But
let's get serious as I try to finish this topic off. What about all the other more obvious indicators that the mind is tightly coupled to the physical, material realm? Take some LSD and get back to me. Take some PCP and get back to me. How about some crystal. Go interview a person with Alzheimer's disease. Talk to a manic-depressive case.

Not really knowing where my near stream-of-consciousness would lead, this topic, this series of articles has arrived at a painful place. Some readers know all too well the havoc that a damaged brain can have on a person's mind.

So, let it be said that, as theists, we know that the mind is non-material. Or at least there is a non-material component to the universe and to our selves. Indeed, that belief is at or near the foundation of our entire cosmos view. And we also see that it can cause changes to the physical.

At the same time we see that the reverse is also true. That the material effects changes on the non-material. Or does it?

I ask that question one more time to bring up the idea of the separation between the mind and the self. Maybe it is the self that is the non-material and the mind is actually a physical thing.

Rabbit trails everywhere I turn.

I can speak from experience. I battled periods of mental breakdown when I was in high-school. When those episodes were ravaging me it was clear to me that it was my mind that was falling apart. At the same time, it was another entity that seemed to be assessing or evaluating what was going on. That entity seemed to be, as I reflect on it, my self. My self was clearly under the impression that something had gone wrong with my mind. In fact, my self was functioning perfectly at least insofar as it correctly saw that there was a problem. It had no idea what it was and, unfortunately, it had a poorly functioning tool to analyze the problem with.

So, it is plain to see that these articles are not going to solve anything or make any profound conclusions. (Stream-of-consciousness is like that).

What I really want to get to, at some future time, is the distinction between the soul and the spirit.

So, if I haven't chased my readers away, tune in again later. Maybe I will lighten things up a bit and get back to photography.