At what point does the soul enter the body?

Question

Do sperm cells have souls? How about convicted criminals? Coma patients? Murder is murder? Not a religious issue?
My religious and spiritual beliefs say that the soul doesn't enter the body until the moment of birth. And in the case of miscarriage or abortion, that same soul will return for the next child you bare. My son proved this to me! Now, how can you say it isn't a religious issue?
The body is simply a house for the soul.

Answer 1

So, I'm curious. If the "soul" enters the body at the moment of conception, then what happens when two fertilized eggs fuse together to form only one fetus? What happens to the extra soul?

Or, what happens when a fertilized eggs splits into two, producing identical twins? This can happen days after conception.

Just curious here.

Edit: Sorry, I was focusing a bit on what other people had to say. I wanted to ask, if the soul doesn't enter the body until birth, then how can the "same" soul return for your next child? What if you don't have a next child? And I'm really very, very curious how your son "proved" this to you.

Answer 2

I mostly agree with you. I think a soul can enter the body at any time during the gestation period, but the only certainty is that it is there at birth. I also think that a soul can change their mind and opt for a later time - thus causing miscarriage, abortion, etc. but they don't always opt for a later time. Some times the soul just scrubs the whole mission.

Certainly convicted criminals have souls but coma patients are in a coma because the soul is not committed one way or the other - or it is needed for a chunk of time elsewhere. I would say coma patients have a soul, but they can not quite lay hands on it at the moment.

Whether it is a religious issue or not - it is certainly a personal issue. No blanket answer will satisfy every circumstance. Lucky we live in the freest culture in the world and have infinite options to allow our souls and the souls of those we care about every choice and option possible.

Peace!

PS - at conception you DO NOT have all the components of a human being. You have a zygote - 1 single cell steadily dividing. At conception you have all the potential for being a human being, but you do not have a human - therefore, no where to house the soul.

Answer 3

The soul is the person not something a human has but what a human is. (Genesis 2:7) 7 And Jehovah God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul. Notice man became a living soul not given a living soul. (Ezekiel 18:4) 4 Look! All the souls—to me they belong. As the soul of the father so likewise the soul of the son—to me they belong. The soul that is sinning—it itself will die. The scriptures also say the the soul dies which in contrary to many things religion teaches today. Please read your bible to get the truth of the matter.

Answer 4

According to Holy Scripture there is NO reincarnation - the soul never returns to another body - it is for a man to die but once and then the resurrection. God references the unborn dying the same as he does those who've been born dying. God doesn't differentiate b/t the born and unborn - they're all referred to as babies. There's no reason to believe a child upon conception is without a soul. At conception you have all the components of a human being (not true of a sperm cell) just as criminals and those in a coma have souls. The repentant criminal who hung on a cross next to the Christ was assured he'd be in Paradise with Christ that very day! God bless you as you seek the Truth. ~Nise~

Answer 5

At conception. Yes all humans have a soul. A sperm or an egg are not persons until they join up.

Trying to convince yourself that the baby does not have a soul until birth does not take the blood guilt from your soul if you are supportive of abortion. A baby does scream in the womb when it is torn limb from limb in a pertial birth abortion. A baby that is about to be stabbed with an instrument of death shrinks away from it.

Any woman that has bourn full term children can tell you that they sense a distinct personality in each child while still in the womb.

Answer 6

islamic perspective. "the matter of the creation of a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days.then it becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period.and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.then Allah sends an Angel who is ordered to write four things.he is ordered to write down his deeds,his livelihood, his date of death,and whether he will be a thankful soul or a rebellious soul.then the soul is breathed into him[her]." there is more to this ahadith from the prophet[saw]. volume 4,book 54,#430.[sahih-bukhari]

Answer 7

The concept of the human superiority, over other creatures, and the soul are inventions of the society.

Answer 8

what a magical vaginal feat this is. So you girls bleed every month so that you can create "SOULS" at will? Then you, or your vaginas must be god if they are creating souls. If you believe 1 thing that completely contradicts the other thing you must throw that other option out. Occam's Razor.

You should pick up a psychology book instead of relying on religion.

Answer 9

My opinion,
the minute the fertilized egg implants onto the uterus wall.

Answer 10

Hence it is called "the body" with the soul, instead of "the foetus" with the soul.