Rethinking Human Nature: A Christian Materialist Alternative to the Soul

What are we as human persons? Are we immaterial souls capable of disembodied existence or merely animals destined to dust? For centuries, scholars have debated this issue, and that debate continues today. But the question of human nature can no longer remain a topic for discussion within the hallowed halls of the academy. End of life ethical decisions, human cloning, fetal tissue transplants, and stem cell research all reveal the urgency and the importance of the question for ordinary people.Rethinking Human Nature offers a fascinating look at what it means to be human by defending the "constitutional view"which suggests we are constituted by our bodies without being identical to the bodies that constitute us. Grounded in Scripture, this book connects the theology and philosophy of human nature with the moral conundrums that confront us at the margins of life.

Kevin J. Corcoran (PhD, Purdue University) is professor of philosophy at Calvin College, specializing in philosophy of mind, metaphysics, and philosophy of religion. He is the author of many journal articles and the editor of Soul, Body, and Survival.