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WhatDolóu
Mean
"IMMORTAL
SOUJ;'?
by
Keith W. Stump
Where
did the idea of an "immortal soul"
come from? The Bible?
F
EW BELIEFS
are more widely held than
that of the " immortal soul. ,
Virtually everyone is familiar with the con–
cept. The average religious person, if asked, would
state it something like th is:
A human person is both
body
and
soul.
The body is
the physical flesh-and-blood "shell" temporarily housing
tbe soul. The soul is the nonmaterial aspect, made of
spirit. At death the soul leaves the body, and lives on
consciously forever in heaven or in hell. (Sorne hold that
liberated souls are reborn in new bodies in a series of
"reincarnations" or "transmigrations. ")
Sorne form of this concept is found among virtually al!
peoples and religions in the world today. The average
religious person generally takes the idea for granted.
Science, which deals with the material universe, can–
not verify or deny the existence of any such soul.
How, then, can one
know
whether or not man really
has an "immortal soul"?
Few have stopped to ask
where
the concept carne from.
ffi
Many simply
assume
it is found in the Bible.
g
So prepare yourself for what could be one of the big
~
surprises of your life!
~
§
Back to Egypt
~
The idea of an " immortal soul" long predates the found-
§
ing of today's major religions. The ancient Greek histori-
~
an Herodotus (5th century
(Continued on page 28)
;S