2.5.1

Key Concepts for Euthanasia Debates

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Key Concepts About Life

The sanctity of life is the idea that human life is made in God’s image and so is sacred in value. Quality of life means human life has to possess certain attributes in order to have value.

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Origins of sanctity of life

  • Christians believe in the 'sanctity of life': there is something special and holy about life. For Christians, human life is different because we share something of the nature of God.
  • Biblical origins:
    • The first book of the Old Testament (Genesis) describes how God made Adam, and: “Breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” (Genesis 2:7).
    • Genesis also says that people are made “in the image of God”.
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Secular origins of quality of life

  • Secular means non-religious.
  • The scholar Peter Singer (pictured) has strongly argued that it is now time to abandon the sanctity of life principle in favour of the non-religious quality of life argument.
  • Singer believes that people nowadays make decisions based on their quality of life rather than sanctity of life.
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Quality of life principle

  • The quality of life principle takes the approach that a life is only worthwhile if it can fulfil those things which make life worth living.
    • For example, someone having good physical and mental health, an education, financial stability.

Voluntary and Non-Voluntary Euthanasia

Euthanasia is the deliberate ending of someone's life out of compassion. You need to know the difference between voluntary and non-voluntary euthanasia.

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Voluntary euthanasia

  • Voluntary euthanasia means a person’s life is ended at their request or with their consent.
  • Reasons for using voluntary euthanasia:
    • Suffering from a terminal illness.
    • Unlikely to benefit from the discovery of a cure for that illness during what remains of their life expectancy.
    • Suffering intolerable pain.
    • Their life is unacceptably burdensome.
    • Has an enduring, voluntary and competent wish to die.
    • Unable without assistance to end their life.
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Non-voluntary euthanasia

  • Non-voluntary euthanasia means a person’s life is ended without their consent but with the consent of someone representing their interests.
  • Glover distinguishes non-voluntary euthanasia from involuntary euthanasia.
    • With involuntary euthanasia, a person is killed against their wishes, such as when disabled people were killed by Nazi doctors — this is regarded as murder.
    • Non-voluntary euthanasia should be in the interest of the person who dies and not anyone else.
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Tony Bland example

  • When doctors at Airedale Hospital in Yorkshire asked the High Court for permission to withdraw artificial nutrition and hydration from Hillsborough victim Tony Bland, his family supported the application.
  • After the Hillsborough stadium tragedy, Tony was left in a persistent vegetative state - and hence was not legally dead. His parents believed their son would not want to be kept alive in such a condition. They petitioned the court to sanction the withdrawal of hydration and artificial nutrition, which it did.

Jump to other topics

1Philosophy of Religion

1.1Ancient Philosophical Influences: Plato

1.2Ancient Philosophical Influences: Aristotle

1.3Ancient Philosophical Influences: Soul, Mind, Body

1.4The Existence of God - Arguments from Observation

1.5The Existence of God - Arguments from Reason

1.6Religious Experience

1.7The Problem of Evil

1.8The Nature & Attributes of God

1.9Religious Language: Negative, Analogical, Symbolic

1.10Religious Language: 20th Century Perspective

2Religion & Ethics

3Developments in Christian Thought

3.1Saint Augustine's Teachings

3.2Death & the Afterlife

3.3Knowledge of God's Existence

3.4The Person of Jesus Christ

3.5Christian Moral Principles

3.6Christian Moral Action

3.7Development - Pluralism & Theology

3.8Development - Pluralism & Society

3.9Gender & Society

3.10Gender & Theology

3.11Challenges

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