03.02 - Chapter 13 - The Origin of the Soul
Chapter 13 THE ORIGIN OF THE SOUL How Does the Soul Come into Existence?
While people are very careless with their souls, the Bible teaches us its immortal value.
Jesus said, "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:36-37) Because the soul is of utmost importance, it is good to consider the basics such as the origin of the soul. Concerning this issue, various positions have been advocated.
♦ Traducianism. Traducianism [from the Latin, traducere, "to lead across," "transfer"] teaches that man’s soul is derived from the parents and therefore mankind is a race or species in regard to soul as well as body. This view was contended for by the Latin Church father Tertullian (AD 160- c. 230) and was tentatively embraced by Augustine who said that, "In Adam all sinned, at the time when in his nature all were still that one man." Later, Augustine came to fear that a strict traducian position might involve a materialistic interpretation of the origin of the soul. In contrast, Luther has no such qualms. "The reproduction of mankind is a great marvel and mystery. Had God consulted me in the matter, I should have advised him to continue the generation of the species by fashioning them out of clay, in the way Adam was fashioned; as I should have counseled Him also t let the sun remain always suspended over the earth, like a great lamp, maintaining perpetual light and heat." The Traducian Theory is based upon the following arguments.
• Man being a single entity, consisting of soul and body, must be one; so that he may not be both older and younger than himself--"that in him which is bodily being first, and the other coming after" (Eastern Church father, Gregory of Nyssa, c. AD 331-c. 396 ) • The fact of hereditary traits in a person’s mental and moral make up.
• The sinful nature passed on from Adam to his posterity. Special note: Apart from Traducianism, it is hard to maintain the justice of God in the punishment of inherited sin.
It is difficult for Creationism’s position (i.e., that each soul is created individually) to explain how each soul is created sinful. Traducianism best accounts for the universality of sin.
! Special note. Among the angels, some fell (Revelation 12:4) and some did not (Psalms 148:2) because there was no racial connection and no transmission of sinful nature from one to another in the act of procreation.
Arguments from Scripture for Traducianism
One of the strongest arguments from Scripture for Traducianism is the fact that as all animals were derived from the first parents, so all men are derived from Adam (Genesis 1:27). Only once is the spark of life said to be breathed into man, and he became a living soul (Genesis 2:7, cf. Genesis 2:22; 1 Corinthians 11:8; Genesis 4:1; Genesis 5:3; Genesis 46:26; cf. Acts 17:21-26; Hebrews 7:10). After God created man, He is said to have ceased from His creative work (Genesis 2:2) though His sustaining work continues for it is "in Him we live, and move, and have our being." (Acts 17:28) Then there is the matter of heredity whereby the sin nature is passed on and even judged in the third and fourth generation (Exodus 20:5; Exodus 34:7; Numbers 14:18; Deuteronomy 5:9). Jonathan Edwards understood this principle and prayed for his children and his children’s children to the end of time. He believed that the superintending of all things were under the hands of Divine Providence.
♦ John 1:13 "Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." This verse contrasts spiritual birth with natural birth, implying that natural birth is traducian.
♦ John 3:6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." In this citation the word “flesh” is understood to mean the whole man is unregenerate.
♦ Romans 1:3. "Concerning his Son who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh."
♦ Romans 5:12 "By one man sin entered into the world and death by sin and so death passed upon all men for that all sinned."
♦ 1 Corinthians 15:22 "As in Adam all die."
♦ Ephesians 2:3 "By nature the children of wrath even as others."
♦ Hebrews 7:10 "For he [Levi] was yet in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him." The Case for Creationism
Opposed to Traducianism is Creationism. This view asserts that the soul is not derived from the parents, but is created for every individual born into the world. This view is held because of the person of Christ, the indivisibility of the soul’s substance, the individuality of each person, and because selected passages of Scripture teach that God is the Creator of the human spirit.
♦ Isaiah 57:16 “The souls that I have made.”
♦ Ecclesiastes 12:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit to God who gave it.”
♦ Hebrews 12:9 “Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh, which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?”
♦ Zechariah 12:1 “The Lord who formeth the spirit of man within him.”
Critics of Creationism In addition to the Scriptures, Individuality is often urged as an argument for Creationism.
It is argued that there are dramatic distinction between the parents and the child that cannot be explained by mere reproduction. Those who oppose Creationism note that the dramatic distinctions between parent and children exist for a logical reason: every child has two parents, four grandparents, eight great grandparents etc. This mixed heritage provides a sufficient cause for the great variety of personalities and individuality between parents and children. Concerning the passages of Scripture speaking of God as creator, they may be regarded as expressing God’s mediate agency in the origin of the soul. God is also said to be the Creator of the body (cp. Psalms 139:13-14; Jeremiah 1:5). Also, in opposition to Creationism, there is the matter of man being better than the animals. If man produces the body through procreation and God creates the soul, then man is not better than the animals for they produce body and spirit after their own image.
Finally, God is not the direct author of moral evil which Creationism would have to advocate.
Summary Evaluation
Concerning Creationism and Traducianism, it can be noted that each view faces a difficulty. Creationism must explain the sinful nature of each created soul while Traducianism must explain how an indivisible spiritual substance transmits itself.