Thank you so much for your helpful answer to my question. I am not clear on one part of the answer -- could you help me again?

You wrote, "Body, soul and spirit refer to man's two natural components, body and soul, and the gift of divine life which the righteous posess, that is, the spirit of God. God leaves us when we offend him gravely, and returns to us when we repent through sacramental confession or an act of perfect contrition."

I have heard the term eternal soul (human) and material soul (animal). I thought humans souls were eternal because of the gift of God's divine spirit when we were created in His image(3 parts, body/soul/spirit), while animal souls are temporal (body/soul).

But even when we turn away from God and sin, we remain eternal and can -- tragically -- end up eternally in Hell.

I thought we were eternal because of those 3 parts (body/soul/spirit) ... but now I am wondering if human souls are just fundamentally different from animal souls, in that we would still be eternal when we are just 2 parts (body/soul, God's spirit leaves us due to sin).

So was I wrong to understand we are eternal because of those 3 parts (body/soul/spirit)? Are we eternal just because human souls are different from animal souls (eternal versus temporal), regardless of whether or not we have the 3rd component (spirit?)

Its two different uses of the word "spirit". In "body, soul, spirit" it refers to the spirit of God living in the just, including Adam and Eve who were created that way.

Generically, "spirit" refers to spiritual substance versus material substance. We can't see or test spirit. It transcends the material creation, which includes all forms of matter and energy - which Einstein showed to be interchangeable.

So, in this metaphysical/philosophical sense God is spirit (eternal and infinite), angels are finite spirit (though immortal once created), and human souls are finite spirits united to material bodies and like angels the soul immortal once created. Animals, plants, minerals, molecules, atoms, etc. are matter without spirit.

The term "animal soul" (as well as "vegetative soul" refers to the material distinction (form) that distinguishes one material being from another. When it materially changes, then that previous "form" ceases to exists in favor of the new one. Animals and plants die and simply become their material constituents or the constituents of other creatures who consume them. This is also true of man's body when he dies. It, however, will be reconstituted by God and reunited to the soul of each of us at the end of time, so that our bodies will share in our reward or punishment.

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