If you lose all your body parts can you still be alive?

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StAnastasia said:
When the word became flesh, God assumed the whole of creation: the quarks of the Big Bang, the atoms that were once part of dinosaurs, the mammalian genome, the human evolutionary history. Christ died a mammal; he was raised in glory as one.
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Matthew Fox was the author.
 
StAnastasia said:
ChristianB, we are more than our brains. There are physiological feedback loops between the brain and the rest of the body that help make who you are. A female brain and a male brain have variations caused by physiology’ there are even differences between gay and straight brains http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7456588.stm. Additionally , we are who we are because of the cumulative experiences in a particular body. Bodily experience is very important to making us who we are.

StAnastasia
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I suppose if all one’s body parts were replaced with human body parts rather than robotic parts, then one would be alive and still the same person. If you get a kidney transplant you’re still “you.” If you later get an eye transplant you’re still “you.” So why not eventually replace all your body parts until only your brain is original. You’d have bodily experiences.

So at this point, I am my brain as long as my brain has a body to interact with. My concern is primarily how much of my brain is “me.” There are people who are injured and have irreparable brain damage, but they’re still themselves, while others are not themselves any longer.

If my memories are erased, but nothing else about me changes, am I still the same person? It would seem I am not; nevertheless, if my memories are transfered to a robotic brain I don’t think that robot would be me either.

If I develop a mental illness wherein I experience thoughts which seem alien to “me,” are these “my” thoughts or not? They occur in my brain, but I don’t experience them as mine. Or, conversely, I experience them as mine, even though they are caused by a chemical imbalance. Correct the chemical imbalance and those thoughts vanish. I was intrigued when I learned how people with all sorts of different backgrounds, have precisely the same type of thoughts as a result of having a common mental illness. Mental illness is a brain dysfunction, so to that extent the brain isn’t them, or at least the area of the brain affected by the illness isn’t them, while some other part (apparently) is.

I wish I had answers to offer instead of more questions.
 
There’s problems trying to tie down the non-physical soul to a physical structure or particular capacity.

Does everyone here accept the notion of brain stem death being death of the human being?
 
So at this point, I am my brain as long as my brain has a body to interact with. My concern is primarily how much of my brain is “me.” There are people who are injured and have irreparable brain damage, but they’re still themselves, while others are not themselves any longer.
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It’s not how “much” of brain is damaged, but where and how the damage takes place. A large part of your brain is dedicated to your sense of sight; if that area were damaged, you’d be the same “person” – but blind. Conversely, the hippocampus, which operates the memory, is smaller, but damage there would cause permanent amnesia – seriously affecting your “personhood.” The brain stem is another small area with huge importance: if it stops working, you aren’t a person anymore, you’d be dead.

So the “you” ness in this situation is specific to what is damaged.

ICXC NIKA.
 
If my memories are erased, but nothing else about me changes, am I still the same person? It would seem I am not; nevertheless, if my memories are transfered to a robotic brain I don’t think that robot would be me either.
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It would seem that any of 3 factors make you “you.”

a) Continuity of body: if you have the same body you are the same person, even if your mind somehow alters.

b) Continuity of consciousness: as long as you are conscious there is no change in your “being.”

c) Continuity of memory: if the same memory structure remains, even after an unconsciousness or a change of the body, you are still “you.” This is the most problematic in the “robot” scenario.
 
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If my memories are erased, but nothing else about me changes, am I still the same person? It would seem I am not; nevertheless, if my memories are transfered to a robotic brain I don’t think that robot would be me either. Post

If your memories were erased, much would change about you, couldn’t help but be. A little story, in the 80’s my husband had a heart attack, and they thought he had brain damage, later turned out to be brain injury. When we brought him home from the hospital he still couldn’t remember we were his family, but he seemed to believe everything we told him. Slowly over a year or so his memory came back and he even remembered things he had totally forgotten before. He told us much more about his childhood etc. It was a very interesting year for all of us. He was a different person during that year but he did completely recover his memory.
If a person has amnesia, (for whatever reason), they would still be themselves. Just because the brain is injured, it doesn’t mean the person doesn’t exist any more. The intellect and free will including the memory, belongs to the soul. Unless the body dies, they are still with it in the soul even if the brain doesn’t work properly. God Bless, Memaw
 
A brain is’nt a computer. The only way you could build an identical brain would be to build an identical brain. And yes we have clones, or identical twins, and yes, though their brains are identical, presumably, the twins have different personalities, even in childhood where they have shared experiences they are not the same person as the other.
A manufactured identical brain would not be you even with identical memories of experiences. To animate the brain and give it life requires giving it a soul, the soul animates the brain and gives it personality. Personalities are always unique as the soul is always unique.
 
Memaw said:
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If my memories are erased, but nothing else about me changes, am I still the same person? It would seem I am not; nevertheless, if my memories are transfered to a robotic brain I don’t think that robot would be me either. Post

If your memories were erased, much would change about you, couldn’t help but be. A little story, in the 80’s my husband had a heart attack, and they thought he had brain damage, later turned out to be brain injury. When we brought him home from the hospital he still couldn’t remember we were his family, but he seemed to believe everything we told him. Slowly over a year or so his memory came back and he even remembered things he had totally forgotten before. He told us much more about his childhood etc. It was a very interesting year for all of us. He was a different person during that year but he did completely recover his memory.
If a person has amnesia, (for whatever reason), they would still be themselves. Just because the brain is injured, it doesn’t mean the person doesn’t exist any more. The intellect and free will including the memory, belongs to the soul. Unless the body dies, they are still with it in the soul even if the brain doesn’t work properly. God Bless, Memaw
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If the memory belongs to the soul (which I don’t believe, given that memories are encoded in RNA), then how can memories be permanently lost? Is part of the soul lost?
 
