The Australian Scene: Euthanasia

Euthanasia and Religion - General

A crisis of faith

The article discusses the debate over assisted suicide, focusing on religious opposition to the practice on moral grounds. "Whose body is it anyway?" Sue Rodriguez famously asked two decades ago. Not hers, or yours for that matter, traditional Western thinking has answered for almost two millennia. The answer is rooted in Christianity's reading of the divine's will, a reading shared by the other monotheistic faiths, Islam and Judaism.

Beliefs in and about God and attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia

I use data from the General Social Survey to evaluate several hypotheses regarding how beliefs in and about God predict attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I find that certainty in the belief in God significantly predicts negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I also find that belief in a caring God and in a God that is the primary source of moral rules significantly predicts negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I also find that respondents’ beliefs about the how close they are to God and how close they want to be with God predict negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. These associations hold even after controlling for religious affiliation, religious attendance, views of the Bible, and sociodemographic factors. The findings indicate that to understand individuals’ attitudes about voluntary euthanasia, one must pay attention to their beliefs in and about God.

When brain death belies belief

The case of Jahi McMath has reignited a discussion concerning how society should define death. Despite pronouncing McMath brain dead based on the American Academy of Neurology criteria, the court ordered continued mechanical ventilation to accommodate the family's religious beliefs. Recent case law suggests that the potential for a successful challenge to the neurologic criteria of death provisions of the Uniform Determination of Death Act are greater than ever in the majority of states that have passed religious freedom legislation. As well, because standard ethical claims regarding brain death are either patently untrue or subject to legitimate dispute, those whose beliefs do not comport with the brain death standard should be able to reject it.

Opposing abortion, gay adoption, euthanasia, and suicide

In secularized modern Western societies, moral opposition to the liberalization of abortion, gay adoption, euthanasia, and suicide often relies on justifications based on other-oriented motives (mainly, protection of the weak, e.g., children). Moreover, some argue that the truly open-minded people may be those who, against the stream, oppose the established dominant liberal values in modern societies. We investigated whether moral and religious opposition to, vs. the acceptance of, the above four issues, as well as the endorsement of respective con vs. pro arguments reflect (a) "compassionate openness" (prosocial, interpersonal, dispositions and existential flexibility), (b) "compassionate conservatism" (prosocial dispositions and collectivistic moral concerns), or (c) "self-centered moral rigorism" (collectivistic moral concerns, low existential quest, and low humility instead of prosocial dispositions). The results, to some extent, confirmed the third pattern. Thus, compassionate openness does not seem to underline modern moral opposition, possibly in contrast to some rhetoric of the latter.

Islam and Euthanasia

Euthanasia: A Muslim's perspective

Availability of advanced medical technology has generated various new moral issues such as abortion, cloning and euthanasia. The use of medical technology, therefore, raises questions about the moral appropriateness of sustaining life versus taking life or allowing someone to die. Moreover, the world-wide discussion on euthanasia has assumed different dimensions of acceptance and rejection. The modern advanced medical technology has brought this issue under extensive focus of philosophers and religious authorities. The objective of this article is to consider the Islamic ethical position on euthanasia with a view to appreciating its com-prehensiveness and investigating how an Islamic approach to medical treatment addresses the issue. The study observes that Allah gives life and has the absolute authority of taking it. In other words, the Qur'an prohibits consenting to one's own destruction which could be related to terminally ill patients who give consent to mercy killing. The study equally revealed that death is not the final destination of human beings but the hereafter; therefore, a believer should not lose hope when facing difficulties, suffering and hardship but should instead keep hope alive. The study calls on Muslims to ensure that Islamic teachings on medical ethics are entrenched in all fabrics of human endeavour.

Islamic considerations on the application of patient's autonomy in end-of-life decision.

In end-of-life situation, the need for patient’s preference comes into the picture with the intention of guiding physicians in the direction of patient care. Preference in medical directive is made by a person with full mental capacity outlining what actions should be taken for his health should he loses his competency. This is based on the reality of universal paradigm in medical practice that emphasises patient’s autonomy. A specific directive is produced according to a patient’s wish that might include some ethically and religiously controversial directives such as mercy killing, physician-assisted suicide, forgoing life-supporting treatments and do-not-resuscitate. In the future, patient autonomy is expected to become prevalent. The extent of patient autonomy has not been widely discussed among Muslim scholars. In Islam, there are certain considerations that must be adhered to.

