@ThomasShields Doing alright at the moment. Have a significant fever, but I'm confident that it will break tonight. Maayyybe tomorrow. On the plus side, I don't have to work! ('cause I work in a restaurant, and they wouldn't let me work with a fever for obvious reasons.)

@El'endiaStarman But on the down side, you ain't getting paid.

@FMS thought discussion was better in here. I'm not sure (but haven't really investigated) whether Aquinas thinks that animal and vegetable principles are "souls" in the same sense that human souls are.

@Matt Aloha! and Blessings! We give thanks for the good catholic answers you continue to provide on the site. Hope family is well.

All good - and yours?

Wife went on trip to mainland so kids under Daddy care ...

Fun :-)

When is she back?

On Thursday. Left this morning. She is already gone too long ...

I know what you mean :-(

This is a start Do animals have souls like human beings?, I am looking for great minds like Aquinas etc.

and aquinasonline.com/Topics/soul.html

Here's my start in Aquinas: ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.FP_Q78_A1.html

Found the answer!

@FMS ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.FP_Q75_A3.html

To say that the soul of an animal is not "subsistent" is to say effectively (as I understand it) that it has no existence independent of the animal's body.

Now whether that's still current theology is a different question.

Great explaining?

If an animal and plant dies, I still see the body, what happened to their souls? They cease to exit vs were annihilated?

Meant Great! What is the explanation?

Not sure yet; I think so. The existence of the animative/vegetative soul is a consequence of the existence of the body; hence it is corruptible in the same sense that the body is.

I think.

I guess wondering whether the distinction needs to be made between ceasing to exist and annihilation, it appears beings come and go into and out of existence but your answer seems to suggest that God does not annihilate.

More material ewtn.com/vexperts/…

@FMS Well, let's see. A human body is corruptible, it can cease to exist as a body. In that sense you could say that it "goes out of existence". But as matter, it doesn't cease to exist.

But the soul isn't corruptible; it can't (on its own) cease to exist.

It seems though that Aquinas is arguing that the "soul" of an animal is corruptible in the same way that the body of the animal is.

Reasonable. But that dog Arthur, that being, ceased to exist ...

@FMS but was not annihilated (that is, removed from existence by something other than its own nature).

Correct as I said above. I was wondering whether that distinction in our answers need to be made.

hm. Let me see what I'd need to do to account for that. I think it's a reasonable extension of the answer.

Do animals have souls? If this may help. All in all, good answer. If nothing else Dominus tecum good to talk with you again.

Et cum spiritu ...