Euthanasia and physician assisted suicide (PAS)
Info: PAS policies by faith groups
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A number of religious organizations have issued statements on suicide and physician
assisted suicide. Conservative faith groups tend to be most vocal in their opposition
to suicide. Liberal denominations tend to be more in favor of individual choice:
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Anglican communion: On 1996-OCT-7 the Most Reverend Harry Goodhew, Anglican Archbishop of Sidney denounced the assisted suicide of a terminally ill person in the Northern Territory. He wrote::
"The moral shape of our nation is under threat with the first
legally sanctioned euthanasia death in the Northern Territory, and so is the relationship
between doctors and their patients. It has now been shown to us what this means [sic]
doctors are no longer those who save lives. Under the Northern Territory law they are also
those who kill...We must feel the deep grief of the wife of the one who died, and also
understand the human pain which brought about this ending of a man's life. But these facts
cannot be allowed to persuade us that this action was right. It is morally wrong. I cannot
approve it from any point of view." 8
Actually, a physician did not kill the patient. He or she only prescribed fatal medication that the patient chose to take.
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Christian Reformed Church in North America: In 1971 a Synod adopted a
resolution which stated: "that synod, mindful of the sixth commandment, condemn
the wanton or arbitrary destruction of any human being at any state of its development
from the point of conception to the point of death." 1
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Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: This denomination
represents the liberal wing of Lutheranism in the U.S. A 1992 statement on end-of-life
matters from the ELCA Church Council supports passive euthanasia: "Health
care professionals are not required to use all available medical treatment in all
circumstances. Medical treatment may be limited in some instances, and death allowed to
occur." They oppose active euthanasia: "...deliberately
destroying life created in the image of God is contrary to our Christian conscience."
However, they do acknowledge that physicians "struggle to choose the
lesser evil" in some situations. e.g. when pain is so severe "that life
is indistinguishable from torture." 2
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Islam: The Qur'an states: "Take not life which Allah made
sacred otherwise than in the course of justice"
An essay on the web page of the Islamic
Center of Southern California states that "Since we did not create
ourselves, we do not own our bodies...Attempting to kill oneself is a crime in Islam as
well as a grave sin. The Qur'an says: 'Do not kill (or destroy) yourselves, for verily
Allah has been to you most Merciful.' (Quran 4:29)...The concept of a life not
worthy of living does not exist in Islam." 3
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Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod: This denomination is the main
conservative wing of Lutheranism in the U.S. In 1979, their Commission on
Theology and Church Relations issued a report on euthanasia. It condemned euthanasia
because it involves suicide and/or murder and is thus contrary to God's law. Suffering
"provides the opportunity for Christian witness and service."
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Mennonites: The Mennonite denomination is a decentralized faith group
in which individual conferences make their own statements on social issues. The Conference
of Mennonites in Canada issued a statement in 1995. They believe that pain,
isolation and fear are the main factors that drive dying persons to consider suicide. They
feel that the state should not facilitate suicide, but rather control physical and
emotional pain and support the dying within a caring community setting. 4
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Orthodox Christianity: The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America,
commenting on the case before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1996 commented:
"The Orthodox Church opposes murder, whether it be suicide, euthanasia or
whatever, and regardless if it is cloaked in terms like 'death with dignity.' A person
contemplating ending it all because of despondency instead should turn to God for strength
and support. The Book of Job serves as a prime example of how someone overcomes extreme
suffering by staying focused on God."
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Orthodox Judaism: The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of
America filed a brief in 1997-NOV to the Supreme Court. They supported laws which
banned physician assisted suicide. Nathan Diament, director of their Institute for
Public Affairs stated: "This is an issue of critical constitutional and
moral significance which Jewish tradition clearly speaks to. We believe that the
recognition of a constitutionally recognized right to die for the terminally ill is a
clear statement against the recognition and sanctity of human life..." |
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Roman Catholic Church: The Catechism of the [Roman] Catholic Church states:
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§2277: "Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists
in putting an end to the lives of the handicapped, sick or dying persons. It
is morally unacceptable."
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§2280: Everyone is responsible for his life before God who
has given it to him. It is God Who remains the sovereign Master of life. We are obliged to
accept life gratefully and preserve it for His honor and the salvation of our souls. We
are stewards, not owners, of the life God has entrusted to us. It is not ours to dispose
of." |
Pope John Paul II wrote in his 1995 encyclical letter "Evangelium Vitae:"
"In communion with the bishops of the Catholic Church, I confirm that
euthanasia is a grave violation of the law of God since it is the deliberate
and morally unacceptable killing of a human person. This doctrine is based
upon the natural law and upon the written Word of God, as transmitted by the
Church’s tradition and taught by the ordinary and Universal Magisterium."
Mgr. Nicholas Chia, bishop of Singapore, wrote:
"One cannot choose death and asked to be killed. When they do this they are
not only committing the crime of suicide but also compounding it by making
another person a partner in a crime. One must not yield to another person’s
request for euthanasia. To yield to such request is false compassion. To have
true compassion for the person is to understand that such a person requesting
for euthanasia is actually feeling lost, confused, hopeless and alienated.
Mercy entails supporting such persons through care and friendship. Similarly
no healthcare professionals must even contemplate the option of administering
euthanasia. Generally, the medical profession must reject euthanasia as is
evidenced by the Hippocratic Oath as well as by more recent codes of medical
ethics such as The Geneva Declaration (WHO, 1957) and the Helsinki Statement
(WHO, 1964)." 5
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Salvation Army: "The Salvation Army believes that people do
not have the right to death by their own decision...Only God is sovereign over life and
death...the grace of God can sustain through any ordeal or adversity." 6
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Unitarian Universalist: The Unitarian-Universalist Association, a liberal religious group, issued a statement in 1988 in support of euthanasia and choice
in assisted suicide, but only if there are proper precautions in place to avoid abuse.
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Mainline and Liberal Christian denominations: Pro-choice statements
have been made by the United Church of Christ, and the Methodist Church on the US West
coast. The "Episcopalian (Anglican) Unitarian, Methodist, Presbyterian and Quaker
movements are amongst the most liberal, allowing at least individual decision making in
cases of active euthanasia." 7
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The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.
- Essay: Euthanasia, Synod of the Great Lakes, Reformed Church in America, at: http://www.euthanasia.com/
- "A message on...end-of-life decisions," Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America, at: http://www.elca.org/
- "Euthanasia," at: http://www.islamctr.org/(This appears to be a broken link)
- Submission by the Conference of Mennonites in Canada to the Special Senate
Hearing Committee on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide (1995).
- Nicholas Chia "Pastoral letter of the archbishop on the issue of
euthanasia," Archbishop of Singapore, 2008-NOV-01, at: http://www.veritas.org.sg/
- "The Salvation Army's Positional Statements: Euthanasia" is at: http://www.christianity.com/
- "Religion and the Right to Die," formerly at: http://www.euthanasia.org/ (This website is offline and its URL is for sale)
- "Archbishop of Sydney speaks out on Euthanasia," Anglican Communion,
1996-OCT-07, at: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/
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Copyright © 1997 to 2010 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Last updated on 2010-SEP-03
Hyperlinks checked on 2008-SEP-04
Author: B.A. Robinson
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