The document discusses different types of euthanasia including active euthanasia where a doctor administers medication to shorten a patient's life, passive euthanasia which is the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, and physician-assisted suicide. It also covers religious and philosophical views on euthanasia, with most religions opposing it on the grounds that all life is sacred and given by God. Non-religious views differ, with some believing suffering can have value in developing character.
2. The different types Euthanasia Active euthanasia occurs when a doctor administers medication knowing it will shorten a patient's life. Active euthanasia occurs when a doctor administers medication knowing it will shorten a patient's life. Bland ruling refers to the case of Anthony Bland. A victim of the Hillsborough stadium tragedy, he 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. Death is more complicated than one would first think. UK law holds that a person who suffers brain-stem death is dead, but some campaigners argue such a definition is defective. For example, they argue, there is no agreed way to define when the brain is dead. And even if there were, why should the death of the brain count as death of the person if other organs - such as the heart - are still functioning?
3. Euthanasia Euthanasia has many definitions. The Pro-Life Alliance defines it as: "Any action or omission intended to end the life of a patient on the grounds that his or her life is not worth living." The Voluntary Euthanasia Society looks to the word's Greek origins - "'eu' and 'thanatos', which together mean 'a good death'" - and say a modern definition is: "A good death brought about by a doctor providing drugs or an injection to bring a peaceful end to the dying process." Three classes of euthanasia can be identified - passive euthanasia , physician-assisted suicide and active euthanasia - although not all groups would acknowledge them as valid terms . Withdrawal of treatment is a hugely controversial area. Also known as passive euthanasia , it is where the doctor withholds life-sustaining treatment. Many doctors would argue there reaches a point in the care of a patient where treatment is no longer of any help. Since the 1989 Bland ruling , basic nutrition and hydration count as treatment. Pro-life groups see this as an offence against human rights
4. Religious views all life is God-given birth and death are part of the life processes which God has created, so we should respect them therefore no human being has the authority to take the life of any innocent person, even if that person wants to die Judaism desires the minimization of suffering of animals. So, if the animal is in pain or is badly injured, euthanasia would be preferable than leaving the animal to suffer. In fact, the prohibition against causing pain to animals is a serious, and not only forbids Jews from causing pain to animals, but also requires Jews to help relieve the pain of animals. If an animal is in pain, and there is no chance of recovery, it would be Anarchically permissible to put an animal to sleep via a painless procedure. However, there is a Cabbalistic tradition that forbids the ending of any life
5. More stuff about Euthanasia Some people think that dying is just one of the tests that God sets for human beings, and that the way we react to it shows the sort of person we are, and how deep our faith and trust in God is. Others, while acknowledging that a loving God doesn't set his creations such a horrible test, say that the process of dying is the ultimate opportunity for human beings to develop their souls. When people are dying they may be able more than at any time in their life to concentrate on the important things in life, and to set aside the present-day 'consumer culture', and their own ego and desire to control the world. Eastern religions Several Eastern religions believe that we live many lives and the quality of each life is set by the way we lived our previous lives. Those who believe this think that suffering is part of the moral force of the universe, and that by cutting it short a person interferes with their progress towards ultimate liberation. A non-religious view Some non-religious people also believe that suffering has value. They think it provides an opportunity to grow in wisdom, character, and compassion. Suffering is something which draws upon all the resources of a human being and enables them to reach the highest and noblest points of what they really are. Suffering allows a person to be a good example to others by showing how to behave when things are bad. M Scott Peck, author of The Road Less Travelled , has written that in a few weeks at the end of life, with pain properly controlled a person might learn how to negotiate a middle path between control and total passivity, about how to welcome the responsible care of strangers, about how to be dependent once again ... about how to trust and maybe even, out of existential suffering, at least a little bit about how to pray or talk with God's Scott Peck
6. More stuff about Euthanasia Euthanasia is against the word and will of God Religious people don't argue that we can't kill ourselves, or get others to do it. They know that we can do it because God has given us free will. Their argument is that it would be wrong for us to do so. They believe that every human being is the creation of God, and that this imposes certain limits on us. Our lives are not only our lives for us to do with as we see fit. To kill oneself, or to get someone else to do it for us, is to deny God, and to deny God's rights over our lives and his right to choose the length of our lives and the way our lives end. The value of suffering Religious people sometimes argue against euthanasia because they see positive value in suffering. Down through the centuries and generations it has been seen that in suffering there is concealed a particular power that draws a person interiorly close to Christ, a special grace. Pope John Paul II: Slavonic Dolores, 1984 The religious attitude to suffering Most religions would say something like this: We should relieve suffering when we can, and be with those who suffer, helping them to bear their suffering, when we can't. We should never deal with the problem of suffering by eliminating those who suffer. The nature of suffering Christianity teaches that suffering can have a place in God's plan, in that it allows the sufferer to share in Christ's agony and his redeeming sacrifice. They believe that Christ will be present to share in the suffering of the believer. Pope John Paul II has written that "It is suffering, more than anything else, which clears the way for the grace which transforms human souls."
7. my views They can choose their self if they like life. No one should take life.