X-Message-Number: 6350
Date: Sat, 15 Jun 1996 12:10:34 -0400 (EDT)
From: Charles Platt <>
Subject: The Old Soul Question

On Sat, 15 Jun Eric James Stadler wrote:

> If the person can be revived will it be the person 
> themselves or a shell of a person?  Your body may be active but wouldnt 
> your soul be long gone??  You may have the body but not what makes a 
> person a person, only a zombie.

Since many people (probably a large majority of Americans) believe there 
is a soul, we should address this concept even if most cryonicists reject 
it. Personally I always start by asking what happens to the soul of a 
person who is brought into an emergency room after cold-water drowning, 
with no vital signs--no pulse, respiration, or brain activity. There are 
many such cases each year who are successfully resuscitated after HOURS 
in this seemingly totally lifeless state. Where did their soul go during 
this period?

Three possible answers:

1. There is no soul; the brain is a material object only.
2. The soul was released and recaptured, or "knew" the death was not
   permanent and therefore decided to remain attached to the host.
3. The soul is a function of brain structure and chemical states. When
   brain chemistry and structure are irrevocably lost, the soul is 
   released; otherwise, it is retained.

Applying these answers to cryonics cases: Option 1 presents no problems. 
Option 2 suggests that if a cryonics patient is going to be resuscitated, 
the soul may linger or return. I find this hard to believe, but I have 
seen it seriously discussed. Option 3 suggests that if we preserve people 
properly, the soul is retained.

Incidentally, the word "zombie" may not be appropriate when discussing 
Christian theology, since it derives from African voodoo.

=============================== Charles Platt ==============================
                    vice-president / CryoCare Foundation
1-800-TOP-CARE        http://www.cryocare.org/cryocare        1-800-867-2273
============================================================================


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