A legal analysis of euthanasia in the Islamic criminal code of 2011.

Euthanasia or mercy killing is a new and challenging topic in medical law. This article examines all types of euthanasia based on the Islamic criminal code of 2011, and demonstrates that active and involuntary euthanasia is murder if conditions exist; the basis for active and voluntary euthanasia, however, is the victim's consent, so the penalty is less. As the physical element of inactive euthanasia is omission, clause 296 of the criminal code and clause 2 of the penal code on refusing to help the wounded apply. Lastly, it is suggested that legislators criminalize euthanasia with a new approach and independent title, and consider principles of justice to determine less punishment for this type of killing compared to murder with malice aforethought.

Christianity and Euthanasia

Physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia: How not to die as a Christian

Christianity's opposition to euthanasia and assisted suicide is grounded in its recognition of such actions as serious violations of the prohibition against murder and self-murder, even in cases where those individuals consent or otherwise signal their willingness to die as in cases of voluntary euthanasia. Fully to appreciate the implications of assimilating assisted death into medical practice, one must recognize the spiritual significance of killing on the physicians who euthanize patients or who aid and abet patients in killing themselves. One will also need to appreciate the spiritual importance of such actions on the patients killed. Physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are not neutral actions. Moreover, that the patient desired or requested the killing does not change the moral character of the act or its spiritual significance. This issue of Christian Bioethics explores the implications for medicine and society as physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are assimilated into contemporary healthcare practice. 

May Christians request medically assisted suicide and euthanasia?

The article deals with the question: 'Is it morally acceptable for terminally ill Christians to voluntarily request medically assisted suicide or euthanasia?' After a brief discussion of relevant changes in the moral landscape over the last century, two influential, but opposite views on the normative basis for the Christian ethical assessment of medically assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are critically discussed. The inadequacy of both the view that the biblical message entails an absolute prohibition against these two practices, and the view that Christians have to decide on them on the basis of their own autonomy, is argued. An effort is made to demonstrate that although the biblical message does not entail an absolute prohibition it does have normative ethical implications for deciding on medically assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia. Certain Christian beliefs encourage terminally ill Christians to live a morally responsible life until their death and cultivate a moral prejudice against taking the life of any human being. This moral prejudice can, however, in exceptional cases be outweighed by moral considerations in favour of medically assisted suicide or voluntary euthanasia.

How should Christians respond to proposals to legalise euthanasia and assisted suicide?

The article discusses the issue over voluntary euthanasia and how Christians must respond to the proposals to legalise it in New Zealand. The legalisation of euthanasia and physician assisted suicide is being sold as the most compassionate action the community could offer people who are suffering unbearably. The End of Life Choice Bill, sponsored by Maryan Street, would allow a person to receive medical assistance to die.

A Catholic hospital in Canada has been ordered to provide assisted suicide services.

 A Catholic hospital in Nova Scotia must provide physician-assisted suicide assessments to eligible patients who request them, the province's public health service has ruled.

Christian group backs euthanasia

The article discusses aspects of the voluntary euthanasia which is consistent with Christian values in Australia. It highlights the increase quality of life for people who are terminally ill by removing the stress of facing a painful death. It also notes that the Catholic Church are opposed to euthanasia.

Buddhism and Euthanasia

End of life: The Buddhist view

Discusses end-of-life issues from the Buddhist perspective. Idea that terminal care of Buddhist patients, with the exception of monks and nuns, has few special requirements or limitations on medical treatment; Statement that local custom can affect the patient-doctor relationship more than Buddhist doctrine; Buddhist values, including mindfulness and mental clarity; How death and persistent vegetative state are defined in Buddhist philosophy and medical standards; The influence of Confucian teachings on Japanese Buddhists; Buddhist teachings on euthanasia and compassion and how it relates to terminally ill patients.

The view of religions toward euthanasia and extraordinary treatments in Japan

388 Japanese religious groups—143 Shinto, 157 Buddhist, 58 Christian and 30 others—were asked to answer questions regarding several forms of euthanasia and extraordinary treatment during the dying process. Passive euthanasia and indirect euthanasia were accepted by around 70% of the respondents. Active euthanasia was favored by less than 20% of them. Christians were less supportive of euthanasia than practitioners of other religions. Shinto and Buddhist corporations advocated “being natural,” when medical treatment became futile at the terminal stage. Religionists' views may deepen the discussion of end-of-life issues.

