You Are Two - how do souls work with brain halves?

[CrystalDragon]

(I suggest you watch the video before responding, by the way, it's only 5 minutes long.)

So I found this really interesting video on YouTube the other day, involving the nature of the brain and how in particular reality works for split-brain people.

In these cases, the right and left brains will only perceive one side, try to justify each other's actions, and even disagree with each other on something as simple as "What's your favorite color?".

If that's the case, it seems that we all have two consciousnesses in our heads in some way, though it's much more prominent in split-brain people. And that got me thinking—what about our souls? Will we split into two "halves" in heaven, one being "Me" and one being "Other-Me"? Will each consciousness get their own body? Will one vanish completely?

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Your concept of 'soul' is not Biblically sound, therefore the answer to your question will not support your view.

 

[RaymondG]

(I suggest you watch the video before responding, by the way, it's only 5 minutes long.)

So I found this really interesting video on YouTube the other day, involving the nature of the brain and how in particular reality works for split-brain people.

In these cases, the right and left brains will only perceive one side, try to justify each other's actions, and even disagree with each other on something as simple as "What's your favorite color?".

If that's the case, it seems that we all have two consciousnesses in our heads in some way, though it's much more prominent in split-brain people. And that got me thinking—what about our souls? Will we split into two "halves" in heaven? Will each consciousness get their own body? Will one vanish completely?

It had been suggested, by some that there are instances in the bible that would imply that we must connect the right and left sides of the brain. These only appear to be two, but can be made one. As far as the souls, I believe they are all connected to us now....and we are to possess them....in patience....By denying our"selves" picking up our cross and following "Him"

 

[CrystalDragon]

Your concept of 'soul' is not Biblically sound, therefore the answer to your question will not support your view.

And how do you mean that? I was asking as a conversation starter because the concept in the video intrigued me. You can say whatever it was you were going to say as "the answer to [my] question".

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

And how do you mean that? I was asking as a conversation starter because the concept in the video intrigued me. You can say whatever it was you were going to say as "the answer to [my] question".

To answer your question, we need to understand the Biblical meaning of what a soul is. Interestingly enough, we read through a study on that very subject today during Sabbath study.


What Is a Soul?

1. Question: What two elements did God use to form a living soul?

Answer: Genesis 2:7 “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

DUST + BREATH = SOUL

The Biblical definition of a soul is simply a breathing body. Notice that the text does not say that man was given a soul, but rather he became a soul. A soul is not something a person has it is the person. Souls have blood (Jeremiah 2:34). Not only are people souls, but so are fish (Revelation 16:3) and animals (Ecclesiastes 3:19).

The Hebrew word for soul, nephesh, is variously translated “person” (Genesis 14:21), “self” (Leviticus 11:43), “life” (Psalm 31:13), “me” (Judges 16:30), “creature” (Genesis 1:21), “beast” (Leviticus 24:18), “man” (2 Kings 12:4), “thing” (Ezekiel 47:9), and “fish” (Isaiah 19:10). When translated “body” the nephesh is usually dead (Leviticus 21:11).

The Greek word for soul, psuche, has the same meaning. In Matthew 16:25 Jesus commends anyone who will lose his soul (psuche) for Christ’s sake. It is often translated simply as “life” (Matthew 2:20). It means “person” (Acts 7:14). “My soul” and “your soul” are idiomatic expressions meaning “I” and “you” (Matthew 12:18; 2 Corinthians 12:15, margin).

2. Question: How is the process God used in creating a soul reversed when we die?
Answer: Psalm 104:29 “Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath; they die, and return to their dust.”

SOUL - BREATH = DUST

“If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath; all flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.” Job 34:14, 15

3. Question: Can a soul die?
Answer: Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father; neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”

4. Question: When life ends, what is left?
Answer: Genesis 3:19 “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

5. Question: What returns to God?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 12:7 “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”

6. Question: Where is this spirit located in a person?
Answer: Job 27:3 All the while my breath is in me and the spirit of God is in my nostrils”;

7. Question: What is it that is found in a person’s nostrils?
Answer: Genesis 7:22 “All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died.”

