Sharing

I had the startling, but not shocking, revelation that most of the atoms in my body have probably been part of someone else's body. Not only have things passed through my body that have been part of another human, but the very atoms that make up my body made up someone else's. Its very interesting to me. I began thinking about it because someone mentioned the question of whether people who have been cremated can be resurrected. I find it mostly a silly question, but modestly interesting. However, my new revelation makes that line of thinking utterly ridiculous. If God needs elements of a physical body to resurrect then we are all in trouble. Who gets claim to the atoms that we share? I imagine that few people today have many atoms that they can call their own -- meaning they haven't belonged to another human. And this is another interesting thought to me. We can't really lay claim to the atoms in our bodies because they once were part of someone else's body, and one day they will be part of yet another's. This in turn brings up some interesting thought about the separation of body and soul. I reject the Western dichotomy between the two and believe that they are impossible to separate. So what do I do with this idea that each atom in my body is not unique to me? I think that it affirms that although body and soul cannot be separated, we are still more than the sum of our parts. One does not gain part of another's soul although they main gain part of their body. I'm still not sure exactly how I can now describe the fact that soul and body are one in light of this, although I am sure its possible and that I will be able to one day. I don't think that it has very profound implications for how we live our lives, but it is interesting to think about none the less. At least I find it so.