There are two orthodox views, trichotomy and dichotomy. Monism is a new rising unorthodox view that I see frequently.
Constitution or nature of the person
Christian theologians have historically differed over the issue of how many distinct components constitute the human being.
Two parts (Dichotomism)
Main articles:
Bipartite (theology) and
Dualism (philosophy of mind)
The most popular view, affirmed by a large number of lay faithful and theologians from many Christian traditions, is that the human being is formed of two components: material (body/flesh) and spiritual (soul/spirit). The soul or spirit departs from the body at
death, and will be reunited with the body at the
resurrection.
Three parts (Trichotomism)
Main article:
Tripartite (theology)
A significant minority of theologians across the denominational and theological spectrum, in both the
East and the
West, have held that human beings are made up of three distinct components: body or flesh, soul, and spirit. This is known technically as trichotomism. The biblical texts typically used to support this position are
1 Thessalonians 5:23 and
Hebrews 4:12.
One part (Monism)
Modern theologians increasingly hold to the view that the human being is an indissoluble unity. This is known as
holism or monism. The body and soul are not considered separate components of a person, but rather as two facets of a united whole. It is argued that this more accurately represents
Hebrew thought, whereas body-soul dualism is more characteristic of classical
Greek Platonist and
Cartesian thought. Monism is the official position of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church, which adheres to the doctrine of "
soul sleep".
Christian anthropology - Wikipedia
