, to get a final smile from him, I said, "If there is a heaven, please send me an e-mail. Tell me there's an afterlife and the soul is real." He never sent a message evidently because he couldn't. But in your Vatican den, you can send me a secret and secure e-mail. If possible, show me that humans have a spiritual soul. I would gladly embrace that truth. Moreover I would very much like to see Robert again and to meet you in person. Adios.

E-mail no. 9: Pope Benedict 16 Tells Me What He Truly Believes.

    Thanks for your thought provoking e-mail. If you should want to meet me, I'll send a papal guard to escort you all the way from Seal Beach City to Vatican City. Together in my chambers, we could have daily discussions. For now, however, let me respond to your question about the human spiritual soul. 

    I agree with everything you said about the observable designs in nature that rationally require and presuppose an intelligent source. What is true of nature as a whole applies as well to every creature in the universe, including human beings. Nature reveals nothing more about the intelligent source of its designs.

    Before telling you what I think about spiritual human souls, let's review what Pope John Paul 2 wrote about this subject in his famous The Catechism of the Catholic Church. First, "The human body is animated by a spiritual soul." Secondly, "Every spiritual soul is created immediately by God - it is not produced by the parents." Thirdly, "The soul is immortal: it does not perish when it separates from the body at death." Fourthly, "It will be reunited with the body at the final global Resurrection."  The first statement lays the basis for the other three. Unfortunately the Pope cannot prove his fundamental statement. To substantiate it, he offers only one quote and that from Genesis,2:7 "Then the Lord formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being."

    This statement was first recorded some three thousand years ago about an event (the appearance of the first humans) a million years earlier. It states that man was formed from dust on the ground which is not spiritual stuff. It further states that God breathed into man the breath of life. Does God breathe? Is his breath spiritual? Evidently the author of this statement is simply stating that God made man and saying nothing about the composition of man's nature. 

    Again to compare our knowledge of God and that of the human soul, there is physical evidence in nature's designs that presuppose supreme intelligence whereas there is nothing physical in man that requires a spiritual (immaterial) cause besides God. 

    Where did the idea of the spiritual soul originate? It reputedly came from God himself who revealed it to some ancient patriarch. It was then passed along generation after generation for thousands of years first by word of mouth and then in script. 

    People like me hold on to it because belief in spiritual souls is a great idea. It spawns other beliefs, such as that of the afterlife, that are comforting, inspiring and beautiful. All these wonderful beliefs would quickly  evaporate if people discarded them as myths. Since the existence of souls cannot be disproved, they remain possible. Millions believe they exist and are comforted and happier in that belief. Why not hold on to it and enjoy its soothing effect in life that can be troublesome and harsh. 

    I would like to discuss this idea more thoroughly in the near future. Get it started and I will continue it without delay. It sounds intriguing. Adios, my friend. To return to list of e-mails, click here.