Is the Soul Eternal? →

- RSS

  Is our soul eternal? How can we know for sure? Do those parents who give this advice know for sure?

“Be good, son, if you want to go to heaven.”

Being good is about your attitude. The world might slap you down, but keep smiling, and you will go to heaven.

Really?

Does it make any difference what I learn or if I help others when they get slapped? If I try to help others, doesn’t that mean that what I do has more value rather than just being willing to do it? Do I help others because it makes me a better man, or do I help them because they need help?

     In his advice to be good, the dad asks for attitude rather than action. Good thoughts, my son, because you will go to heaven if you do.

Rudyard Kipling offered his son a promise in the Poem “IF” advice on a stoic’s focus on goals.

“Yours is the Earth and everything in it,

and, what is more, you’ll be a Man, my son!” 

     Kipling’s promise is at least to offer that the son will be a man, and the definition of being a man perhaps was also Kipling. What about the father’s promise that his son will go to heaven? That father can offer the promise but can’t provide the evidence.

If you, or at least your soul, does get to heaven, you must live with yourself for eternity. So the next question might be: then what?

Some religions believe the soul returns after death and reunites with a resurrected body, while others are unsure whether the soul exists without its original body. Either way, a spiritual existence for each of us should carry the experiences, knowledge, and skills we can from our current life journey.

     Plato, Aristotle, and many others wondered about this when they wrote about the existence of the soul. A more recent philosopher, Will Durant, wrote about the history of man, looking deeply into the lives of all things. He noted that he had little doubt that the soul existed as part of human existence, a view shared by many intellectuals.

Some, like Durant, are influenced by a belief that the universe brings about and creates life, taking matter and evolving it into living forms, and they even suggest this is the universe’s purpose. This view states that all matter has a spiritual essence.

     Durant was fond of his unique soul but said he did not expect it to survive the complete death of his body. He concluded this in Fallen Leaves, ironically the last of three posthumous titles, saying he felt the body’s death would likewise be the death of the soul. That conclusion seems at odds with his passion for life and views that energy exists within all things. It looks odd on several levels since he didn’t understand what the soul was.

     Durant said he wanted to bring the “future into focus,” and his method was to focus on the raw experience of history. This approach is brilliantly reflected in his extensive work writing the eleven volumes of The Story of Civilization. Durant believed that life flowed from what he thought was a mysterious source that moved like a river from an unknown beginning to an abrupt end with the body’s death. The sudden end of the soul is often the conclusion of intellectuals that seems to be tied to the concept of determinism: the doctrine that all events, including human action, are ultimately determined by causes external to the will.

When you place great value on individual experiences, it suggests that free will and agency are essential.

     My own opinion is that Durant was on the right track. His conclusions on the nature of the soul were incomplete because he needed to live longer to experience and understand all the options, such as spatial dimension theory.

     We live in a world clearly defined by three spatial dimensions plus the further dimension of time. However, Durant needed more information about the fourth, fifth, and other dimensions. In 1919, mathematician Theodor Kaluza presented a new idea, stating that in addition to the three dimensions of location, objects occupied a position in time: the fourth dimension.

Today, string theorists present more complicated theories,s saying it’s pretty easy to assume there are ten or eleven dimensions and more. Maybe these other dimensions include or await our participation with our spiritual soul.

     Seeing life metaphorically, like a river of influences and forces, is a poetic approach that ties things together, but it ignores where the river starts and assumes that it ends.

I conclude that the soul continues after death, and the soul's life is eternal. The implications of Durant’s thoughts and what has been learned about string theory are compelling, but my religious teachings also make a great deal of difference for me.

     As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I believe Jesus Christ died on the cross, rose on the third day, and appeared again to his disciples. I also conclude that the soul leaves the body at death for all of us and, at some point, is resurrected again, regaining a physical body.

It is what is inside us that motivates us and keeps us going →

- RSS

- RSS

by Brent M. Jones

Starting at about four, my mother would have me kneel at my bedside and say my prayers. The importance of that part of my life story has changed over the years, and I see it differently. I value this experience, and I am grateful for it.

The early assumption that God was listening and that taking problems to him would be helpful has been a comfort, even without confirmation of having been heard at times. This sentiment is summed up well in a quote by C. S. Lewis: “Life with God is not immunity from difficulties, but peace in difficulties.”

Others have shared how they were taught similar lessons at a very young age by saying a prayer many are familiar with: “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray thee, Lord, my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” I have thought about this often: If a person dies and his soul is taken, what is the soul, and what exactly is taken?

 If the soul is eternal and lives on when the body dies, it must be made of different materials. If that substance is spiritual, then where does it reside within our living bodies? Is it separate or part of our living flesh?

Some have referred to the soul as the seat or location of our character and emotions. It is sometimes explained as the spirit within a person and the person’s mental abilities, personality, feelings, memories, perception, thinking, and even skills. Wherever our soul goes, if our particular skills are needed, perhaps our work ethic learned in obtaining those skills is part of the package.

Whatever it is that will go with me, if I die before I wake, I want to understand as much about everything as possible and make sure my knowledge is worth taking along.

Louis Armstrong once said, “Musicians don’t retire; they stop when there’s no more music in them,” and “What we play is life.” What, then, is that music if you are not a musician? How did that music, or that passion, get to be inside us?

Armstrong is saying that music is a part of his work ethic and life and is needed to exist. This leaves the question of what our music might be and how we keep from losing it. I conclude that my “music - passion” and what makes me feel alive are family, reading, writing, and service, but these items have evolved g and changed as I look back over my life story.

Music can be a connection between our physical selves and our very souls. We feel the music. It reflects our hearts. Music with scriptures are hymns, and we worship through hymns. The feelings of our hearts are conveyed in prayer with music.

