RE: Infusion of the soul as a process

From: Adrian Teo (ateo@whitworth.edu)
Date: Thu Jul 25 2002 - 01:46:31 EDT

  • Next message: Adrian Teo: "RE: Infusion of the soul as a process"

    Hello Shuan,

    I don't understand how science can possible establish that embryos
    become humans. At which point in development does the human person
    come into being? What scientific evidence could possibly prove that?

    Puzzled,

    Adrian.

            -----Original Message-----
            From: Shuan Rose [mailto:shuanr@boo.net]
            Sent: Wed 7/24/2002 11:06 AM
            To: Adrian Teo; RDehaan237@aol.com;
    hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com; dickfischer@earthlink.net; asa@calvin.edu
            Cc:
            Subject: RE: Infusion of the soul as a process

                    Hi, Adrian
            well, the idea comes from science, of course. Scientifically
    speaking, a human being develops from a human embryo. Some have
    earlier claimed that human beings came delivered by storks, but I
    believe that particular claim has been refuted:-)I agree about no
    partial human beings, but lets discuss the narrow issue of soul
    infusion before we discuss the broader ethical implications of human
    personhood.

            Cordially,
            Shuan

            -----Original Message-----
            From: Adrian Teo [mailto:ateo@whitworth.edu]
            Sent: Wednesday, July 24, 2002 2:04 AM
            To: Shuan Rose; RDehaan237@aol.com; hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com;
            dickfischer@earthlink.net; asa@calvin.edu
            Subject: RE: Infusion of the soul as a process

            Hello Shaun,

            Embryos becoming humans? Where does this idea come from, and
    metaphysically, how can it ever be credibly argued? Human personhood
    either is or isn't. There are no partial human persons.

            Adrian.

                    -----Original Message-----
                    From: Shuan Rose [mailto:shuanr@boo.net]
                    Sent: Mon 7/22/2002 2:23 PM
                    To: Adrian Teo; RDehaan237@aol.com;
    hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com; dickfischer@earthlink.net; asa@calvin.edu
                    Cc:
                    Subject: RE: Infusion of the soul as a process

                            The problem I see here is that according to
    what I have heard, for the
                    embryo to go on to be a human being, it has to
    implant in the wall of the
                    uterus. Otherwise, it just gets washed out with the
    next menstrual
                    flow-something that happens quite often. Do those
    embryos have fully formed
                    souls too?
                    See
    http://www.merck.com/pubs/mmanual/section18/chapter248/248a.htm.
                    According to this web site, the spinal cord and
    nervous system does not
                    start to form until day 1o. The major organs,
    including ( I guess )the brain
                    ( the presumed seat of the soul) form by somewhere
    around day 70.
                    Are there any experts on fetal development out
    there?If we are going to
                    guess about the date of the infusion of the soul, let
    us have an educated
                    guess.

                    -----Original Message-----
                    From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu
    [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu]On
                    Behalf Of Adrian Teo
                    Sent: Sunday, July 21, 2002 6:14 PM
                    To: RDehaan237@aol.com; hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com;
                    dickfischer@earthlink.net; asa@calvin.edu
                    Subject: RE: Infusion of the soul as a process

                    Hello All,

                    Just a suggestion: How about the traditional view,
    that the huamn
                    soul is fully formed upon conception and therefore,
    the conceptus is
                    a fully human person?

                            -----Original Message-----
                            From: RDehaan237@aol.com [mailto:RDehaan237@aol.com]
                            Sent: Sat 7/20/2002 4:54 PM
                            To: hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com;
    dickfischer@earthlink.net;
                    asa@calvin.edu
                            Cc:
                            Subject: Infusion of the soul as a process

                            In a message dated 7/20/02 11:39:01 AM,
                    hoss_radbourne@hotmail.com writes:

                            << Even with this answer, however, it is OK
    to speculate,
                    realizing that this
                            is metaphysics, not science. One speculation
    is that the
                    infusion of a soul
                            is a PROCESS, and takes place over the many
    months of gestation, and,
                            perhaps, is not complete until sometime in
    childhood. I don't like this
                            speculation; it implies that there are such
    things as either
                    "partial souls"
                            or "incomplete souls." >>

                            Burgy,

                            How about an "immature soul"? That makes the soul a
                    developing dimension of
                            human beings, reaching full maturity perhaps
    sometime in
                    early adolescence,
                            or at the age of accountability, as some of
    us old timers called it.

                            Just speculating.

                            Regards,

                            Bob



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