A bit of Hebrew insight may help clarify your dilemma. It is better to translate the Hebrew word for "soul" as "life", as some modern translations do.
As for the other part of the question, I don't have a soul :) I am a soul! I dont't have a body :) I am a body! I don't have a spirit :) I am a spirit! When you look at my three "identities", you see a human being. Leave any of them aside and I won't be who I am or who I was created to be.
First off, I am not a Roman Catholic and I have never been one. I am an Evangelical teaching in an Evangelical institution.
Unfortunately, I STRONGLY disagree with McArthur's view on the subject. certainly there will always be disagreements, but I am afraid that McArthur may actually exclude many Evangelical from what he calls "the Biblical Side" (e.g. Pentecostals and Charismatics).
For those of you who want to find out what Roman Catholics really believe, I would recommended the Catechism of the Catholic Church, allongside anything by Peter Kreift.
(1) It is true that the Rabbis would not allow people younger then 30 to read it, but that is also true of other parts of the OT (e.g. parts of Ezekiel). As Christians who affirm the full inspiration of Scripture we need to realize that The song of Songs is as much scripture as any other part of the Bible is. The difficult question is how to read it. Seeing it as the love story of Christ and his Church is certainly a valid way of doing it, esp. if you go on to read Isaiah after it (see chapter 5). Another way of reading it, and one that I love, is reading Proverbs 31 before moving on to Ruth and then to the Song. This is the order of the books in the Hebrew canon. Try it and tell me what you think of it.
(2) Unfortunately yes. It is especially obvious during church camps or other social events.
Thank you very much for the post. It presents a well-thought-out and well-articulated view on a subject which should concern all of us. I fund tha Christ-centered hope in it refreshing. It certainly made me think over it and here are some of my thoughts.
I definitely agree with your main point and with its chief implication. Being in Christ means that we are complete. Because of this, it may be the case that God may not have someone for us.
While the majority of us should have no problem accepting your main point, some obviously trip over its implication and that is that God may have decided that Christ is sufficient for some of us. While this might sound unsettling at first, it is intended to release us from the enormous pressure which has been piled up on our shoulders. We are not obligated to find the right person for us. Believe it or not, it is not our responsibility to do it! We are rather to accept God�s gift, the seemingly bitter cup of being single. By doing this, incidentally, we are going to be much more grateful to God when our singleness is no more, if that is ever going to be the case for some of us. When clinging to false hopes is revealed for what it is, then it comes crushing down to the earth. It is painful to accept that, yet, in time we may come to realize that the enormous burden of the ticking clock has been removed from us and we are given something far lighter to carry.
The only part that I find problematic is your use of desire as a means of making your point. It is true that all of our desires will not be fulfilled on earth. However, it is not true that our desire to get married will be fulfilled �in heaven�. You do not say this, of course, but you imply it several times.
Finally, let me say something about my reactions to the tone of the post. I do not think that there is any despair or dissatisfaction expressed in it. What I see is hope which is grounded both in Christ and in reality. This hope is neither na�ve nor self-centered, but rather Christ-centered. This is the kind of hope which will never let us walk alone since it knows that it has Christ to lean on. This is why we are able to say �not my will but yours be done� in terms of the single life.
Thank you very much for the post. It presents a well-thought-out and well-articulated view on a subject which should concern all of us. I fund tha Christ-centered hope in it refreshing. It certainly made me think over it and here are some of my thoughts.
I definitely agree with your main point and with its chief implication. Being in Christ means that we are complete. Because of this, it may be the case that God may not have someone for us.
While the majority of us should have no problem accepting your main point, some obviously trip over its implication and that is that God may have decided that Christ is sufficient for some of us. While this might sound unsettling at first, it is intended to release us from the enormous pressure which has been piled up on our shoulders. We are not obligated to find the right person for us. Believe it or not, it is not our responsibility to do it! We are rather to accept God�s gift, the seemingly bitter cup of being single. By doing this, incidentally, we are going to be much more grateful to God when our singleness is no more, if that is ever going to be the case for some of us. When clinging to false hopes is revealed for what it is, then it comes crushing down to the earth. It is painful to accept that, yet, in time we may come to realize that the enormous burden of the ticking clock has been removed from us and we are given something far lighter to carry.
The only part that I find problematic is your use of desire as a means of making your point. It is true that all of our desires will not be fulfilled on earth. However, it is not true that our desire to get married will be fulfilled �in heaven�. You do not say this, of course, but you imply it several times.
Finally, let me say something about my reactions to the tone of the post. I do not think that there is any despair or dissatisfaction expressed in it. What I see is hope which is grounded both in Christ and in reality. This hope is neither na�ve nor self-centered, but rather Christ-centered. This is the kind of hope which will never let us walk alone since it knows that it has Christ to lean on. This is why we are able to say �not my will but yours be done� in terms of the single life.
