Moral and Ethics of Euthanasia: Biblical Worldview

A time to live, a time to die... Whose choice is it? Euthanasia is a topic that is rarely covered in the news. The moral ramifications of killing someone, even for the sake of mercy, seems too heavy of a topic for in depth discussion. No one wants to think about the day they will die, however when someone becomes terminally ill it can soon become their only thought. When pain and suffering enter this scenario, the option of ending a life more quickly may also enter the thought process. According to Life and Hope Network "9% of all deaths in

America are caused by Euthanasia" 1 We are given the gift of life at birth. I believe Euthanasia is a violation of the most precious gift we are given... Life As stated by the Hospice foundation of America "Hospitals (Hospice) stands for [guest house. ] Hospice is a special type of care for patients who are not able to be cured. This loving act usually comes in the patient's finals days when they have been sent home from the hospital and are waiting for their day to come. Hospice makes their patients feel comfortable and tries to ease their pain as much as possible.

The providers also re there for their families to comfort them before and after their loved ones death. "2 With health care facilities caring for the sick and terminally ill patients, there are many options to choose from for a less painful way to pass than ending a life by Euthanasia. Someone once asked if using Euthanasia on animals was the same as using it on humans saying quote "If we use Euthanasia to put animals out of their pain and misery why is that not the same as helping Grandma by not letting her suffer anymore? 3 Animals and humans are vastly different. The main thing that sets unmans apart is the fact that they have a soul, whereas animals do not. Ending the life of a human because they no longer see a reason to live is a horrible alternative to seeking available pain management. Human life is sacred and should not be terminated simply because life becomes hard. Often questions arise in situations like these such as... " In old age do we as humans still have a life worth living? " Ecclesiastic 7:17 in the Bible says "... Why should you die before your time? The Lord has a plan for everyone's life and when someone takes their life or someone else's before their time, they have disobeyed God's commands. The United States has learned a great deal about the dangers of Euthanasia and has created laws after hearing about cases such as Terry Shiva, Terry had a cardiac- respiratory arrest at 26, her doctors said it was caused by "lack of oxygen to the brain. " Terry was put on a feeding tube for more than 15 years and later passed away due lack of nourishment. When the court ordered the physicians to remove her feeding tube, she died 13 days later. Another case where Euthanasia was used to end an innocent life was Baby Doe, an infant baby boy who was born with Down syndrome and a hole in his throat. His parents decided that living a life like that would be unfair to him as he grew, so they asked his physician to remove his breathing tube. 6 One more scenario would be Nancy Curran, a person who was injured from an automobile accident and was left brain dead. Nanny's parent removed her feeding tube saying "This is what Nancy would have wanted. " That case led to the debate about families choosing life or death for individuals in a vegetative state.

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Nancy did not have a living will, so her parents made the suggestion of death fully on the basis of their own thinking. They weighed the question of whether Nancy loud have wanted to stay alive in such a state as she was or if she would have preferred to be taken off of her feeding tube. Dry. Jack Sovereign, better known as "Dry. Death," was a man who fully supported Dry. Assisted suicide. Jack had assisted dozens of suicides and was willing to show news reporters his "death machine" on the spot. He had been on trial many times for murder.

Every time he won, with the statement "terminally ill patients should decide how and when they wish to die. " That statement left families on edge and very upset that there was no stopping this awful act. He later passed at the age of 83 dying of kidney failure. Jack, as are each of us, was promised by God that he will be face to face with Him. 2 Corinthians 5:10 declares, "For we must all appear before the Judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. " The Bible states "Do not murder" In Exodus 20:13.

It also says in Matthew 12:37 "For by your words you will be Justified, and by your words you will be condemned. " According to the Bible murder is murder. Manmade laws however do not always count all forms of assisted death as murder. That presents the questions. " Is there difference between allowing someone to ask another to shoot them with a weapon or asking them to give them a shot of a deathly drug? If it is illegal to murder someone by suffocating them with a pillow, how is that different from someone asking another to suffocate them with a pillow? Although Euthanasia has varying opinions due to different situations, it is still Biblically, morally and logically wrong. The Lord tells us that we are not promised a tomorrow, but we will face Him on judgment day. We should therefore strive to obey His commands by not partaking in any form of murder, whether legal or not. It may be a difficult decision whether to stay in a hospital and receive care or to go home and have hospice come in to make the terminally ill person feel at ease.

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