Transcript S.2: Euthanasia

Euthanasia
Questions and Guidelines
Essential Questions
1) How is euthanasia different from
palliative care?
 2) How have advances in medicine
affected the traditional distinction between
euthanasia and palliative care?
 3) What is the difference between
prolonging life and postponing death?
 4) Do we have the moral and legal right to
chose to die?

Some Definitions
Euthanasia: Deliberately taking steps to
bring about a person’s death for the
purpose of eliminating suffering
Direct (Active) Euthanasia: taking
deliberate steps to end the life of a suffering
and incurably ill person
Indirect (Passive) Euthanasia:
Deliberately not taking steps to prevent a sick
person’s death, precisely with the desire and
intention that this “withholding” will lead to or
cause death
*None are acceptable according to Church
Definitions cont

Palliative Care:
– medical care to lessen suffering during
terminal illness, especially with regards to pain
medication
– Death is not willed or directly sought but may
be hastened by care
– *acceptable by Church

Physician Assisted Suicide:
– A person who is incurably ill killing him/herself
with the help of a physician
– *Not acceptable by Church
 1)
How is euthanasia different from
palliative care that might shorten
one’s life?
– Euthanasia seeks the deliberate ending
of one’s life to end suffering
– Palliative care seeks the lessening of
suffering due to terminal illness
Essential Question #2
 2)
How have advances in medicine
affected the traditional distinction
between euthanasia and palliative
care?
– Has blurred meanings of each
– Moved past mysterious boundary
separating prolonging life and health
from simply postponing death
– Challenging us to re-examine or moral
and ethical reasoning
Essential Question #3
 What
is the difference between
prolonging life and postponing
death?
– Prolonging life a clear virtue: honors the
sacredness of life
– Postponing death less clear virtue: can
keep bodies alive but at what cost?
– Is the dignity and sacredness of life
strengthened or weakened through
medical science? Depends
Essential Question #4
 Do
we have the moral and legal right
to chose to die?
 A Catholic Response:
 The Catechism: 2278: discontinuing
burdensome medical procedures that
are extraordinary and burdensome is
legitimate. Key point, action cannot
directly cause death; must be due to
disease or condition
Answer Essential Question #4
 Life
celebrated as gift of loving God
 Each life in image and likeness of
God
 Individuals have right to make own
healthcare decisions and appoint a
proxy
 Physical life is sacred but ultimate
goal is everlasting life w/God; death
need not be avoided at all costs
 Suffering
understood as fact of
human life and has special
significance for Christian:
opportunity to share in Christ’s
redemptive suffering
 Still, nothing wrong with trying to
relieve someone’s suffering
 Euthanasia; seen as an attack on
human life