Assignment: Third-leading Cause of Death

Every few minutes someone in America commits suicide. In North America, suicide is the third-leading cause of death among people 15 to 25 years olD. And note this tragic feature of American life: among children between 5 and 14 years of age, suicide is the sixth most common cause of death (Smedes, 2000). Meilaender puts it that “Suicide as a rational project expresses a desire to be only free and not also finite-a desire to be more like Creator not creature”. As a Christian I do not condone suicide at the same time I am not at liberty to judge one’s actions as a sin or not. It is not my place. The Bible says “thou shalt not judge”.

“Euthanasia, also known as assisted suicide, physician-assisted suicide (dying), doctor-assisted dying (suicide), and more loosely termed mercy killing, means to take a deliberate action with the express intention of ending a life to relieve intractable (persistent, unstoppable) suffering” (Nordqvist, 2016). Considering the fact that one of Christian principle is to relieve suffering, when it comes to assisting to take one’s life, it becomes a difficult discussion. Meilaender emphasized that, euthanasia cannot simply be termed as an extension of one’s private autonomy or a non-interventional act in a private choice, this is because it requires the participation of another person, thus making it a communal act. This is quite difficult for me in this profession especially when it come to the point of given morphine schedules. Medicine is there to ease the suffering. All life is precious and God oversees all of it. Nevertheless, to classify suicide and euthanasia as sin to me lies with God.

Reference:

Meilaender, G. (2013). Bioethics: A Primer for Christians . William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Nordqvist, C., (2016). Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide . Retrieved from: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/182951.php

Smedes, L.B., (2000). Christianity Today: Is Suicide Unforgivable? Retrieved from: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/july10/30.61.html

 

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