A Jehovah's Witness might put it this way: "You don't have a soul. You are a soul. When you die, you simply stop existing until the resurrection." It deserves a careful answer.
Short answer: Yes. Scripture often uses "soul" for the whole living person, and Catholics agree. But Scripture also speaks of the soul as surviving the death of the body: men "cannot kill the soul," martyrs' souls cry out to God before the resurrection, and St. Paul longs to "depart" and be with Christ. The soul is immortal because God made it so, and it awaits the resurrection of the body.
Key verses on the soul
- "And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul" (Matthew 10:28)
- "I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered" (Revelation 6:9)
- "I long to depart this life and be with Christ, [for] that is far better." (Philippians 1:23)
- "we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord." (2 Corinthians 5:8)
- "the life breath returns to God who gave it." (Ecclesiastes 12:7)
Scripture quotations are from the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
What Catholics Actually Teach
The other side first. Jehovah's Witnesses teach that the soul "is the entire creature, not something inside that survives the death of the body." Adam "was not given a soul—he became a living soul, or person." They hold that "the soul can die" and that belief in an immortal soul comes "not from the Bible, but from ancient Greek philosophy" (jw.org).
The Catholic Church agrees with part of this. "In Sacred Scripture the term 'soul' often refers to human life or the entire human person. But 'soul' also refers to the innermost aspect of man, that which is of greatest value in him ... 'soul' signifies the spiritual principle in man" (CCC 363). The soul "is immortal: it does not perish when it separates from the body at death, and it will be reunited with the body at the final Resurrection" (CCC 366).
What Catholics do not teach:
- That the body is a prison (a Greek idea). Body and soul are so united that "their union forms a single nature" (CCC 365), and our hope is the resurrection of the body.
- That the soul is immortal on its own, apart from God. God "alone has immortality" (1 Timothy 6:16). The soul lives on only because He made it so.
- That a separated soul is the whole person. The soul "goes to meet God, while awaiting its reunion with its glorified body" (CCC 997).
The Biblical Case
1. Jesus: men can kill the body, not the soul
"And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna" (Matthew 10:28). If the soul were simply the living person, killing the body would kill the soul. Jesus says it does not. The NWT's note offers "life" as an alternative rendering, but then the "life" that killers cannot touch is exactly what survives death.
2. Souls cry out before the resurrection
St. John saw "the souls of those who had been slaughtered," and "They cried out in a loud voice, 'How long will it be, holy and true master, before you sit in judgment and avenge our blood on the inhabitants of the earth?'" (Revelation 6:9–10). They are dead, history on earth goes on, and they are told "to be patient a little while longer" (6:11). Hebrews speaks of "the spirits of the just made perfect" (Hebrews 12:23).
3. St. Paul expected to be with Christ at death
"For to me life is Christ, and death is gain ... I long to depart this life and be with Christ, [for] that is far better" (Philippians 1:21–23). St. Paul ranks departing above fruitful work in the flesh (1:22, 24) because it means being with Christ. Nonexistence is not being with Christ. He says the same elsewhere: "we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8).
4. The dead remember and speak
In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the poor man "was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham," while the rich man, in torment, pleads for his "five brothers," who are still alive on earth (Luke 16:22–28). Even read as a parable, it pictures conscious life after death, before any resurrection.
Objections Answered
(a) "The soul is the whole person."
At its strongest: Genesis 2:7 says "man became a living soul" (King James Version, as quoted on jw.org). So "soul" means the living person, not an inner part.
Answer: Catholics agree that "soul" often means the whole person or life (CCC 363). But Scripture uses the word in more than one sense, and one sense does not cancel the other. The same verse says God "blew into his nostrils the breath of life" (Genesis 2:7), and at death "the life breath returns to God who gave it" (Ecclesiastes 12:7). And Jesus uses "soul" for what survives bodily death (Matthew 10:28).
(b) "Ezekiel says the soul dies, and Ecclesiastes says the dead know nothing."
At its strongest: "The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18:4, King James Version, as quoted on jw.org). Ecclesiastes says, "the dead no longer know anything" (Ecclesiastes 9:5).
Answer: Ezekiel 18 is about personal responsibility: "The son shall not be charged with the guilt of his father" (Ezekiel 18:20). It does not say what remains after death. Jesus Himself warns of something worse than bodily death (Matthew 10:28). Ecclesiastes describes the dead from the vantage point of this world: "Never again will they have part in anything that is done under the sun" (9:6). The same book says the life breath "returns to God" (12:7).
(c) "Luke 23:43 should read, 'I tell you today, you will be with me.'"
At its strongest: The NWT reads, "Truly I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise." Its study note argues that Jesus would be in "the heart of the earth" until the third day (Matthew 12:40), so "the criminal could not be with Jesus in Paradise on the same day."
Answer: The same note admits that "Scholarly editions of the Greek text like the ones prepared by Westcott and Hort, Nestle and Aland, and the United Bible Societies put a comma before the Greek word rendered 'today'" (jw.org). And there is no contradiction in "today you will be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43). Jesus' body lay in the tomb, but "Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the spirit. In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison" (1 Peter 3:18–19). The Church teaches that Jesus "in his soul joined the others in the realm of the dead" (CCC 632), where the righteous waited "in Abraham's bosom" (CCC 633).
(d) "Scripture calls death sleep. The dead are unconscious until the resurrection."
