Do ALL things have souls?

[EltonJohn]

Originally posted by WilmaBud First of all, the belief that plants and animals have souls is not a Catholic belief, so I don't understand why you're pointing out that the person is Catholic.

Because this person is a practicing conservative Catholic on a conservative catholic MB. I realize that this is not a Catholic teaching.

Second of all, I don't see what's so funny about the belief that all living things have souls.

Because the belief that plants and animals have souls, to me, is like saying that an adult believes in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

Athiests laugh when I say that I believe in God-I don't see that as mocking.

Originally posted by dumboiu She can't back her BELIEFS up any more than you can back your BELIEFS up.............because they are just religious BELIEFS. You can't prove or disprove them..............Remember..........God created the universe.............Man created religion..............

so do you believe that ALL living things have souls or not?

 

[ScarlettO]

How can you "prove" that humans have souls?

It's just a made-up concept.


I can remember in grammar school getting a worksheet in Catholic school-religion class- of a big white circle. It represented our "soul" ....we had to draw blotches on it to represent our "sins".

 

[mickeyfan1]

Being "Forgiven" is not permission to ridicule others. But as you seem to be a Christian, you must be familiar with the Biblical passage concerning the judgement of others.
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Because the belief that plants and animals having souls is ludricrous in my eyes, and this person keeps on trying to convince me that plants and animals have souls. Animals? Maybe. Plants? No. People laugh at my beliefs that there are UFOs because they think that is a ludricous belief. Do I care? Nope.
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You come across as the most holier than thou in your posts. Please don't come here asking opinions, unless you can do it without mocking people who do not share your narrow beliefs. You are not debateing this issue, you are just arguing with people that don't agree with you. If the person that believes all living creatures have souls, and you do not, so what? You believe there are UFOs, others do not, yet you are unable to convince them that your belief is correct. You say that Athiests laugh at your belief in God, but you don't consider that mocking? What is it?

You also appear to have some point you are trying to make about Roman Catholics. If you are not educated in that religion, I suggest you stop taking little bits and pieces of information gleaned from various debate sites as the way all Catholics are.

Sorry pal, but the CB isn't the place for being mean, and that's what you are. Trying to get people to argue with you, because this isn't a debate, this is another "Elton John, who is always right, and the rest of you are not post." I have read your posts on the DB, this is how you come off.

I am glad you think you are forgiven, I am sorry you feel that gives you the right to ridicule anyone who does not share ANY and ALL of your beliefs. Do you believe that when you die, your soul will arise to the heavens and you will not have to explain all your actions to God? Or do you believe that because you are forgiven, anything you say and do in llife is OK?


And for the record, I don'y know if anything has a soul. I prefer science over religion, I suppose that make me a heathen, heritic, athiest, or some other awful thinhg that someone else chooses to assign upon me.

eta - Forgive my poor typing skills!

 

[Melora]

I am also a believer in the scientific. But there are things that science has not been able to explain, like how we got here in the first place.. I know about the big bang theory and how the things formed from there, but I mean the why and where it came from before that questions. As much as one might say that begs for belief in God, it doesnt beg for belief in one God written in one book. I do believe there is life after death (not heaven and hell, but more along the lines of James von Pragh or John Edwards explanations) and because I believe that I also believe that our animals share the same spark that gives us life that we do.

To look into the vastness of the universe and wonder where it all started, how it all came together.... I do believe there is a scientific answer but somehow I feel like there is a spiritual side to it all that we cannot fully understand in our physical bodies. That science cannot quantify, as least not yet.

I am saddened when I hear people trying to explain their religion as the one and only.... Religion is a way for us to try to explain the unexplainable. Until we die we will never know for sure and then I think a whole lot of us will be surprised with where we end up..and I do not mean floating among the clouds or boiling away in a endless fire for eternity.

I never have a problem with other peoples religion as long as they do not try to tell me what I have to believe (and it doesnt advocate hurting or killing other people).

