Chapter 15

Let's just establish this rule right now: Theologians aren't good at anthropology and anthropologists aren't good theology.

Generally, there are three camps on the debate over how humans are constituted.

• Monists - there is one part of our being
• Dichotomists - we have a body and a soul
• Trichotomists - we have a body, soul, and a spirit\

Calvin is the poster boy Dichotomism. There is a soul and there is a body and that is it, according to Calvin.I won't try to tear apart his arguments for his position. You know that mama always said, 'if you can't say something nice, don't start a critical blog of a Reformation theologian.'

So, instead, I'll give my opinion. Which, is essentially, the whole point of this life blog.   

Dichotomism fits very nicely within neo-Platonic philosophy, but it is much more difficult to fit into the Jewish perspective of the first century. Forgive a Straw Man, but behold the silliness of the following:

PLATONIC DUALISM in a NUTSHELL: God is a spirit and he like spiritual things. Physical things are gross and susceptible to further grossness. So, God sent his Law and his Son to show us how to escape from the grossness of the physical and fully embrace the purity of the spiritual. 

Quick responding question to the above: If God thinks the physical is so gross, THEN WHY IN THE HELL DID  HE CREATE SO DAMNED MUCH OF IT??!!??!!

Half of the Universe may be material. Why would God create half of the Universe to be poop? Even more so with humanity. The only proof that Calvin offers that there is a substantive difference between soul and body, was eschatological. He wonders how you could send a physical body to a spiritual torment. Obviosuly you cannot, so only the soul must be able to survive to the next round. 

Really? My head is going to explode.