Lisa Newkirk: Case Study on Death and Dying from Christian Perspective

This case study centers on George, a legal scholar and basketball coach diagnosed with ALS, and his contemplation of voluntary euthanasia. The assignment analyzes George's situation through a Christian worldview, emphasizing the sanctity of life as a gift from God, thereby opposing euthanasia. The study explores how George might interpret his suffering, considering the fallenness of the world and the hope of resurrection. It delves into the Christian perspective on the value of life, the role of community, and the ethical considerations surrounding end-of-life decisions. The case study examines the values and considerations the Christian worldview would focus on when deciding whether George should opt for euthanasia, and identifies morally justified options, such as palliative care. Finally, it presents a personal reflection on the decision the author would make if faced with George's situation, reinforcing the belief in the importance of living life with dignity and respecting its inherent value, as provided by God, while also offering a positive approach towards the disease and suffering.

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.
As George contemplates life with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),
how would the Christian worldview inform his view about the value of
his life as a person?
As George considers his life with ALS, the Christian worldview informs his opinion
regarding the value of his life significant as a human. The suffering in human life requires to

be avoided principally as struggling to end of life. The Christian perspective believes that
human life bears the image of God and humans have no right to terminate. In addition, the
Christian worldview also believes that humans are a part of community and are not
autonomous. Being a part of the community, George does not have the right to take the
decision to end his life just because he is suffering due to ALS (Christianity, 2019). His
decision to end his life would impact others as well. Presently, if he is suffering a lot and is
terrified that he would eventually become a burden on his family, he should not feel guilty
that he cannot do anything about it. So, Christian worldview is in favor of natural death and
asks him to respect the life processes created by God. It is the God who creates life and
decide about the death of human beings and humans must not interfere in his process. The
Christian worldview is that he should face the pain and suffering with strength and should not
feel guilty about his condition. He should follow natural process of death and should have
faith in God (Kirby, 2019).
What sorts of values and considerations would the Christian
worldview focus on in deliberating about whether or not George
should opt for euthanasia?
The Christian worldview emphasize on certain values and considerations in reflecting about
whether George should opt for Euthanasia;
 The view of Christians is typically against Euthanasia on the basis of the
disagreement that life is a gift of God and is created in the image of God.
 Birth and death are the parts of life processes which God has created and one should
respect them.
 No human being possesses the authority to take the life of innocent people even if
person prefers to die (De Villiers, 2016).

 Human beings are valued and respected considering them as the image of God and
that they possess inherent dignity.
 Christians consider that it is a good thing that life is preserved so that people can
develop the abilities to be as close as possible to God.
 Process of death is spiritual and it should not be interrupted by humans.
 Christians believe that inherent dignity of human lives refers to similar value to each
human life.
Considering it as ethical and spiritual, Christian worldwide consider euthanasia as wrong and
suggests George should not opt for euthanasia. He should live his life with respect and
dignity and should face the suffering with strength to attain natural death (Pankratz & Welsh,
2011).
Given the above, what options would be morally justified in the
Christian worldview for George and why?
In the Christian worldview, the option available for George that would be morally correct,
will be that he should prefer excellent hospital and palliative care so that his physical, social,
spiritual and psychological needs are taken care of. Instead of suffering from the disease, he
should consider what best he can do for himself and his family. In this process, his family can
help him a lot by providing him with the best care, compassion, love and ensure hope and
protection to him. It would be morally correct if he prefers the suffering to be his destiny and
live his life with dignity and respect by valuing the life given to him by the God. He should
feel positive about life and face the trouble with strength so that he could live the life happily
till death. Instead of opting for euthanasia and taking his life, he should make efforts to lead
good life and make it better. The Christian worldview in this perspective is strictly opposing
as one cannot take his/her life on their own decisions. It is the responsibility of every human

being to live his life purposefully till the end of life i.e. natural death. The medical condition
of George is a hindrance to live purposeful life but, he should think of his family and friends
and try to keep them happy as much as possible by reacting positively to the medications and
should follow proper treatment procedures to minimize the impact of disease on his body. In
this way, he will feel better and his family would also feel happy for him (Wurster, 2018).
Based on your worldview, what decision would you make if you were
in George's situation?
In our worldview, if I were in the situation of George, I would never have opted to take my
life through euthanasia or assisted suicide. I firmly believe that the life is given by God and it
is essential to live it with dignity and to respect it. One should remain ready to have the good
as well as bad times in the life. It is the part of a life that bad times come and at that time one
feels negative about it but, it should also be kept in mind that time runs fast and bad times
come and go one day or the other. George is not feeling well about his health and there is no
probability that he would recover but the condition will continue degrading. In such a
condition, the best possible way is to be positive about life. It is said that keeping positivity in
life releases stress and negativity out of the life. So, in this condition, I would have tried to
respond positively to the medications so that the deterioration of body could be controlled.
References
BBC. (2010). Euthanasia and assisted dying. Retrieved from Bbc.co.uk:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/christianethics/
euthanasia_1.shtml
CARE. (2019). Christian Views on Euthanasia. Retrieved from Care.org.uk:
https://www.care.org.uk/our-causes/sanctity-life/euthanasia/christian-views

CARE. (2019). Euthanasia & Assisted Suicide. Retrieved from Care.org.uk:
https://www.care.org.uk/our-causes/sanctity-life/euthanasia
Christianity. (2019). Suffering and the Biblical Story. Retrieved from Christianity.com:
https://www.christianity.com/newsletters/features/suffering-and-the-biblical-story-
11632654.html
De Villiers, D. E. (2016). May Christians request medically assisted suicide and euthanasia?
HTS Theological Studies, 72(4), 1-9.
Kirby, F. J. (2019). Resurrection an invitation to see beyond pain, sorrow, and suffering.
Retrieved from Cruxnow.com:
https://cruxnow.com/commentary/2019/04/21/resurrection-an-invitation-to-see-
beyond-pain-sorrow-and-suffering/
Pankratz, D. H., & Welsh, D. R. (2011). A Christian Response to Euthanasia. Retrieved from
Tkc.com: http://www.tkc.com/resources/resources-pages/euthanasia.html
Wurster, M. (2018). What does the Bible teach about euthanasia and physician assisted
suicide? Retrieved from Erlc.com: https://erlc.com/resource-library/articles/what-
does-the-bible-teach-about-euthanasia-and-physician-assisted-suicide