Euthanasia and Religion - General

Beliefs in and about God and attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia

I use data from the General Social Survey to evaluate several hypotheses regarding how beliefs in and about God predict attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I find that certainty in the belief in God significantly predicts negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I also find that belief in a caring God and in a God that is the primary source of moral rules significantly predicts negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. I also find that respondents’ beliefs about the how close they are to God and how close they want to be with God predict negative attitudes toward voluntary euthanasia. These associations hold even after controlling for religious affiliation, religious attendance, views of the Bible, and sociodemographic factors. The findings indicate that to understand individuals’ attitudes about voluntary euthanasia, one must pay attention to their beliefs in and about God.

When brain death belies belief

The case of Jahi McMath has reignited a discussion concerning how society should define death. Despite pronouncing McMath brain dead based on the American Academy of Neurology criteria, the court ordered continued mechanical ventilation to accommodate the family's religious beliefs. Recent case law suggests that the potential for a successful challenge to the neurologic criteria of death provisions of the Uniform Determination of Death Act are greater than ever in the majority of states that have passed religious freedom legislation. As well, because standard ethical claims regarding brain death are either patently untrue or subject to legitimate dispute, those whose beliefs do not comport with the brain death standard should be able to reject it.

Opposing abortion, gay adoption, euthanasia, and suicide

In secularized modern Western societies, moral opposition to the liberalization of abortion, gay adoption, euthanasia, and suicide often relies on justifications based on other-oriented motives (mainly, protection of the weak, e.g., children). Moreover, some argue that the truly open-minded people may be those who, against the stream, oppose the established dominant liberal values in modern societies. We investigated whether moral and religious opposition to, vs. the acceptance of, the above four issues, as well as the endorsement of respective con vs. pro arguments reflect (a) "compassionate openness" (prosocial, interpersonal, dispositions and existential flexibility), (b) "compassionate conservatism" (prosocial dispositions and collectivistic moral concerns), or (c) "self-centered moral rigorism" (collectivistic moral concerns, low existential quest, and low humility instead of prosocial dispositions). The results, to some extent, confirmed the third pattern. Thus, compassionate openness does not seem to underline modern moral opposition, possibly in contrast to some rhetoric of the latter.

Islam and Euthanasia

Euthanasia: A Muslim's perspective

Availability of advanced medical technology has generated various new moral issues such as abortion, cloning and euthanasia. The use of medical technology, therefore, raises questions about the moral appropriateness of sustaining life versus taking life or allowing someone to die. Moreover, the world-wide discussion on euthanasia has assumed different dimensions of acceptance and rejection. The modern advanced medical technology has brought this issue under extensive focus of philosophers and religious authorities. The objective of this article is to consider the Islamic ethical position on euthanasia with a view to appreciating its com-prehensiveness and investigating how an Islamic approach to medical treatment addresses the issue. The study observes that Allah gives life and has the absolute authority of taking it. In other words, the Qur'an prohibits consenting to one's own destruction which could be related to terminally ill patients who give consent to mercy killing. The study equally revealed that death is not the final destination of human beings but the hereafter; therefore, a believer should not lose hope when facing difficulties, suffering and hardship but should instead keep hope alive. The study calls on Muslims to ensure that Islamic teachings on medical ethics are entrenched in all fabrics of human endeavour.

Islamic considerations on the application of patient's autonomy in end-of-life decision.

In end-of-life situation, the need for patient’s preference comes into the picture with the intention of guiding physicians in the direction of patient care. Preference in medical directive is made by a person with full mental capacity outlining what actions should be taken for his health should he loses his competency. This is based on the reality of universal paradigm in medical practice that emphasises patient’s autonomy. A specific directive is produced according to a patient’s wish that might include some ethically and religiously controversial directives such as mercy killing, physician-assisted suicide, forgoing life-supporting treatments and do-not-resuscitate. In the future, patient autonomy is expected to become prevalent. The extent of patient autonomy has not been widely discussed among Muslim scholars. In Islam, there are certain considerations that must be adhered to.

A legal analysis of euthanasia in the Islamic criminal code of 2011.

