Re: [asa] Worthy of response?

Merv posted: "On what medical findings would you base your "It would
seem..."
assertion in the last paragraph? *IF* a soul is a non-physical entity,
then how could any medical findings have any bearing? "

Sorry. I thought this data had been posted many times.

The medical data that indicates fairly clearly that an entity prior to
implantation is not a person is as follows:

1. The conception process is not an "event," but a process, taking about
1 hour to complete from the time the sperm first encounters the egg to
the time it is complete.

2. Between 30 and 50% of all conceptions are spontaneously aborted.

3. Between the completion of conception and implantation a fertilized egg
sometimes splits into two or more entities.

4. Between the time of splitting and implantation two entities sometimes
fuse into one.

Based on arguments using the data above the conclusion seems to be that a
"person" (soul) is not present until -- at the earliest -- implantation.

Assume an entity w/o a soul is not a person and that an entity with a
soul is a person. Then it can be argued that a moral right to survival
accrues to the latter but not to the former. In particular, based on
datum #2 above, it can be argued that God does not take an interest in
the entities involved in early miscarriages.

Assume (it is argued) that all conceptions result in a person. Assume
also that innocents attain heaven. It follows that heaven is 30 to 50%
populated with persons who were never born. Possible, of course. But it
does not seem likely.

>>Regarding exactly when 'ensoulment' takes place: Is it a peculiarly
western tendency to see things in terms of "Dedekindian" cuts?>>

I took no position on when ensoulment takes place, whether an event in
time (God zaps) or a process. I tend to think "process" is more likely
but either way does not seem to have a bearing on the arguments above.

>>
Overheard at church: "There are two kinds of people in the world:
those who think there are two kinds of people, and those who don't.">>

I like that quote a lot.

Thanks

Burgy

To unsubscribe, send a message to majordomo@calvin.edu with
"unsubscribe asa" (no quotes) as the body of the message.
Received on Mon Sep 3 13:21:00 2007