Friday, March 11, 2022

9:03 AM
 
THE HUMAN PERSON
- Understanding what it means to be a human person is arduous. This has been a perennial problem even
from ancient times.
- But what is a human person? How will you answer this question? In explaining the essence of the human
person, it is easy to focus on its material or physical aspect.
- Human persons indeed have material needs, but they also have nonmaterial aspects.

INTRODUCTION
In doing philosophy, we give attention to the material and nonmaterial aspects of human persons. This
brings us to the idea that a human person is an embodied spirit.

THE HUMAN PERSON IN PHILOSOPHY’S “HISTORY”

ANCIENT
- man is viewed as part of the universe (cosmogenic model)
- Philosophers: Plato and Aristotle
MEDIEVAL
- man’s soul and body is created by God (theocentric)
- Philosophers: Saint Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas
MODERN
- shift from theocentric to anthropocentric
- man is regarded as the most significant being in the world
- Philosophers: Rene Descartes and John Locke

THE HUMAN PERSON AS AN EMBODIED SPIRIT

- To speak of the human person as an ' embodied spirit' does not refer to the materialization or the
personification of a human being.
- Rather, it refers to the inseparable union of the body and the soul. Simply, the human person as an
embodied spirit means that his/her body is inseparable from his/her soul, just as the soul is inseparable
from the body.
- In other words, the human person is the meeting point of the material and immaterial entities.
- This concept makes it possible to accept man’s limitations and realize his potentials. Most importantly, it
helps man recognize his uniqueness.

THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN PERSON IN THE ANCIENT

PERIOD
PLATO'S THREE FUNCTIONS OF THE SOUL
- Plato's view of the human person rests on the dichotomy of the body and soul.
- For him, the body is material and is subject to changes and destructions, while the soul is immaterial and
unchanging.
- He also believed that the human soul is an authentic part because the body is just its prison cell.
- Hence, the body's existence is dependent on the soul, while the soul is independent of the body.
- Plato contended that the soul existed before the body, for it was created by the gods and was venerable
in birth.
- Accordingly, the soul has a tripartite function, namely, the rational function, the passion function, and the
appetitive function.
TRIPARTITE SOUL:
RATIONAL/LOGICAL
- seeks truth and is swayed by facts and arguments
SPIRITED/EMOTIONAL
- how feelings fuel your action
APPETITIVE/PHYSCAL DESIRES
- drives you to eat, have sex, and protect yourself

ARISTOTLE'S THREE TYPES OF THE SOUL

- Aristotle disagreed with Plato that the soul is separable. For him, the soul and the body are substantially
united.
- There is no dichotomy between the two, for none cannot talk about the soul apart from the body or talk
about the body apart from the soul. • Aristotle explained in detail his view on man when he explained its
biological and psychological aspects.
- The word soul is an English translation of the Greek word psyche. Hence, for him, the soul is the source
of life.
- What gives life to a body? For Aristotle, all bodies, living or not, are a combination of the primary
elements.
- The body is not the principle of life, for it is always in potentiality. It needs a form to be in actuality. By
actuality, we mean it is alive.
- When the body is alive, it will then be able to perform its functions. Like a cellphone, if it is not charged, it
would not do its functions.
- The soul then is the form of the organized body. For Aristotle, anything that lives has a soul. Does this
mean that animals and plants also have souls? Yes. Not only humans have souls. Aristotle identified three
kinds of souls found in plants, animals, and man. These three kinds of souls are characterized as
vegetative, sensitive, and rational. They are modeled according to the various capacities of the body.
VEGETATIVE
- the soul is alive for it grows and reproduce. But it doesn’t feel or think
SENSITIVE
- capable of growing, feeding, and reproducing
- what makes it different is that it is also capable of sensing or feeling
- a sensitive being possesses the appetite where desire, anger, and pain are experienced
RATIONAL
- has the capacity for scientific thoughts, for it can distinguish various things
- with this capacity, it analyzes and understands the relationship of things
- deliberates and discovers the truth of the nature of things and the guidelines for human behavior

THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE HUMAN PERSON IN THE MEDIEVAL

PERIOD
ST. AUGUSTINE
- St. Augustine of Hippo had a deep interest in Philosophy in his search for meaning in the Christian faith.
- He believed that God created the world, and this includes the creation of the immortal soul.
- A human being is not only material and rational but, most importantly, a soul embodied in a material
substance.
- In other words, the soul is a 'self-sustaining' substance. Plato, therefore, believed in the soul’s immortality,
which can exist without the body.
- With the soul’s self-subsistence, it is the real person in man. It is the principle of life which is also what
makes man authentic.
- The authentic person of man is the soul within him. The fact the human body moves means that it is
animated by the soul to perform its functions.
- The human body and its senses outwardly express the activities of the human soul.
- Through our five senses, the intellect, as a special faculty, is enhanced, allowing human beings to
understand and realize that they are more endowed than other animals.

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS

- Another notable philosopher known as a defender of the Christian faith and a Doctor of the Church is St.
Thomas Aquinas.
- He was greatly influenced by Aristotle's thoughts since, during his time, his works were introduced and
accepted, particularly in Paris.
- For Aquinas, Philosophy and Theology are not two conflicting disciplines. Rather, these two are
complementary in the quest for truth.
- In his view of man's nature, Aquinas believed that the soul is dependent on the body, in the same way as
the body is dependent on the soul. • The difference between him and Aristotle was that the latter only sees
the body and soul as inseparable.
- For Aquinas, without the soul, the body will not have its form, and without the body, the soul will not have
its required sense organs to gain knowledge. • The soul then gives life and understanding, as well as
special physical features.
- It also accounts for man’s capacity for sensation and the powers of intellect and will.
- The intellect and will are the highest human faculties, making humans beings higher than other animals.
- These faculties are geared towards the attainment of the contemplation of God.
- Through these, man can aim towards the union and eternal fellowship with God, which is achieved in the
beatific vision. -
What is this beatific vision of Thomas? It is during the cessation of breath. When the physical body of man
corrupts because of sins, the soul of man continues to exist.
- From then, he can see face to face God and enjoy the eternal happiness.
- This is the gift of God to all those who follow His precepts and who in life experienced salvation and
redemption through his son Jesus Christ