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by mickeyfan1
Really nice, you claim to be such a good person, yet you come here and ridicule another's beliefs. Unless and untill you are in total contol of all things great and small,you have no way of knowing or proving that anyone has a "soul". You have chosen to believe that humans do, yet there is no scientific proof, thus it is your faith that is your basis of belief. The person at whom you were laughing may have the same faith system, thus believing all living creatures have souls. I don't understand why you feel the need to laugh at someone's beliefs.

Well said.

I think all viable people (as in, can survive outside of the womb) and most animals have souls. Plants, probably not.

I had an interesting thought the other day. Memorial day, DBF and I were in the cemetary visting his grandparents grave. We passed by the graves of many stillborn babies. The stillborns usually said Stillborn. Some of the babies graves were decorated and you could tell the parents were devasated at the loss.

Interesting how some people would not bat and eye at having a late term or partial birth abortion, and others weep and hold funerals and return to decorate graves of babies who were the same as the ones others are okay with aborting.

 

[AeroKiss13]

I wasn't aware how many people don't believe that animals have souls. Now, I'm no Catholic, but I do believe that animals have souls and that they can think and feel just as much as humans do. I suppose this is what makes me so anti-human - the way that people treat the poor animals. I'm sure I sound ridiculous to most of you, but I love animals and can't help feeling the way I do.

 

[jrydberg]

Wouldn't it make it rather hard to be a vegetarian if one believed plants had souls? Just think of all the poor plants that would be killed and maimed!

 

[EsmeraldaX]

I think animals have souls, but I also believe that there is a circle of life on this planet and that there is a food chain. Humans were born with the teeth to eat plants and animals and I think that is what we were meant to do.

I know it sounds silly but in The Lion King, there is a part where Mufasa is explaining the circle to Simba and Simba says, But don't we eat the antelopes? And Mufasa responds that when they do, the bodies go back to the earth and the circle continues.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

Since no human can prove: that there is a soul, when the soul attaches or when it detaches it seems to me it is just as likely that everything has a soul as nothing has a soul. And that wouldn't stop me from having soul food in the form of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and greens.

 

[RickinNYC]

I personally don't know whether animals and plants in general have souls. Absolutely NO ONE will ever know the answer to that question.

However, I do think there's something magical, akin to spiritual, in my own dog. He's nonjudgemental, incredibly forgiving, all loving, protective, sorrowful for any wrong doing, affectionate and he never asks for anything in return but food, companionship and love.

He's my best pal and the greatest friend. If you ask me, given all his attributes, he's far more evolved than most humans. Whether he has a soul or not doesn't matter because if there is indeed a Heaven (and I believe there is), he'll go there when it's his time.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by RickinNYC
I personally don't know whether animals and plants in general have souls. Absolutely NO ONE will ever know the answer to that question.

However, I do think there's something magical, akin to spiritual, in my own dog. He's nonjudgemental, incredibly forgiving, all loving, protective, sorrowful for any wrong doing, affectionate and he never asks for anything in return but food, companionship and love.

He's my best pal and the greatest friend. If you ask me, given all his attributes, he's far more evolved than most humans. Whether he has a soul or not doesn't matter because if there is indeed a Heaven (and I believe there is), he'll go there when it's his time.

I feel the same way about my dog.

 

[RickinNYC]

Originally posted by EsmeraldaX
I feel the same way about my dog.

I truly doubt that there are very many pet owners that would disagree with you and I EsmeraldaX!

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by RickinNYC
I truly doubt that there are very many pet owners that would disagree with you and I EsmeraldaX!

 

[philaround]

I was born and raised Catholic and was taught that God created all things. We were told that God created man in His own image and that image was relected in the soul not the physical body.

That said, we were taught that all living things had a soul BUT that man was God's only creation with an immortal soul.

Belief, as beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. If what you believe causes no one any harm then you should not be maligned .

Elton, as a Christian I think you need to learn the meaning of "Love thy neighbor"