Apparently 85% of Australians support voluntary euthanasia. Or that’s what a billboard on the Hume Highway in Sydney is saying. The Sydney Morning Herald wrote an article about it this week noting that even the Prime Minister has promised debate on the matter.
Euthanasia is an emotionally packed subject. There are those who go through days filled with pain on end or live with limited physical abilities that many of us take for granted. The argument for euthanasia is that those who desire it should have a right to end it all. But there are endless questions to ask and debate, and many of them will probably not be met satisfactorily.
For example, what defines quality of life? And who defines it? Can someone going through a traumatic phase of life (or depression) be in the right frame of mind to make right choices? And who decides what we do with all those who fall short of our ‘quality of life’ definition? How can we know their motives are faultless and completely objective? Do we have to right to decide who can live or die? Should anyone be even allowed to bear this terrible burden? It is also ironical that politicians who debate on whether those who do not feel they have sufficient quality of life should be allowed to end their lives, would equally oppose the death penalty of drug dealers in other countries, keeping in mind that the scourge of drug abuse dramatically reduces the quality of life of not only the addict, but the entire community he or she lives in.
As Christians though, we believe that everything we have comes from God and should be used in His service. If we look to the Bible, we find that life is a precious gift from God (Genesis 2:7, Job 12:10, Acts 17:25) and is therefore sacred (Genesis 9:5, Exodus 20:13). Humanity was created to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever and while we may lay down our lives in service to God or each other, the unsanctioned taking of life (Genesis 9:6) is and should be forbidden.
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