At its strongest: Jesus said, "Our friend Lazarus is asleep," and then explained, "Lazarus has died" (John 11:11, 14). St. Paul speaks of "those who have fallen asleep" (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Sleep, Witnesses argue, means no awareness at all until God raises the dead.
Answer: "Sleep" is a real biblical word for death, and Catholics use it too. But it describes how death looks from here: the body lies still and will rise, as a sleeper wakes. It is not a claim that the person has ceased to exist. The same St. Paul who says the dead "have fallen asleep" says that to depart is to "be with Christ" (Philippians 1:23). Jesus Himself answered the Sadducees from the burning bush: God "is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive" (Luke 20:37–38). Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had died centuries before, yet "to him all are alive." At the Transfiguration "Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him" (Matthew 17:3). Moses had died and been buried (Deuteronomy 34:5–6), yet he speaks with Christ. And at Lazarus's tomb Jesus promised, "whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live" (John 11:25). The first generation after the apostles understood it this way. Writing from Rome, Pope St. Clement I (St. Clement of Rome) said that St. Peter "departed to the place of glory due to him," and that St. Paul "was removed from the world, and went into the holy place" (1 Clement 5). Sleep is the body's word. The Lord's word is "all are alive."
The Early Church Agrees
- Pope St. Clement I (St. Clement of Rome) (Letter to the Corinthians 5, c. AD 96), on the apostles martyred in Rome: St. Peter "departed to the place of glory due to him"; St. Paul "was removed from the world, and went into the holy place." (newadvent.org)
- St. Polycarp of Smyrna (Letter to the Philippians 9, c. AD 110), speaking of "the blessed Ignatius," of Zosimus and Rufus, "and in Paul himself, and the rest of the apostles": "they are [now] in their due place in the presence of the Lord, with whom also they suffered." (newadvent.org)
- St. Irenaeus (Against Heresies 2.34.1–2, c. AD 180), on the rich man and Lazarus: the Lord taught "that souls not only continue to exist ... and that they remember the deeds which they did in this state of existence." Like all creatures, souls "endure, and extend their existence into a long series of ages in accordance with the will of God their Creator." (newadvent.org)
- St. Cyril of Jerusalem (Catechetical Lecture 4.18, c. AD 350) calls the soul "immortal because of God that gives it immortality." (newadvent.org)
- St. Augustine (City of God 13.2): "For although the human soul is truly affirmed to be immortal, yet it also has a certain death of its own." That death "takes place when God forsakes it." (newadvent.org)
Conclusion
Jehovah's Witnesses rightly see that "soul" often means the whole person and that our hope is the resurrection. But Jesus, St. Paul, and St. John all speak of life beyond bodily death: a soul no executioner can kill, martyrs who cry out, an apostle who longs to be with Christ.
If you are a Jehovah's Witness, read Philippians 1 and Revelation 6 and ask what they would mean if the dead simply did not exist.
Come home. The soul that lives on after death, and the resurrection of the body that Christians await, are both taught in full by the Catholic Church. Christ promised, "upon this rock I will build my church" (Matthew 16:18), and His Church never fell away or disappeared. It is the Catholic Church, governed by the successor of St. Peter and the bishops in communion with him. "It is through Christ's Catholic Church alone, which is the universal help toward salvation, that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained" (CCC 816). We invite you to come and see the Church Christ founded, and to enter her.
Your next step: Come to Mass this Sunday at your local Catholic church. You can find one near you at MassTimes.org. Everyone is welcome; if you're not yet Catholic, pray with us but don't receive Communion yet. When you're ready to become Catholic, call the parish office and ask about OCIA, the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. They will walk you through every step. Read our guide: How Do I Become Catholic? Not ready yet? Get our free pocket guide below and keep learning.
FAQ
What happens to the soul at death? "Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ" (CCC 1022): heaven, immediately or after purification, or hell. (See Where Is Purgatory in the Bible?)
Is the soul immortal by its own power? No. Only God has immortality in Himself (1 Timothy 6:16). The soul is immortal by His gift.
Will we get our bodies back? Yes. "In that 'departure' which is death the soul is separated from the body. It will be reunited with the body on the day of resurrection of the dead" (CCC 1005).
Sources
Scripture (NABRE, bible.usccb.org): Genesis 2:7; Deuteronomy 34:5–6; Ecclesiastes 9:5–6; Ecclesiastes 12:7; Ezekiel 18:20; Matthew 10:28; Matthew 12:40; Matthew 16:18; Matthew 17:3; Luke 16:22–28; Luke 20:37–38; Luke 23:43; John 11:11, 14, 25; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:21–24; 1 Thessalonians 4:13; 1 Timothy 6:16; Hebrews 12:23; 1 Peter 3:18–19; Revelation 6:9–11.
Other translation (quoted only to state the objection as jw.org gives it): King James Version, Genesis 2:7 and Ezekiel 18:4.
Catechism of the Catholic Church (vatican.va): 363, 365, 366; 632, 633; 816; 997; 1005; 1022.
Church Fathers (newadvent.org): Pope St. Clement I, Letter to the Corinthians 5 (ANF vol. 1); St. Polycarp, Letter to the Philippians 9 (ANF vol. 1); St. Irenaeus, Against Heresies 2.34.1–2 (ANF vol. 1); St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lecture 4.18 (NPNF2 vol. 7); St. Augustine, City of God 13.2 (NPNF1 vol. 2).
Jehovah's Witness sources (jw.org): "What Is the Soul?"; New World Translation Study Edition, Matthew 10 (note on 10:28) and Luke 23 (note on 23:43).