I am haunted by the reality of psychopathy. You may know I have been battling materialist neuroscience indoctrination from an abusive doctor and have been struggling to keep my beliefs. I feel I am losing faith. This is because psychopathy suggests that the biblical idea of sin and conscience is a lie. Basically, if our conscience is just a piece of brain meat that can be destroyed by damage or being born abnormal, then there is likely no soul. I've heard evidence that psychopathy is both nature and nurture, but I've heard chilling evidence that it may be purely biological based on alleged claims of child psychopaths with brain abnormalities from birth that they do not have a conscience, remorse, guilt, etc. based on purely natural means. We may have a spirit, but it is not what the bible claims it is. Christian counselors and so-called 'psychologists' are laughably ignorant on the subject, only offering some very hokey and naive help on the internet which shows their profound lack of education on the implications of what psychopathy really is. This reimburses their critics who say they are quacks and I feel embarrassed. They have no idea that if the idea of what the researchers say is true about psychopathy, then biblical advice is a farce regarding the idea that our conscience is seared because of 'sin', when it makes more sense that it has a totally natural origin. They might even say that the claims of conversion by famous psychopaths such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy was a sham for public image and pity, and therefore we have no evidence or truth that the power of Christ transforms these people other than myth or fiction. Some say those who claimed to have been psychopaths and were saved were only 'sociopaths' and not on the true scale for psychopathy, which is much more extreme. I guess some of it could be demonic in origin, but I don't know. The Christian counseling/psych websites reimburse the idea that they can't be saved while syncretizing pithy secular and Christian nonsense that is rather contradictory. I am really scared. If I lose my faith there is going to be potentially tragic consequences. I have been praying over and over for help and insight and am fighting it the best I can but am weary. Please help me and pray.
I'm sorry about your situation. I don't really know enough about the subject to give any kind of useful opinion, but I will definitely pray for you. Hang in there!
Why do you have to "battle with materialist neuroscience indoctrination from an abusive doctor"? I am sorry. I do not understand why enduring an abusive doctor is necessary. Enduring doctors, yes. Enduring an abusive doctor, no. Neurosciences are in their infancy. There is more unknown and poorly understood than otherwise. Do not let doubt creep in because of what we do not understand, and will relearn tomorrow. Concerning these PET scans, which is the cart, and which is the horse? What makes one choose to kill, and another not to kill? Are you aware that the researcher found the same findings in his own brain, but had no signs of becoming a mass killer? It may be true that they are identifying some contributing factors. There is a lot that goes wrong in the world of a serial killer. It is the perfect storm of sorts. Why would you doubt the sinfulness of their wicked murderous nature? Most of these serial killers like the ones you mentioned, are sexual deviants. Often, they begin by exploring violent pornographic material. To them, it is like a drug. They become addicted, and we understand this about sin. They need more and more to become as aroused, and they kill again and again never achieving the satisfaction that they were looking for. Doesn't this sound familiar? Isn't this the world behaving like the world? We are in a fallen world, and in a fallen body with sinful inclinations. This is human brokenness in its extremes. And there are also unseen forces at war against us and who we belong to. It is no wonder we need a savior. We are hopeless without Him. It is not good for us to spend a lot of time trying to come to terms with manipulative serial killers. And I would not put a lot into jailhouse conversions for or against. There will be authentic conversions and not. It is no different on this side of the fence either. We know that there are some that think they are saved, and will not be saved. If they can fool themselves, they can fool us. There is always a question whether or not they are authentic conversions. It is not for us to know. If you could know, you would probably find that there are some exceptional authentic cases. Then much of the time these professions of faith will be self serving. My hope is for more of the former than the later, but I am not a universalist. To the best of your ability, I would recommend avoiding this topic altogether. Christ alone has the power to save and preserve you. Whatever energies you are devoting to His enemies, devote to Him. It always stirs doubt and confusion when we focus on our imperfection rather than His perfection. Our sinfulness rather than His sinlessness. This is what sin does. It distorts and confuses and destroys. There is nothing life changing outside of Him. Our logic and works cannot save. Return to the source of your Hope. To Who loves you rather than who hates you. I will pray for you.
I appreciate your concern, brother. I have not seen the old doctor for at least a year now. However, I think Thomism (Thomas Aquinas' view on the soul) may be the answer to this question.
I am generally familiar with Aquinas, and Thomism. I am not unaffected, though I do not know if I would call myself a Thomist. You have listed yourself as a Protestant. What is your view of the imago dei? Your starting place is not unimportant. And I did not want to say to avoid this topic all together (I am sorry that I did.), but a focus on psychopathy, serial killers, and preying atheists. When it begins to stir doubt, and do us harm, we have to know when to quit. I had in mind your stated concern for your faith.
From what I understand they cannot artificially stimulate or get people to do art, music, prayer, and other uniquely human capabilities through brain stimulators. So there are some spiritual abilities we have that animals don't. The problem with psychopathy is the alleged idea that guilt for sin and the like are determined by the condition of the material brain from birth and not related to a spirit as some say. It's one thing if the brain changes (because of neuroplasticity) because of our actions, but if it's from birth then the conscience is not seared because of THEIR actions, though claims of inborn psychopathy are being questioned due to dubious claims of child psychopaths. Some lean towards the idea that it is a mix of nature or nuture. Psychopaths seem to be asperger-types who become hardened early in life because of their differences and become bitter or violent. But when you have people who, supposedly through brain damage to the moral regions of the brain, become psychopaths who weren't before, that is also a problem, because as I said, guilt is crucial for repentance and is supposed to be determined by the spirit, not brain meat. As far as I know, Thomism is supposed to have some idea that the body is as important to spiritual capacity as the soul itself, mingling them together more closely with the idea of the bodily resurrection considered. It also suggests some possibility of predestination which is hard to avoid from any view you take when God knows the future, though the bible is also open to a broad interpretation of degrees of predestination. If it's true that even brain damage removes guilt, then this is one of the ways I'd think it could explain it, and that it was ordained by God. There isn't much else I can think of.
The term Dr. Asperger used for his patients was in fact Autistic Psychopath, which was not entirely a value neutral term despite his evident sympathy for his patients. Have you ever read his original paper? It is still fascinating, although of course he did mean something a little different from psychopath than the modern pop culture concept. I am not familiar with all the details of Thomism although I would agree that the body and the soul are not completely separate things contra Gnosticism. I do not think I understand your concern with the concept, but then again Predestination has always seemed Biblical to me. Therefore it would seem that some people being by nature particularly inclined to evil is simply to be expected.