Soul Preexistence: Divine Origins and Eternal Journey

Concepts that support the idea of the preexistence of the soul can be found in both Hellenistic philosophy and in some early Christian and Jewish traditions. Thus, according to one viewpoint, the soul itself is the thought of God, eternal and spiritual, which originally exists in God before its incarnation in the body. For example, one of the sources states:

"Indeed, the soul must preexist.

For what is it in its nature?

It is the thought of God, pure and spiritual. But the thought of God is eternal; therefore, the soul is eternal; it entirely existed in God. ... Let us even suppose that the actions of the soul begin only with its union with the body — even in that case, we would have no reason to reject its immortality." (source: link txt)

There is also the teaching of Origen, according to which the soul exists before the existence of man and even before the Fall, which preceded its incarnation in the body. This is mentioned in the following excerpt:

"But the essence of Origen's teaching is the existence of the soul before the existence of man, and the fall of the soul before its incarnation in the body: ..." (source: link txt)

Furthermore, within the Hellenistic and Jewish traditions there is the view that the soul, being directed towards God, already existed in Him before the birth of the world. This is expressed as follows:

"Just as Hellas taught humanity philosophy and poetry, and as Rome carried within it a belief in power and law, so from Judea, the breath of faith in uniqueness and elect status blew. Supernatural notions seemed to have flown directly to the Jews from the heavens: man is a soul directed towards God, towards the great God of their ancestors, who already existed in God even before the birth of the world and who returns to Him upon death." (source: link txt)

Thus, the idea that the soul existed before earthly birth is expressed in concepts where the soul is considered eternal and as having its original existence in God (as in the assertion that it is the pure thought of God), as well as in the theological and philosophical reflections of Origen and subsequent traditions, which emphasize that the soul, before its incarnation, goes through stages of its existence up to the fall and the restoration of its original state.

Supporting citation(s):
"Indeed, the soul must preexist.

For what is it in its nature?