Wallace, Rebekah

Embodied cognition and Christian theological conceptions of the human person

July 19, 2024 Wallace, Rebekah

Embodied cognition (EC), a paradigm emphasizing the role of the body in shaping the mind, has been largely overlooked by theologians despite its potential for Christian doctrines of the soul. The author argues that EC, often wrongly associated with physicalism, actually resonates with Thomistic hylomorphism—a biological, holistic view of the soul that allows for its continuance after death. Current theological debates are stuck between physicalism and Cartesian dualism, both problematic. The thesis proposes that EC, properly understood as a modern form of hylomorphism, offers a scientifically and theologically viable framework that coheres with Christian eschatology, addressing methodological, philosophical, and theological gaps in existing engagement.