Doc_Keele said:
If the memory belongs to the soul (which I don’t believe, given that memories are encoded in RNA), then how can memories be permanently lost? Is part of the soul lost?
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If the brain is permanently damaged and has no conscious memory, that doesn’t mean the soul has been damaged,(can’t be, its not made of matter.) When that person dies, its memory will be with the soul, either in heaven or hell. The memory doesn’t die with the body. God Bless, Memaw
 
Whether or not you posit that the soul will have memories (and of course the soul isn’t physical, although that doesn’t mean that it can’t be damaged, incidentally), the brain stores memories in a physical form namely RNA and if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, the memory is affected eg if someone has a temporal lobectomy. Similarly if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, someone’s personality changes - the case of Phineas Gage is the most famous example probably.
 
Doc_Keele said:
Whether or not you posit that the soul will have memories (and of course the soul isn’t physical, although that doesn’t mean that it can’t be damaged, incidentally), the brain stores memories in a physical form namely RNA and if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, the memory is affected eg if someone has a temporal lobectomy.
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No one is denying that. Clearly, memory requires a mostly functional head in which to form, or be retrieved. (I say “mostly” because memory is rather stable compared to other brain functions).

But some form of memory needs to be carried on after death, else nothing is left of a human being. They lost consciousness; they lost their bodies. What else but memory remains of that person’s life?

Memory may not be experessible in certain brain states, but if Eternal Life is at all possible, it must somehow be keyed to the “soul.”
Similarly if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, someone’s personality changes - the case of Phineas Gage is the most famous example probably.
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Personality is given more importance than it probably has. It is IMNAAHO just the expressive surface that our mind presents to society; and it changes all the time, based on blood chemistry, health state, fatigue, emotional state, etc. No bolt through the forehead required.:eek:

ICXC NIKA
 
James_S_Saint said:
Every strand of your DNA carries an image of your “soul”. Remove all of them and what is left is mere legacy.
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No, no, no, no. Our DNA does not carry an “image” of our souls! DNA is purely physical and is a means of directing bodily characteristics and processes. Good grief! 🤷
The effort generated by the DNA/RNA is a spirit aimed toward a specific goal. The machine that you used to replace yourself isn’t likely to even comprehend that goal just as you current do not.
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:confused:
To replace the entire body would be much like removing the founder of a corporation. The corporation continues perhaps in the same spirit for a while, but eventually hasn’t the same emphasis and demeanor of the founder.
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Very poor and confusing analogy.
The soul is the very foundational definition of the effort being manifest. It is not the actual manifestation (that is the spirit). Thus it is properly stated that the “spirit continues” in the legacy, but whether the soul does is another matter.
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The soul is the spirit. The soul is what lives on after our mortal bodies die. The soul never dies.
Once the actual method and goal of the soul are lost due to presumptive replacement, “you” are no longer there, but rather merely a spirit that you left behind, still carrying your label.
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“You” exist forever, hopefully in the presence and love of God.
Is the nation still America if all of its inhabitants are only machines?
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Is it still humanity when all within are manufactured replicas?
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Well I guess it would then be “replicanity.” or “machinaty.” 🙂
Take care what you replace. One day that will be you.
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Then I’m in trouble. I’ve got so much metal in me that I set off detectors in stores and I also have cadaver bone, Jamaican coral, and God knows what else. And little bits and pieces of me are being cut off. So what am I?

BTW, I know the poster I am replying to is banned. This is for the lurkers.

Ave Maria! Ora pro nobis.
 
GEddie said:
No one is denying that. Clearly, memory requires a mostly functional head in which to form, or be retrieved. (I say “mostly” because memory is rather stable compared to other brain functions).

But some form of memory needs to be carried on after death, else nothing is left of a human being. They lost consciousness; they lost their bodies. What else but memory remains of that person’s life?

Memory may not be experessible in certain brain states, but if Eternal Life is at all possible, it must somehow be keyed to the “soul.”

Personality is given more importance than it probably has. It is IMNAAHO just the expressive surface that our mind presents to society; and it changes all the time, based on blood chemistry, health state, fatigue, emotional state, etc. No bolt through the forehead required.:eek:

ICXC NIKA
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👍 Great post! What would be the reason for our existence on earth if we did not have the capability to remember what we did, after our mortal bodies die? I think that part of why we are here is to learn - without memory of that learning, much of our time here is wasted.

Ave Maria! Ora pro nobis.
 
Doc_Keele said:
If the memory belongs to the soul (which I don’t believe, given that memories are encoded in RNA), then how can memories be permanently lost? Is part of the soul lost?
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If memory does not accompany the soul, do you expect to enter the Eternal Life with an empty mind?
 
GEddie said:
If memory does not accompany the soul, do you expect to enter the Eternal Life with an empty mind?
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Memory accompanying the soul, and resting in the soul, seem to me to be two different things.
 
Doc_Keele said:
Whether or not you posit that the soul will have memories (and of course the soul isn’t physical, although that doesn’t mean that it can’t be damaged, incidentally), the brain stores memories in a physical form namely RNA and if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, the memory is affected eg if someone has a temporal lobectomy. Similarly if certain parts of the brain are damaged or removed, someone’s personality changes - the case of Phineas Gage is the most famous example probably.
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Dead bodies can’t remember a thing! The only thing that can harm the soul is SIN, but it cannot destroy its eternity. It will live on either in Heaven or Hell. Hopefully in Heaven if it follows the WAY the TRUTH and the LIFE, Jesus Christ. God Bless, Memaw
 
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