Do animals have souls?

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I don't believe so. I believe they go on to become other sorts of matter.

In other words, good germs, when they die, become multicelled animals and bad germs decline to viruses in the transmigration of their souls.

Actually, in a sense, cells that reproduce asexually are immortal already, as long as they aren't eaten. But, in terms of the Bible, they are not Nephesh since they cannot breath (such a process as per the examples in Genesis 1:30 of lifeforms considered "living souls" actually requires quadrillions of cells, such as of lungs and blood cells). And in terms of C.S. Lewis, they would not be "H'nau" (a term from his Space trilogy) since they do not have a brain (which also takes quadrillions of cells). The individual cells are alive in about the same sense and a computer or a car is alive. They perform functions, computers approximating thought even but not quite, but they are not alive. Cell are considered "alive" in the sense of reacting to their environment, obtaining energy, and reproducing, etc. However, their kind of "life" is not like the sort of life that lizards, birds, mammals, or even fish have. It is a different type which is more like a variation of a machine, a microscopic machine which uses nanotechnological functions to carry on. Their specific version of life is one without thought, but more of a highly complex chemical stimuli response system. Though I'm certain it will be argued that we also are controlled by a "highly complex chemical stimuli response system", which certainly serves well as an excuse for misbehavior, I don't see this as the case. Desires may be presented in the mind, but the choice remains to act or not, and how to act. In regard to organisms without brains, I do not believe that they have the capability to have a soul either. Whether a soul is considered corporeal or whether the brain is an interface. So, no, germs do not have souls.

Well Magnus I see no real distinction between animals, so like tallyman has already postulated, if one animal has a soul then all have them. Five or so years ago I would have been in total agreement with you, back then I fully believed in the existence of ghosts, I even believed I had witnessed some. I now do not hold to such beliefs, Why? because I am at peace with 'I don't know' and I believe that we manifest all kinds of mental hallucinations to explain the unknown.

So no I do not believe that animals have souls, not through some belief in human superiority, but simply because souls do not exist.

I used to not believe in the possibility of a soul. Just because you once believed something, and now no longer do doesn't necessarily make you right.

The chemical/desire thing that Iamnotaparakeet was talking about was interesting. I subscribe to the idea that there is a mind and not just a brain.

New thread in PPR. Sorry, it is quite a long post.

http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt115394.html

So heaven is full of whales and perhaps crabs but no oysters, octopi, or sea cucumbers. Do the whales have wings?

Of course not. I was just explaining my position as it is now. My belief is based on nothing other than the logic I put to the issue, which naturally could be completely erroneous.

I don't really know any real differences between humans other animals. we're just apes with pants

No, but petunias do.

Petunias with lungs?

Somehow they have to say, "Oh no, not again."

But by your definition petunias cannot have a soul, so how come they get wings and Moby doesn't

If you are referring to a particular bowl of petunias from popular culture, there is absolutely no evidence to suggest they had wings.

Petunias created from nuclear missiles, such creation being cause by activation of the Infinite Improbability Drive of the starship Heart Of Gold, certainly have souls. But the petunias get wings so they can keep going through this over and over again, but the whale doesn't, instead he meets his new friend, the ground.

Where do you get the wings from, there is nothing about wings. If you are referring to 'oh no, not again' well yes this was the 'soul' of Agrajag encapsulated in this particular bowl of petunias, so the bowl and the petunias get smashed and Agrajag moves on.

Where do you get smashed from?

Really though, wings aren't even in the Bible, that's more of the Catholic-Hollywood type addition with no basis in the Bible. Where would the petunias get the wings from? Idk, perhaps from the mice?