The Hebrew word for spirit (and ghost, Job 3:11), ruach, and the Greek word, pneuma, mean breath, wind, or vital element. It is the spark of life which makes you able to live. It is “the breath of the Almighty” (Job 33:4). When the Bible uses those words in reference to man, not once does it say that ruach or pneuma is something in man that retains consciousness after the person dies.

Angels are called spirits (Psalm 104:4) because to human eyes they are as invisible as breath. But man does not possess the nature of angels (Psalm 8:5), nor does the Bible indicate that he assumes it at death.

8. Question: What goes forth when man dies?
Answer: Psalm 146:4 “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.”

9. Question: Is the breath in man any different from the breath in beasts?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 3:19 “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.”

10. Question: Is there any difference between a dead man and a dead beast?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 3:20 “All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.”

A soul is like the light that results when a light bulb is connected to a power source. The spirit, or breath of life, is the electric current. Electricity will produce light only while it is flowing through the bulb. When the filament in the bulb breaks, the electrical circuit is broken, and the light goes out, just as the light cannot exist unless there is both electricity and a bulb, so there must be both the breath of life, and a functional body in order for there to be a living soul.

 

[CrystalDragon]

To answer your question, we need to understand the Biblical meaning of what a soul is. Interestingly enough, we read through a study on that very subject today during Sabbath study.


What Is a Soul?

1. Question: What two elements did God use to form a living soul?

Answer: Genesis 2:7 “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

DUST + BREATH = SOUL

The Biblical definition of a soul is simply a breathing body. Notice that the text does not say that man was given a soul, but rather he became a soul. A soul is not something a person has it is the person. Souls have blood (Jeremiah 2:34). Not only are people souls, but so are fish (Revelation 16:3) and animals (Ecclesiastes 3:19).

The Hebrew word for soul, nephesh, is variously translated “person” (Genesis 14:21), “self” (Leviticus 11:43), “life” (Psalm 31:13), “me” (Judges 16:30), “creature” (Genesis 1:21), “beast” (Leviticus 24:18), “man” (2 Kings 12:4), “thing” (Ezekiel 47:9), and “fish” (Isaiah 19:10). When translated “body” the nephesh is usually dead (Leviticus 21:11).

The Greek word for soul, psuche, has the same meaning. In Matthew 16:25 Jesus commends anyone who will lose his soul (psuche) for Christ’s sake. It is often translated simply as “life” (Matthew 2:20). It means “person” (Acts 7:14). “My soul” and “your soul” are idiomatic expressions meaning “I” and “you” (Matthew 12:18; 2 Corinthians 12:15, margin).

2. Question: How is the process God used in creating a soul reversed when we die?
Answer: Psalm 104:29 “Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath; they die, and return to their dust.”

SOUL - BREATH = DUST

“If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath; all flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust.” Job 34:14, 15

3. Question: Can a soul die?
Answer: Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father; neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”

4. Question: When life ends, what is left?
Answer: Genesis 3:19 “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

5. Question: What returns to God?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 12:7 “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”

6. Question: Where is this spirit located in a person?
Answer: Job 27:3 All the while my breath is in me and the spirit of God is in my nostrils”;

7. Question: What is it that is found in a person’s nostrils?
Answer: Genesis 7:22 “All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died.”

The Hebrew word for spirit (and ghost, Job 3:11), ruach, and the Greek word, pneuma, mean breath, wind, or vital element. It is the spark of life which makes you able to live. It is “the breath of the Almighty” (Job 33:4). When the Bible uses those words in reference to man, not once does it say that ruach or pneuma is something in man that retains consciousness after the person dies.

Angels are called spirits (Psalm 104:4) because to human eyes they are as invisible as breath. But man does not possess the nature of angels (Psalm 8:5), nor does the Bible indicate that he assumes it at death.

