The Disappearing Man: Body, Soul, and the Question of Who We Are – Dr. Paul LaPenna

Dec 22, 2025

Dr. Paul LaPenna discusses the profound case of a man in a coma, exploring the relationship between body and soul. He argues that personal identity endures even through significant loss of abilities. Delving into neuroscience and Thomistic philosophy, he rejects materialism and Cartesian dualism, presenting a unified view of humanity. He highlights the emotional journey with the patient's family and reflects on the role of faith in enduring change and loss. Finally, he shares the man's inspiring recovery and the importance of grounding oneself in the unchanging God.

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INSIGHT

Personhood Persists Beneath Changing Traits

Attributes like memory, speech, and personality come and go, but a person persists beneath them.
LaPenna frames the persisting subject as a substance that grounds changing attributes.

INSIGHT

Mind Depends On Brain But Is Not Reducible

Brain damage reliably produces mind damage, but mind and brain are not automatically identical.
LaPenna argues mental states have properties (intentionality, normativity) that neural tissue lacks.

INSIGHT

Qualities Of Mind Versus Matter

Psychological states are intentional, qualitative, subjective, and normative, unlike neural tissue.
Therefore neurons are necessary but not sufficient to constitute mental phenomena like love or pain.

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Dr. Paul LaPenna uses the dramatic case of a man in a coma from autoimmune brain disease to show that personal identity endures despite severe loss of abilities, arguing from neurology and Thomistic philosophy that a human person is a unified body–soul substance whose soul grounds changing traits over time.

This lecture was given on October 17th, 2025, at St. Joseph’s Church in Greenwich Village.

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About the Speakers:

Dr. Paul LaPenna is a neurologist based in Greenville, South Carolina, specializing in the care of patients with neurological emergencies. He is also an award-winning professor at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he teaches neuroscience and has been recognized as the Professor of the Neuroscience Block from 2019 to 2025.

Dr. LaPenna’s professional and academic work is deeply informed by the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, particularly regarding the integration of faith and reason, science and religion, and the Thomistic understanding of the human person. Through his lectures and writings, he explores how modern neuroscience complements classical philosophy and theology, offering insights into human cognition, virtue formation, and the relationship between mind, brain, and soul.

Dr. LaPenna lives in Greenville with his wife Nicole and their three daughters, Catherine, Susanna, and Lucia, who daily remind him of life’s greatest joys and deepest blessings.

Keywords: Body–Soul Unity, Catholic Anthropology, Consciousness and Brain, Human Person, Identity and Memory, Neuroscience and Philosophy, Personal Identity, Rational Soul, Thomistic Metaphysics, Trauma and Coma