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BY THE AUTHOR
Dr. Clarence E. Mason, Jr.
Philadelphia College of Bible
1970

3. ORIGIN OF THE SOUL

   1. Pre-existence theory
      This theory teaches that the soul and spirit of man have existed eternally; that life is a reincarnation. Cp. Hindus and Theosophists. Contr. Gen. 2:7; 1:26-27.

   2. Creation theory (i.e., individual creation)
      This theory holds that a new soul is created whenever a person begins to live. Only the body is propagated by human means (Eccl. 12:7). This theory involves the difficulty of explaining original sin and heredity.

   3. Traducian theory
      This theory teaches that both the immaterial and material parts of man are propagated by human generation. This would concur with the fact that God finished the work of creation on the sixth day. We do, how­ever, recognize the fact of the New Creation (Gen. 46:26; Heb. 7:9-10; Gen. 2:2; Eph. 4:24).

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