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II. The Constitutional Nature of Man
The previous chapter is of a more or less introductory nature, and does not, strictly speaking,
form an integral part of the systematic presentation of the doctrine of man in dogmatics. This
explains why many treatises on systematic theology fail to devote a separate chapter to the
origin of man. Yet it seemed desirable to insert it here, since it furnishes a fitting background
for what follows. Under the present caption we shall consider the essential constituents of
human nature, and the question of the origin of the soul in the individuals that constitute the
race.
A. THE CONSTITUENT ELEMENTS OF HUMAN NATURE.
1. THE DIFFERENT VIEWS THAT WERE CURRENT IN HISTORY: DICHOTOMY AND TRICHOTOMY.
It is customary, especially in Christian circles, to conceive of man as consisting of two. and only
two, distinct parts, namely, body and soul. This view is technically called dichotomy. Alongside
of it, however, another made its appearance, to the effect that human nature consists of three
parts, body, soul, and spirit. It is designated by the term trichotomy. The tri-partite conception
of man originated in Greek philosophy, which conceived of the relation of the body and the
spirit of man to each other after the analogy of the mutual relation between the material
universe and God. It was thought that, just as the latter could enter into communion with each
other only by means of a third substance or an intermediate being, so the former could enter
into mutual vital relationships only by means of a third or intermediate element, namely, the
soul. The soul was regarded as, on the one hand, immaterial, and on the other, adapted to the
body. In so far as it appropriated the nous or pneuma, it was regarded as immortal, but in so far
as it was related to the body, as carnal and mortal. The most familiar but also the crudest form
of trichotomy is that which takes the body for the material part of man’s nature, the soul as the
principle of animal life, and the spirit as the God-related rational and immortal element in man.
The trichotomic conception of man found considerable favor with the Greek or Alexandrian
Church Fathers of the early Christian centuries. It is found, though not always in exactly the
same form, in Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and Gregory of Nyssa. But after Apollinaris
employed it in a manner impinging on the perfect humanity of Jesus, it was gradually
discredited. Some of the Greek Fathers still adhered to it, though Athanasius and Theodoret
explicitly repudiated it. In the Latin Church the leading theologians distinctly favored the
twofold division of human nature. It was especially the psychology of Augustine that gave
prominence to this view. During the Middle Ages it had become a matter of common belief. The
Reformation brought no change in this respect, though a few lesser lights defended the
trichotomic theory. The Roman Catholic Church adhered to the verdict of Scholasticism, but in
the circles of Protestantism other voices were heard. During the nineteenth century trichotomy