Do Fetuses Have Souls?

Coin thought that this question belonged in the Religion section so I've decided to accommodate him.

 

Coin is an idiot and people don't have souls much less fetuses.

 

Whether souls actually exist is a separate issue. For the sake of the learning experience I'm hoping to have here I'm granting that they do. As for your first assertion, I'm not qualified to say whether or not that is true in the technical sense of the word, but I agree that with you that some of his arguments and assertions seem peculiar, as do those of his buds in our little family here. Be that as it may, I'm hoping for a productive exchange with the religious folks on this topic. I'm not holding my breath though.

 

Well, good luck! I'm not a "religious folks" so I can't add anything to the topic. You'd have to prove to me that there is such a thing as a soul before I could take this topic seriously. I know that can't be done because the existence or non-existence of a soul is strictly a matter of faith or lack of faith. I think faith and superstition pretty much go hand-in-hand and I am not superstitious. I also don't believe in magic. I do believe in slight of hand which looks a lot like magic but in reality is only a deception. Religion is a lot like that.

 

Hmmm..... They're all over the fetus thing when it's in the context of abortion. Why the silence here I wonder?

 

Did I miss a link or something here. There appears to be just a blank space when I view the op.

 

The question I'm asking forms the title of the OP. The explanation for why it is in this forum is in the body. I'm keeping it basic.

 

Ah, now I see. I'm not religious so my idea of what a soul is and a religious view on what it is probably differ greatly. I see a person's "soul" as the spark of conscience cognitivity that enables them to understand themselves and the world around them. Can a fetus posses this? I have no idea. Truthfully, in my experience, many adults never achieve this state.

 

Well at least I've gotten a couple of responses to this. From the people I would expect. BTW, welcome to the board, Guy. I think you've been here a while now but I haven't officially said hello.

 

So where are my anti-choice friends? The ones with whom this question is supposed to open a discussion? When they speak of abortion they claim murder, even holocaust. They accuse those of us who for whatever reason disagree with them of advocating killing and taking satisfaction in death But when questioned on the nature of the 'life" that they so rabidly and righteously defend they advise you to move the topic to a different forum and then they ignore it.

 

If someone were to believe that people have souls, I would find it very odd if they believed that an unborn person did not have a soul also. I suppose that they could believe that God only gives the baby its soul once it clears the vagina. However, that would seem an odd, and unlikely, belief system.

 

You must not be a Roman Catholic.

 

Nope. Do they believe that exiting the womb creates the soul?

And God congratulated the parasite upon its escape from the host and said "Now I give you your soul and you shall be called a Person!"

 

From what I've read they believe that a fetus is ensouled at some stage in its existence but they are not sure quite when. No doubt their god knows but apparently he has chosen not to share this information with them.

 

Maybe he is going to make it a surprise. You know, wait until they all work themselves onto a tizzy and then jump out from behind a bush and yell, "Surprise! Nobody gets a soul until they lose their first baby tooth." Gotcha!

 

You might be on to something here. That would be pretty consistent with the Almighty Sky Troll's sense of humor.

 

Takiji, I think you're equating "having a soul" with "having life" in regards to unbirthed humans. Whatever a soul is, the Constitution doesn't specify that it guarantees "soul", but it does guarantee "life". Does life equate to having a soul? If so, please tell me when life begins and then we can discuss when (or if) a soul begins.

 

Never have heard that before. That would seem to equate more with 'awareness' or something else rather than a soul. For instance I have no issue with a morning after pill nor very early term terminations. But I would have a problem with stabbing a 8 or 9 month 'fetus' in the head to kill it just before it breaks the plane of the vajayjay.

I know that some people believe that an unborn child's soul will go to purgatory or some such because it was not baptized or whatever. But they still believe an unborn baby has a soul. I have never heard what you describe. I still hold that would be a very odd belief system for someone who believes in the idea of a 'soul'.

 

Well for starters, help me out here. Where does the Constitution guarantee life? Are you maybe thinking of the Declaration? I believe it does say in the 14 Amendment to the Constitution that we can not deprive people of life without due process of law. But it defines neither "life" nor "people". And you could argue that it is just the opposite of guaranteeing life. It actually appears to guarantee the right to take life as long as it is done with "due process".

Just for context, I believe that at the time the Constitution was written, abortion was generally legal at least up until around the forth month or so.

 

I don't know what Coin thinks about it, but I agree with you. Of course Christianity as a belief system does require one to embrace some very odd beliefs. It kind of comes with the territory.