Theists: where does your 'soul/spirit' come from?

Not all theists are going to believe that humans have souls and whereas i personally do, i see them as Platonic forms which capture the essence of the individual and also as sign-based tokens which have the cultural function of representing individual identity in society. I think these are two separate things. In the former sense, souls are abstract entities which exist in the same sense as numbers exist, not things which exist in time like a ghost might be (and ghosts are not souls either, whether or not they exist), and they have nothing to do with consciousness. They are also radically unlike anything made of matter or substance.

We learn about the Abrahamic God Jehovah in the bible.

In the bible the word SOUL and SPIRIT are NOT interchangable (the same thing)

In the bible SOUL is just another word for PERSON (or animal) it just means a living breathing being. I married a man =I married a soul. I am a person = I am a soul. So a soul (or person) has blood, bone, flesh, souls (people) eat food and of course souls (people/animals) DIE.

It is NOT something invisible that continues your consciouse existence after death, that's just Greek mythology.

If you would like to learn more I'm giving you a link. It's a page of reading but if you're not used to reading that much, just read the beginning and then maybe the end another day.

SOUL and SPIRIT

http://www.watchtower.org/e/bh/appendix_07.htm

In some Pagan faiths, souls are a part of the Universal Source, and have detached from it to experience lives. Between lives, they return to the Source, to commune with it and prepare for the next life.

How did we get here in the first place?

"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Genesis 2:7.

(God made us from dust in the beginning.)

What happens when a person dies?

"Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it."

Ecclesiastes 12:7.

The body turns to dust again, and the spirit goes back to God, who gave it. The spirit of every person who dies--whether righteous or wicked--returns to God at death.

What is the "spirit" that returns to God at death?

"The body without the spirit ["breath of life"] is dead." James 2:26. "The spirit of God ["the breath of life,"] is in my nostrils." Job 27:3.

The spirit that returns to God at death is the breath of life. Nowhere in all of God's book does the "spirit" have any life, wisdom, or feeling after a person dies. It is the "breath of life" and nothing more.

What is a "soul"?

"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Genesis 2:7.

A soul is a living being. A soul is always a combination of two things: body plus breath. A soul cannot exist unless body and breath are combined. God's Word teaches that we are souls.

Do good people go to heaven when they die?

"All that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth." John 5:28, 29. "David ... is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day." "For David is not ascended into the heavens." Acts 2:29, 34. "If I wait, the grave is mine house." Job 17:13.

people do not go either to heaven or hell at death. They go to their graves to await the resurrection day.

Amazing facts study Guide

Are the Dead Really Dead? http://www.amazingfacts.org/free-stuff/bible-studi...

Is the Devil in charge of Hell? http://www.amazingfacts.org/free-stuff/bible-studi...

1,000 years of peace! http://www.amazingfacts.org/free-stuff/bible-studi...

God creates the soul at the moment of conception.

The soul is unborn and eternal. It does not come from GOD since it is GOD himself. Everything that exist is GOD only. The self think that he is an individual but that is wrong it his illusion like the horizon that does not exist that separate the sky and the sea. Nothing exist individually everything exist as one and that is GOD. Everything material is just a combination of atoms and within each atom you find GOD himself. Your soul, my soul are like candle fire from the original big fire never was it separated nor it will be separated since only the fire remains as one.

Soul is the breath of God (or just breath)

Spirit is your essence (thoughts, emotions, etc).

Body is blood, flesh, and muscles.

EDIT:

When you examine the way “soul” or “souls” is used in the Bible, it becomes evident that this word basically refers to (1) people, (2) animals, or (3) the life that a person or an animal enjoys. Let us consider some scriptures that present these three different senses.

People. “In Noah’s days . . . a few people, that is, eight souls, were carried safely through the water.” (1 Peter 3:20) Here the word “souls” clearly stands for people—Noah, his wife, his three sons, and their wives.

