B5 and the Soul

I recently lost an argument to a B5 expert about whether or not it is established in S1E2 (Soul Hunter) that Dr. Stephen Franklin believes in, and/or acknowledges the existence of, the soul.

In part, I think it's because I initially overstated my case.  And in part, because people mean different things by the word "soul."  But it seems to me his analysis was also somewhat over-simplified: for him, the fact that Franklin mocks "the idea of taking someone's soul," without saying something like "and souls don't exist anyway," is apparently determinative.

Here's the scene:

Franklin chuckles. Then quietly, almost to himself: "Well, this is nonsense." 

Briskly, to the soul-hunter: "It's patent superstition. Can't be done." 

After a slight pause, as if to Sinclair: "With the right technology, maybe you could encode the personality matrix and produce a clone of someone's mind, but the idea of taking someone's soul?" 

He ends with an audible exhalation. 

It seems to me that Franklin might very well say this in several scenarios:

1. [Believer] He believes immortal souls exist, and that - perhaps because they are incorporeal and thus exist independently of the body - they cannot be taken.
2. [Agnostic] He isn't sure whether souls exist, but if they do, they cannot be taken either because they are incorporeal or because they die with the body.
3. [Humanist] He believes the concept of a hnau's "soul" is merely a conventional way of referring to the hnau's spiritual essence; of necessity, this is not "immortal" and does not exist independently of the hnau and thus cannot be taken.
4. [Atheist who picks his battles] He believes immortal souls do not exist, but knows the issue is not susceptible to proof either way. Thus, he does not fight that particular battle in this particular conversation; the one indisputable thing, the slam-dunk for present purposes, is that souls (if they exist) cannot be "taken" based on what believers claim about them. 

I find #2 and #3 most plausible so far (I'm about mid-way through Season Two.)

Of particular note is Franklin's distinction between taking a soul vs. the possibility of encoding "the personality matrix" (if only one had the right technology) to "produce a clone of someone's mind."  This seems to reflect a view that a hnau's personality is known to be physically anchored in the body, and specifically in the brain.  It is not immortal, but because it is in this sense corporeal, it is at least theoretically possible to replicate it.

For me, the slight emphasis on "taking" and "soul" suggests some skepticism about both concepts.  Surely, a believer would simply emphasize "taking."  Likewise, the emphasis on "mind" and "soul" suggests those two concepts are being compared and contrasted.

I believe the scene is deliberately ambiguous to leave open the question of whether Franklin "merely" disbelieves in soul theft, or also is skeptical of the existence of an immortal soul as distinct from a person's mind or personality.  We may eventually learn more about Franklin's religious or spiritual beliefs (if any), but I haven't gotten there yet.

Intriguingly, Franklin's speculation about encoding the personality matrix bears fruit two episodes later in S1E4 "Infection":

Sinclair: You said they incorporated the brain patterns of one of their researchers into the weapons? 

Franklin: Tular, yes. 

Sinclair: Is there anything there we can talk to, reason with? 

Franklin: Well there's a complete personality matrix, yes. But it's totally subsumed by its program. 

... 

Garibaldi: Fine, except how you gonna get it there? 

Sinclair: By going straight to its personality matrix. I'm gonna try and make it mad.

== == == APPENDIX == == ==

For reference, here's the full text of the scene from S1E2:

Franklin: What exactly is a soul hunter? 

Soul Hunter: Ask Commander Minbari friend. We are drawn to the moment, the moment of surrender, the instant of loss between despair and ecstasy when the flesh fails and all that remains behind. The soul we save. Not all. Only the special ones: leaders, thinkers, poets, dreamers, blessed lunatics. 

Sinclair: And what do you do with these souls, after you've saved them? 

Soul Hunter: We enshrine them, worship them. We talk to them, listen. We ... learn. 

Franklin: Well, this is nonsense. It's patent superstition. Can't be done. With the right technology, maybe you could encode the personality matrix and produce a clone of someone's mind, but the idea of taking someone's soul?

Soul Hunter: Ridiculous, yes.  So let me go.