The Christian Speaks: Physician-Assisted Suicide

Several weeks ago, 91-year-old grandmother Sharlotte Hydorn made national news with her business, which is totally legal:  she makes and sells suicide kits.  Hydorn makes the kits because her husband died painfully of cancer thirty years ago.  She says she doesn’t want anyone to suffer the same way her husband did.  Hydorn’s business, however, came under scrutiny after it was discovered that a 29 year old man who suffered from depression bought a kit from her and successfully used it.  Several states, including Oregon (one of three states that has legalized physician assisted suicide) are looking at passing laws outlawing the sale of Hydorn’s kits.

Hydorn’s story has reignited a conversation that exploded onto the national scene in the late ’90’s with Jack Kevorkian’s highly-publicized arrest and trial for helping many of his patients end their lives.  The subject boils down to this:  should a person with a terminal illness have the right to die when they choose, with the assistance of a physician?

Like the other conversations here at The New Inklings, this is a world view issue.  One who believes in the existence of the God of the Bible will likely have a much different view than someone who doesn’t.  If God does not exist, if we’re just the product of random chance, if we’re just something the universe puked up, then it really doesn’t matter what we do with our bodies.  If there is no God, then we really are the captains of our own destiny, and it doesn’t really matter if we decide to “jump ship.”  If we decide to end our lives, then that’s our business.

For the Christian, however, the Bible reveals life to be a gift from God.  Death is not seen as a solution to suffering, but an enemy to be feared.  It also shows that our bodies are God’s and thus not our own with which to do what we please, including ending our life.  That means we do not have a “right to die.”*

I realize, more than most, the issues at stake in this issue.  I’m a hospice chaplain.  I see suffering on an almost daily basis.  I’ve seen people suffering with excruciating pain resulting from cancer.  I’ve seen people lose the ability to control their bodies due to diseases like MS and ALS.  I’ve talked with people who have accepted their prognosis and are ready to die.  I’ve spent lots of time praying for patients, who ask God to be merciful to them.  Every day, I come home more sure than before that life is precious.  I’m more convinced now than before my involvement with hospice that physician-assisted suicide is not the best option.

Hospice care provides so much support for those with terminal illnesses and their families–physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and even grief support for the time after the patient dies.  Unfortunately, there is still much ignorance about hospice care.  Many doctors, with “cure, cure, cure” drilled into their minds, are hesitant to order hospice care for patients who’ve exhausted all treatment options.  Many families who could benefit greatly from hospice do not simply because they don’t know about hospice.  I’m convinced many terminal patients who live in states that have legalized physician-assisted suicide would benefit greatly from hospice care, as would their families.

Obviously, end-of-life issues are complex.  What can we do when it comes to end-of-life issues?

• Get educated.  The best way to overcome our fears about death and dying as well as our ignorance about end-of-life issues is to educate ourselves.
• Get involved.  Volunteer for a local hospice organization or a local hospice house or unit.  Give companionship and compassion to those who are facing the end of their time here.

End-of-life issues are not simple.  They’re extremely emotional for all involved.  But there are life-affirming options for people with terminal illnesses and their families.

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*Many Christians regard suicide as an unforgivable sin, the logic being that since suicide offers no chance for a person to repent that it will result in that person spending eternity in hell.  Scripture depicts multiple suicides.  None of those individuals were in a good place with God, and suicide is never condoned in Scripture.  A view, however, that automatically relegates all victims of suicide to hell does not take God’s grace into account.  Only God knows the heart.  Only God knows what the person truly experienced.  And God will do what is right.

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