Animals. In the Bible’s creation account, we read: “God went on to say: ‘Let the waters swarm forth a swarm of living souls and let flying creatures fly over the earth upon the face of the expanse of the heavens.’ And God went on to say: ‘Let the earth put forth living souls according to their kinds, domestic animal and moving animal and wild beast of the earth according to its kind.’ And it came to be so.” (Genesis 1:20, 24) In this passage, fish, domestic animals, and wild beasts are all referred to by the same word—“souls.” Birds and other animals are called souls at Genesis 9:10; Leviticus 11:46; and Numbers 31:28.

Life as a person. Sometimes the word “soul” means one’s life as a person. Jehovah told Moses: “All the men who were hunting for your soul are dead.” (Exodus 4:19) What were Moses’ enemies hunting for? They were seeking to take Moses’ life. Earlier, while Rachel was giving birth to her son Benjamin, “her soul was going out (because she died).” (Genesis 35:16-19) At that moment, Rachel lost her life.

A further study of God’s Word will show you that nowhere in the entire Bible are the terms “immortal” or “everlasting” linked with the word “soul.” Instead, the Scriptures state that a soul is mortal, meaning that it dies. (Ezekiel 18:4, 20) Therefore, the Bible calls someone who has died simply a “dead soul.”—Leviticus 21:11.

THE “SPIRIT” IDENTIFIED

The Bible makes clear that “spirit” and “soul” refer to two different things. How do they differ?

Bible writers used the Hebrew word ru′ach or the Greek word pneu′ma when writing about the “spirit.” The Scriptures themselves indicate the meaning of those words. For instance, Psalm 104:29 states: “If you [Jehovah] take away their spirit [ru′ach], they expire, and back to their dust they go.” And James 2:26 notes that “the body without spirit [pneu′ma] is dead.” In these verses, then, “spirit” refers to that which gives life to a body. Without spirit, the body is dead. Therefore, in the Bible the word ru′ach is translated not only as “spirit” but also as “force,” or life-force. For example, concerning the Flood in Noah’s day, God said: “I am bringing the deluge of waters upon the earth to bring to ruin all flesh in which the force [ru′ach] of life is active from under the heavens.” (Genesis 6:17; 7:15, 22) “Spirit” thus refers to an invisible force (the spark of life) that animates all living creatures.

Speaking about man’s death, Ecclesiastes 12:7 states: “The dust [of his body] returns to the earth just as it happened to be and the spirit itself returns to the true God who gave it.” When the spirit, or life-force, leaves the body, the body dies and returns to where it came from—the earth. Comparably, the life-force returns to where it came from—God. (Job 34:14, 15; Psalm 36:9) This does not mean that the life-force actually travels to heaven. Rather, it means that for someone who dies, any hope of future life rests with Jehovah God.

This is exactly what God will do for all of those resting in “the memorial tombs”! (John 5:28, 29) At the time of the resurrection, Jehovah will form a new body for a person sleeping in death and bring it to life by putting spirit, or life-force, in it. What a joyful day that will be! Of course, this refers to the "great crowd" or "other sheep" which cherishes the hope of living forever in a paradise earth. -Psalm 37:29; Proverbs 2:20-22; John 10:16; Revelation 7:9.

To a little group of 144,000, God has given the heavenly hope. They will rule with Christ in heaven. When they die, God resurrects their personality pattern. But different from the ones with the earthly hope, they receive a spirit body. That´s suitable, since they´re gonna live in a different environment which is heaven itself. -Revelation 5:9, 10 ; 14:1-4.

1 Corinthians 15:35, 38, 40:

Nevertheless, someone will say: “How are the dead to be raised up? Yes, with what sort of body are they coming?” ... but God gives it a body just as it has pleased him, and to each of the seeds its own body...And there are heavenly bodies, and earthly bodies; but the glory of the heavenly bodies is one sort, and that of the earthly bodies is a different sort.

For the anointed or 144,000:

Verses 44 and 49:

It is sown a physical body, it is raised up a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual one....And just as we have borne the image of the one made of dust, we shall bear also the image of the heavenly one.

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Sunshine and Cupcake have given you correct answers.

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it is your conscious that lives on