“Today, euthanasia is, legally speaking, an option available in many democratic countries. St. Augustine once said that when democracy is severed from truth and justice, it degenerates into a gang of bandits. Such is the case today when euthanasia is considered acceptable just because it is in accord with the reigning law and respect for autonomy. As such, euthanasia amounts to ‘consented murder,’ however.”
The presentation of “The Catholic perspective”, delivered by Marie-Jo Thiel, raised serious concerns on the following grounds:
(a) Her apparent endorsement of “deep and continuous sedation” on demand (already legal in France), is extremely objectionable. For in the first place, “deep and continuous sedation” can be a euphemism for active euthanasia, because narcotics can provoke respiratory arrest, if the limits of maximal dosage and the need for intervals are not observed. Besides, if, as happens in most cases of terminal sedation, simultaneously nutrition-hydration is withdrawn, despite the fact that the latter still benefits the body for the preservation of human life, the endorsement of “deep and continuous (terminal) sedation” is an endorsement of direct euthanasia (and hence, of murder).
“Thus, the real issue in the promotion of euthanasia is actually this: is man the measure of everything? Or, rather, is man the servant of God? As God’s creature, it is not man’s prerogative to impose, on his own accord, death on others or on himself, but rather he is to accept death only when it comes to him from without and when it is, ultimately, sent from God.”
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