Christian Perspective on Euthanasia

Case Study on Death and Dying

Introduction/Abstract
The case study is about George, who was an active legal scholar, teacher and a basketball
coach to his son. He met with an accident due to which he suffered early symptoms of ALS,
which eventually led to complete muscle control loss. After knowing his situation, he wanted
to examine the possibility of voluntary euthanasia. The Christian worldview in this context is
that euthanasia is an illegal and morally incorrect procedure. It is stated in Bible that life is a
gift of God and one has no right to take his life and to help others in taking their life. It is
important that one should live his/her life till the natural death. In case of medical condition,
it is important that George keep his faith in God and continue living his life as God has given
to him. He should not opt for euthanasia, as it is wrong and unethical.
How would George interpret his suffering in light of the
Christian narrative, with an emphasis on the fallenness
of the world?
Various issues have been raised concerning the end of life such as assisted suicide and
euthanasia. The opinion of Bible about euthanasia is that God has introduced the provision of
death penalty to the humankind for murder. Bible does not all support compassionate killing
in any case even after upon the request of a person. There is no recognition of ‘right to die’ in
accordance with the holy book as all the human beings belong to God. The Bible consider
that the lives of human beings do not belong to them, so Euthanasia, suicide and other
assisted suicide are not right. In the light of Christian narrative and emphasizing on his
degrading health condition, George would interpret his suffering as struggle for life because
he is already in his mid-fifties and does not want to suffer due to ALS. He does not want to
suffer for the rest of his life for his basic everyday functions such as to speak, breathe and
move (CARE, 2019).

Despite opposition by Bible for Euthanasia, George would interpret that suffering and sin are
not a part of the good creation by the God. The biblical account of the Fall consider suffering
in three important ways i.e. suffering results from sin; suffering is not natural to good
creation of God but is an intruder; and suffering contains element of mystery. From the
perspective of Fall, George would understand that suffering is not given by God who created
him and there is some kind of mystery associated with suffering (CARE, 2019).
How would George interpret his suffering in light of the
Christian narrative, with an emphasis on the hope of
resurrection?
Emphasizing on the “hope of resurrection”, George would interpret his suffering as an
experience in human life. However, he should understand that eternal God has allowed him to
experience the pain and suffering so that he could get rid of all his sins from the present life
and arose to be a good human being. As resurrection is considered as culmination of all that
is good and humane, it will lead him as a human to the divinity (BBC, 2010). Having faith in
God, George would consider his suffering and pain as the wish of God to bring back
humanity in him through this suffering. The process of resurrection is considered as the
culmination of all that is good and truly human. It is the progress of the human into
spirituality and will inspire and shape the life of human beings.