8. Question: What goes forth when man dies?
Answer: Psalm 146:4 “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.”

9. Question: Is the breath in man any different from the breath in beasts?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 3:19 “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.”

10. Question: Is there any difference between a dead man and a dead beast?
Answer: Ecclesiastes 3:20 “All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.”

A soul is like the light that results when a light bulb is connected to a power source. The spirit, or breath of life, is the electric current. Electricity will produce light only while it is flowing through the bulb. When the filament in the bulb breaks, the electrical circuit is broken, and the light goes out, just as the light cannot exist unless there is both electricity and a bulb, so there must be both the breath of life, and a functional body in order for there to be a living soul.

Thanks for the detailed references—are you saying that according to the Bible we don't have immortal souls, and after we die we just die? So are you saying there's no heaven?

 

[EastCoastRemnant]

Thanks for the detailed references—are you saying that according to the Bible we don't have immortal souls, and after we die we just die? So are you saying there's no heaven?

Consider what the serpent said to Eve in the garden... "you will not surely die." Even though God was very explicit that they would die. This lie by Satan has continued down through the ages making people think that there is some part of them that is immortal. The Bible says only God is immortal. If we, after we die, are immediately transpoorted to another dimension, then the words of God are a lie. God told us that the sinner, he will die.

When Christ comes back the second time, it is then that He calls forth the faithful from the ground. The dust is gatherd together again and His breath is breathed back into us and supernaturally, we recieve immortality. The idea of the immortality of the soul was apoplular Greek philosophical theme and the reason why Christ used it in the parable of the rich man and Lazurus. A parable is a story told to help the people understand a lesson. The lesson i this parable was not that we are immortal, but that the Jews were not treating those outside their faith properly and would suffer an eternal consequence for it.

 

[John Hyperspace]

DUST + BREATH = SOUL

The Biblical definition of a soul is simply a breathing body.

Psalms 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Acts 2:27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

Apparently your definition is wrong; since bodies in the grave don't breath. I'd also note that a "dead body" is a "soul/nephesh" in the law (e.g. Numbers 9:6-7), and of course, corpses don't breath.

If you do a serious study of the word, you'll find it's not as easily defined as you've been taught.

 

[SnowyMacie]

(I suggest you watch the video before responding, by the way, it's only 5 minutes long.)

So I found this really interesting video on YouTube the other day, involving the nature of the brain and how in particular reality works for split-brain people.

In these cases, the right and left brains will only perceive one side, try to justify each other's actions, and even disagree with each other on something as simple as "What's your favorite color?".

If that's the case, it seems that we all have two consciousnesses in our heads in some way, though it's much more prominent in split-brain people. And that got me thinking—what about our souls? Will we split into two "halves" in heaven, one being "Me" and one being "Other-Me"? Will each consciousness get their own body? Will one vanish completely?

The video sort of misrepresents the split-brain phenomenon (which this surgery is not conducted anymore) in attempt to sound deep and philosophical. You don't really have two brains that are connected to each other, you have one brain with two hemispheres that are connected and in constant communication with one another.

 

[CrystalDragon]

The video sort of misrepresents the split-brain phenomenon (which this surgery is not conducted anymore) in attempt to sound deep and philosophical. You don't really have two brains that are connected to each other, you have one brain with two hemispheres that are connected and in constant communication with one another.

True, but in those instances of those with split brains, if they work differently from one another, how does that figure in with the soul (or perhaps souls)?

 

[Noxot]

the brain is like a city of people that have males and females in it and where each do the various things that they do. if you want to watch something longer and somewhat theoretical and about how the brain possibly functions in mystical experience you could watch this video. I was planning on watching it again eventually so might as well dig it up now. let's not even start with how even the stomach flora communicates with the brain. the entire body is a symbol of how heaven is and we are already in heaven and we function in this strange and for the most part unexplored and unnoticed realm of spirit.

also this was interesting and worth the watch. she is a neuroanatomist and had a stroke and had a nice experience.