Drawing upon the disciplines of cognitive science, computer science, neuroscience, general systems theory, pragmatic philosophy, and Christian theology, this book reinterprets the traditional doctrine of the soul as form of the body to frame contemporary scientific study of the human soul.

Does science argue against the existence of the human soul? Many scientists and scholars believe the whole is more than the sum of the parts. This book uses information and systems theory to describe the "more" that does not reduce to the parts. One sees this in the synapses"or apparently empty gaps between the neurons in one's brain"where informative relationships give rise to human mind, culture, and spirituality. Drawing upon the disciplines of cognitive science, computer science, neuroscience, general systems theory, pragmatic philosophy, and Christian theology, Mark Graves reinterprets the traditional doctrine of the soul as form of the body to frame contemporary scientific study of the human soul.

'Mark Graves here crafts an intriguing synthesis of systems theory, cognitive science, and emergence theory in this quest to preserve the category of "soul" for a scientific age... An effective resumé of the concepts that theologians will need in order to speak to the contemporary scientific context.' Philip Clayton, Claremont School of Theology, USA and Claremont Graduate University, USA '... Graves' thesis is valid and it is a welcome corrective to the proposal to rid theology of the soul... the book should be purchased by scholars in the fields of philosophical and theological anthropology and those interested in the interplay between emergence theory and religion.' ESSSAT News