Our bodies and faces reflect the images of happiness and sadness. Music and singing open up those feelings. Sometimes we sing for what we long for, using music to help us get by without the necessary things.

What do we long for? What do we have a passion for? Love and kindness are passions that can focus on us and drive our actions. We lose ourselves in those feelings; for some, opportunities for service to others reflect their hearts. When applicable passions fill our minds, we have a little place to worry about ourselves.

For us, what we play, rather than music, can be whatever we love. It can be anything we choose, but we need to feel passionate about it. If you’re lucky enough to love knowledge, learning, or service, then you are indeed blessed. That, like the music for Louis, never stops being an option.

When the Music Runs Out (what if your too young to retire?) →

- RSS

What happens when the music runs out? Do musicians retire when that happens?  Louis Armstrong said musicians don't retire; they only stop when no more music is left in them. Is it possible that we may reach the point when we have no more pieces left in us? Joan Baez will retire at the end of 2018. Will "her" ability to make music be gone? Of course not, but maybe the sound changes?

Music is a connection between our physical self and our very souls. We feel the music. It reflects our hearts and deepest feelings. 

Music with scriptures is hymns. We worship through hymns. The feelings of our heart are conveyed in verbal prayer, so perhaps prayer is a form of music? 

Our bodies and faces reflect images of happiness and sadness, and music opens those feelings. Singing makes us better. Sometimes we sing for what we long for. We use music to help us get by without things wanted.

When the music is gone, maybe we have left and gone somewhere with us, hopefully, to find the piece.

Is the Human Soul Eternal and is it transcendent of our material existence? →

- RSS

If the human soul is eternal and lives on when the body dies, it must be made of different materials. If that substance is spiritual, then where does it reside within our living bodies?  Is it separate or part of our living flesh? Some have referred to the soul as the seat or location of our character and emotions, but is that just a metaphorical inference?

Some religions believe the soul comes back after death and reunites with a resurrected body in some future time, but then some are unclear as to whether the soul exists without being reunited with the body.

Existence, as a unique entity, should carry within it the substance of the life and experiences learned in the body. If the soul exists without the body, thensome substance must makes the separate soul without the body.

       Plato, Aristotle, and many others have written about the existence of the soul. A recent well-known historian, Will Durant*, wrote about the history of man, looking deeply into the living lives of all things. He pondered and wrote about the existence of a soul and said he had little doubt it existed as a part of human existence, a view shared by many intellectuals. Some, like Durant, are influenced by a belief that the universe brings about life by taking matter and evolving it into living forms and even suggesting that that is the universe’s purpose.

      This view says that all matter has a spiritual essence.  Durant was fond of his unique soul but said he did not expect it to survive the complete death of his body.  Durant summed up this conclusion in his last book, Fallen Leaves, saying that he felt the end of the body would likewise be the death of the soul. That conclusion seems to be at odds with his passion for life and the view that it exists within all things. We wonder what Durant may have felt if he had an idea of other dimensions.

     Durant said he wanted to bring the “future into focus,” and his method was to focus on the raw experience of history. This approach is reflected in his extensive work writing the 11 volumes of "The Story of Civilization.”.

    Durant believed that life flowed from what he felt was a mysterious source that moved like a river from an unknown beginning to an abrupt end with the body’s death. The sudden end of the soul is often the intellectual conclusion that seems tied to determinism: the doctrine that all events, including human action, are ultimately determined by causes external to the will.

Durant is a valuable focus for discussions about the soul because he was not a determinist and placed great value on individual experiences.   He refused to accept the end was all predetermined by the beginning,

    I think Durant was on the right track, but with incomplete conclusions on the nature of the soul, partly because he needed to live longer to see all the options. He defended free will, that the soul was a unique, valued individual experience, saw a universe whose purpose was to create and advance life, and loved the personal experience. He lacked options for what could happen after death to the soul.                

    We live in a world clearly defined by three spatial dimensions, including one size of time.  Durant and others in the past concluded the soul was framed with this knowledge, but he did not have information about the 4th, 5th, and other dimensions.  In 1919, mathematician Theodor Kaluza presented new ideas about the 4th dimension. This idea states that in shared space, a position is specified by three numbers, known as dimensions, that could be labeled x, y, and z. A place in spacetime is called an event and requires four numbers to be specified: the three-dimensional location in space plus the position in time.

Today, “string theorists” present more complicated thoughts, saying it's pretty easy to assume there are 10 or 11 dimensions and more. So maybe these other dimensions include or await our participation with our spiritual soul?  

Seeing life metaphorically, like a river of influences and forces, is a poetic approach that ties things together, but it ignores where the river starts and assumes that it ends.

I conclude that the soul continues after death and that its life is eternal. The implications of Durant’s thoughts and what has been learned about string theory strongly influence this conclusion, but my religious teachings make a great deal of difference for me.

I am active in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I believe that di Jesus Christ died on the cross, rose on the third day, and appeared again to his disciples. I think the soul leaves the body at death and, at some point, is resurrected again, gaining a physical body.

One of the previous church Prophets and presidents, Gordon B. Hinckley, said, “Let me say that we appreciate the truth in all churches and the good which they do. So we tell the people you bring all the good you have, and then let us see if we can add to it.”

My beliefs and knowledge also suggest that truth exists in many churches and that the more knowledge we gain, the better off we will be. So much of what we become during this life resides in our spiritual essence. If inside, memory, skills learned, and even work ethic go with us through death, then understanding them is a worthy life goal.

*William James Durant was an American writer, historian, and philosopher. He became best known for his work The Story of Civilization, 11 volumes written in collaboration with his wife, Ariel Durant, and published between 1935 and 1975