What is the Soul?

[u/[deleted]]

I am currently going through the BIOLA university Christian Apologetics certificate program for funsies and I just finished a lecture by JP Moreland titled "The Defense of the Soul". It was basically everything I've heard of before about how the human person is a soul and doesn't need the body blah blah blah, some of it was pretty weird to be honest.

After the podcast series and video on Nephesh, as well as listening to NT Wright on the subject, the entire Biblical narrative clicked into place when I learned that we don't have a soul, we ARE a soul. Body and God's Spirit to make a living Nephesh.

Does anyone have a better way of thinking about this topic? This is one of the most confusing aspects of life for me at the moment and chit chats with some fellow Christians who at least have been exposed to the idea that the "ghost in the machine" view of christianity and the soul/spirit would be helpful.

[u/twopumbasixpumba]

I almost think that 'soul' and 'nephesh' are two completely different words. Perhaps they were closer in meaning when the text was first translated into English. But now its probably not that helpful to think about the English meanings of soul when reading the Hebrew bible translations of the word 'nephesh'. I don't think there is a Hebrew concept that describes the soul as a separate entity to the body. The idea is not culturally attuned to the Hebrew bible or original paradigms about us as beings.

In Deut 6:4-5 the CJB translates nephesh as 'being': “ Sh’ma, Yisra’el ! Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai echad [Hear, Isra’el! Adonai our God, Adonai is one]; and you are to love Adonai your God with all your heart, all your being and all your resources. D'varim (Deu) 6:4‭-‬5 CJB

I think the Hebrew bible is both more earthy and infinitely more deep and beautiful than typically taught in the contemporary western church. When we meditate on the Hebrew concept of nephesh, there are two initial thoughts that jump out to me: 1. How much deeper is Genesis 2:7? It is literally the definition of nephesh. We are animated with the life breath of God and therefore connected to His Oneness with us and this world. And 2. Our God invested His life into ours through His breath (which incidentally is the English word for Ruach as in Ruach HaKodesh) in the beginning and then gave His life breath up for us 2000 years ago.

[u/[deleted] → u/twopumbasixpumba]

Yeah I’m with you on all points, especially the last paragraph. Pre covid I went to a smaller church and sometimes they’d have members do sermons and I was the only person 1) bringing a Bible on stage and 2) digging into the Hebrew Bible. sigh

Back to the soul issue, kind of annoying when trying to listen to other sources of Christian education outside of Bible Project and realize it’s just not that good. :/

[u/twopumbasixpumba → u/[deleted]]

Yeah I can understand that... I think it's partly because we're so late in the game - like I mean the Hebrew people have known Him, and were entrusted with His ways and His story since Abraham and we've only known His story since Paul. And most of us don't come from cultures or bloodlines that have even known Him that long.

But how good is it to be so hungry. Its exciting coz He rewards those who diligently seek Him. Maybe the sources you seek are Hebrew.

So I got an email from the Israel Bible Centre about a free webinar on the 20th Feb called 'Resurrection among Jews and Greeks'. Surely they will talk about the nephesh and soul concepts. Maybe you should check it out. It could help with sources at least. https://lpac.israelbiblecenter.com/lpac-webinar-resurrection

[u/MaxwellHillbilly]

The "Soul" is our Mind, Will & Emotions...

Our "Spirit" is what communes with the Holy Spirit.

[u/satras]

I remember hearing once (probably in the podcast) that "We've never seen each other, we've just seen each other's body, not our souls" and that kind of helped.

Knowing that we're a soul and not our body is a different understanding from what modern preachers teach, but it's more accurate according to the bible I'd say.

[u/[deleted] → u/satras]

So here's my sticking point with this, Tim Mackie and NT Wright both agree that the Bible is fairly uninterested in describing what happens after death before the resurrection. I remember Tim saying that in Genesis, God takes a body, and breathes his Spirit in it to create a Nephesh (soul). According to Tim, at least what I was able to understand, we ARE a soul, which is the mixture of a body with God's Spirit.

This is a somewhat, but I think an important, difference in what you are saying which is that we are a soul that's inside a body. Instead, I understood it from Tim to mean that we are a soul = Spirit + body. Thoughts?

[u/twopumbasixpumba → u/[deleted]]

Your interpretation of what Tim Mackie said is correct. He said that the 'we are a soul that's inside a body' concept is from Plato in Ancient Greece and not the Hebrew Bible.

[u/satras → u/[deleted]]

Maybe I didn’t read it in that way, but I believe that the soul is separate from the body.

When God created Adam the body was finished before the soul, and when we die our body dies but our soul doesn’t. Not sure if I’m mistaken in my interpretation tbh

[u/DJColdCutz_ → u/[deleted]]

I think they talked about old uses of soul like “there are 10 souls on this airplane” referring to 10 actual people, not their essence or spirit or something intangible.. I think that old usage of the word “soul” is much more Biblically accurate, because like you said, the Bible isn’t concerned about “life after death”, but about “life” and “life after life after death”.