Death & Immortal Soul

[Gregory Matthews]

As most SDAs do not fully understand the SDA teaching on death and the immortal soul, I thought that I would comment on it.

Depending on the version of SDA Belief's that you are citing, this teaching is found in either number 25 or number 26.  It reads in part, as follows:

"The wages of sin is death.  But God, who alone is immortal, will grant eternal life to His redeemed.  Until that day death is an unconscious state for all people. . . ..  NOTE: I have deleted the part about the second resurrection. 

The above teaching says nothing as to whether or not people have a soul.  It simply says that people are unconscious at death.  The fundamental principle of that teaching is that at death people are in an unconscious state.  

Most Adventists in the U. S. have understood the teaching to say that humans do not have a soul that can live outside of the body and survives death.  Again, that is not what the teaching says.

In actual fact, you can be a SDA and believe that humans have a soul that survives death.   A now deceased, major SDA Leader in Europe held this belief.  He is held in deep respect today.   He probably did more to advance the cause of Adventism in his home nation than any other person has accomplished. 

[Gustave]

Did the major SDA leader in Europe who believed humans have a soul that survives death believe that the soul of a deceased person remains in a vegetative / unconscious state until the resurrection of the body? 

[Gregory Matthews]

Gustave, It has been a long time, and I am uncertain.  In fact, I am attempting to remember his name.

To set a time period, he spoke to Seminary students at Andrews University during the time that I was a student  th[ere--1965-1967.  He began speaking in English.  As he attempted to respond to questions he switched over to his native language and needed a translator. 

[Gregory Matthews]

I have not been able with certainty to discover the name of the person I mentioned in an above post.  It might have been Jean Nussbaum?  I do not know.   In any case, the link below will take you to a link that will surprise all, a SDA leader who worked closely with a Pope!.  There is Internet material on that aspect that tells more than the following article. 

https://aidlr.org/history.php

 

[Gregory Matthews]

Her is more information on Jea n Nussbaum:

https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=AH5Z

 NOTE :  The book, Crusader for Freedom, by Gertrude Loewen, has been published about his life.    I have ordered a copy in an attempt to see what his understanding of the nature of humans was.  This book is out of print.   But, it is available as a used copy from many sources, including Amazon.  However, the price range for this used book changes by a factor of ten.

 

[Gregory Matthews]

Well, my book has come.  It is an amazing book published in 1969.  It is 227 pages long in telling of the life of a SDA physician who devoted his life to working for religious liberty for all.   This included Cardinal Pacelli and Pope Pius XII, who were the same person.

The book does not tell us anything as to his belief on the State of the Dead.  It mentions his coming to Andrews University in June of 1966.  I was a student there at that time and I heard him speak and he was questioned about his understanding of death.  

He is mentioned meany times on the Internet.  I shall post a site below that will inform more about him.

https://aidlr.org/history.php