Euthanasia or mercy killing is a new and challenging topic in medical law. This article examines all types of euthanasia based on the Islamic criminal code of 2011, and demonstrates that active and involuntary euthanasia is murder if conditions exist; the basis for active and voluntary euthanasia, however, is the victim's consent, so the penalty is less. As the physical element of inactive euthanasia is omission, clause 296 of the criminal code and clause 2 of the penal code on refusing to help the wounded apply. Lastly, it is suggested that legislators criminalize euthanasia with a new approach and independent title, and consider principles of justice to determine less punishment for this type of killing compared to murder with malice aforethought.

Christianity and Euthanasia

Physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia: How not to die as a Christian

Christianity's opposition to euthanasia and assisted suicide is grounded in its recognition of such actions as serious violations of the prohibition against murder and self-murder, even in cases where those individuals consent or otherwise signal their willingness to die as in cases of voluntary euthanasia. Fully to appreciate the implications of assimilating assisted death into medical practice, one must recognize the spiritual significance of killing on the physicians who euthanize patients or who aid and abet patients in killing themselves. One will also need to appreciate the spiritual importance of such actions on the patients killed. Physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are not neutral actions. Moreover, that the patient desired or requested the killing does not change the moral character of the act or its spiritual significance. This issue of Christian Bioethics explores the implications for medicine and society as physician-assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are assimilated into contemporary healthcare practice. 

May Christians request medically assisted suicide and euthanasia?

The article deals with the question: 'Is it morally acceptable for terminally ill Christians to voluntarily request medically assisted suicide or euthanasia?' After a brief discussion of relevant changes in the moral landscape over the last century, two influential, but opposite views on the normative basis for the Christian ethical assessment of medically assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia are critically discussed. The inadequacy of both the view that the biblical message entails an absolute prohibition against these two practices, and the view that Christians have to decide on them on the basis of their own autonomy, is argued. An effort is made to demonstrate that although the biblical message does not entail an absolute prohibition it does have normative ethical implications for deciding on medically assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia. Certain Christian beliefs encourage terminally ill Christians to live a morally responsible life until their death and cultivate a moral prejudice against taking the life of any human being. This moral prejudice can, however, in exceptional cases be outweighed by moral considerations in favour of medically assisted suicide or voluntary euthanasia.

How should Christians respond to proposals to legalise euthanasia and assisted suicide?

The article discusses the issue over voluntary euthanasia and how Christians must respond to the proposals to legalise it in New Zealand. The legalisation of euthanasia and physician assisted suicide is being sold as the most compassionate action the community could offer people who are suffering unbearably. The End of Life Choice Bill, sponsored by Maryan Street, would allow a person to receive medical assistance to die.

A Catholic hospital in Canada has been ordered to provide assisted suicide services.

 A Catholic hospital in Nova Scotia must provide physician-assisted suicide assessments to eligible patients who request them, the province's public health service has ruled.

Christian group backs euthanasia

The article discusses aspects of the voluntary euthanasia which is consistent with Christian values in Australia. It highlights the increase quality of life for people who are terminally ill by removing the stress of facing a painful death. It also notes that the Catholic Church are opposed to euthanasia.

Buddhism and Euthanasia

End of life: The Buddhist view

Discusses end-of-life issues from the Buddhist perspective. Idea that terminal care of Buddhist patients, with the exception of monks and nuns, has few special requirements or limitations on medical treatment; Statement that local custom can affect the patient-doctor relationship more than Buddhist doctrine; Buddhist values, including mindfulness and mental clarity; How death and persistent vegetative state are defined in Buddhist philosophy and medical standards; The influence of Confucian teachings on Japanese Buddhists; Buddhist teachings on euthanasia and compassion and how it relates to terminally ill patients.

The view of religions toward euthanasia and extraordinary treatments in Japan

388 Japanese religious groups—143 Shinto, 157 Buddhist, 58 Christian and 30 others—were asked to answer questions regarding several forms of euthanasia and extraordinary treatment during the dying process. Passive euthanasia and indirect euthanasia were accepted by around 70% of the respondents. Active euthanasia was favored by less than 20% of them. Christians were less supportive of euthanasia than practitioners of other religions. Shinto and Buddhist corporations advocated “being natural,” when medical treatment became futile at the terminal stage. Religionists' views may deepen the discussion of end-of-life issues.