This guest post is from Peter Mitchell, Regent
Law Student:
Our Christian faith tells us that God is the author of all life. Our Easter faith in Jesus’ Resurrection means that we see death as an exodus, the doorway to our eternal destiny.
Using our God-given
reason, we can make informed decisions – enlightened by faith – about
end-of-life situations that are often difficult to navigate.
Essential
Moral Principles
In making decisions
about how to best provide for situations surrounding their final journey,
Christians may find guidance in some essential moral principles.
Because life is a
sacred gift from God, Christians have a duty to preserve life.
Euthanasia, defined as an act or omission that by
itself or by intention causes death, including assisted suicide, is
always morally wrong.
However, at a certain
point the burden of medical treatment may outweigh the benefit provided.
For example, if a medical procedure is dangerous, extraordinary, or
disproportionate to its expected outcome, then there is no obligation to
pursue such treatment.
The provision of nutrition
and hydration to a patient, so long as it is still providing sufficient
benefit to a person, may be achieved with minimal burden to a patient (usually
through a simple feeding tube). As such there should be a presumption in favor
of providing food and water to all patients (it is Christ Himself who is hungry
and thirsty – “I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me
drink” (Matthew 25:35)). The omission of such treatment, absent another
underlying condition causing imminent death, would mean that the cause of
the patient’s death would be starvation and/or dehydration.
If the decision is made
to forego medical treatment, it should not be made because a person’s life is
somehow judged not to have value or meaning. Often, people who are ill or
struggling with age or declining health simply need to be reassured and
encouraged that their life and presence is still a blessing to those
around them.
Advanced
Health-Care Directives
Christians have the
right to make provision for decision-making regarding their health care if they
are incapacitated. It is important to ensure that whoever is designated to make
such decisions is committed to applying sound Christian and natural law (i.e.,
reasonable) principles to all health-care decisions.
An advanced health-care
directive generally takes two forms: a living will and/or a health care
power of attorney.
A living will is
a document by which an individual states his/her wishes and gives directives
about how health care should be administered to them in the event that they are
unconscious or in the ending stages of life.
A health care power
of attorney is a document by which an individual appoints a specific person
to make health care decisions for him/her in the event of incapacity.
An advanced health-care
directive can contain a statement of Christian faith and thus can be an
occasion for Christian witness. It may include directives as to
providing life support, selecting a provider, undergoing diagnostic testing or
surgery, taking medication, or other extraordinary treatments.
The combination of
having a living will and a designated health care power of attorney
means that the appointed person will have a written set of guidelines to direct
and inform the choices that need to be made surrounding treatment. If there is
only a written document, the patient cannot be certain as to who will be
interpreting the document to make decisions in real time in the event of a
serious medical situation.
In the absence of a
health-care directive, a person’s wishes regarding their treatment may not be
known to others, and decisions may be made by a person who is not aware of the
patient’s faith or preferences as to treatment. A health-care directive avoids
confusion and ensures that the person a patient prefers, who knows about the
patient’s faith and preferences, will be the one making important and critical
decisions in difficult medical situations.
These documents should
be given to one’s family, doctor, hospital, nursing facility, and/or home
health agency.
The challenging moments
surrounding the end of life may thus become an occasion for confident witness
to our faith in God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Creator and Giver
of All Life.
“I came that they might have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).
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