Day 791 – Euthanasia – When is it Right to End a Life? – Wisdom Wednesday

Wisdom-Trek

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy Welcome to Day 791 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. I am Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Euthanasia - When is it Right to End a Life? - Wisdom Wednesday Thank you for joining us for our five days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. Today is Day 791 of our Trek, and it is Wisdom Wednesday. We continue this Wednesday to explore our trek of interpreting life through a Biblical Worldview. As a Christ follower, it is important to view all situations and events in life through the lens of the Bible. That is a view of the world that is aligned with what the Bible teaches us. We are exploring current issues that impact our world and society and comparing them through the lens of the Bible, instead of the lens of our society, culture, modern media, or social media. I do not desire to tell you what to think, but teach you how to think, so that you may be able to filter current issues and events through your Biblical Worldview. I may explore opposing views and challenge you to think. You may not always agree with my view, and that is okay. I am open to any comments that you may have on the subjects that we explore. We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We are making tentative plans to travel to Ft. Myers next week to assist Aunt Pauline in the transition from the rehab center to assisted living. Although she is quite frail and 90 years old, we feel that it is important to assist her in any way possible so that her remaining years here on earth are as rich and satisfying as possible. Our personal Biblical Worldview includes the strong conviction and belief that all life is precious regardless of whether it is an unborn child, or someone who through advanced age, illness or accident may be nearing the end of life, or is severely restricted in life. Last week we considered what a Biblical Worldview is for a yet to be born child. Today we will consider the other end of the spectrum. There is a growing trend around the world to accept physician-assisted suicide, and as a Christ follower, we need to ask ourselves, what is a Biblical Worldview on euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide? So that we all understand the term: “euthanasia” and “physician-assisted suicide” refer to deliberate action taken with the intention of ending a life, in order to relieve persistent suffering. A Biblical Worldview, at its core, is grounded in the fact that the Bible is God’s Word and contains all truth that God chose to reveal to us. Even with that understanding, I realize that there are many interpretations of parts of the Bible, and even the most learned Bible scholars and theologians will disagree. Let us take time to pause and consider how we should view this topic. So our topic today is… Euthanasia – When Is It Right To End a Life? With the advancement of technology and medical knowledge, life can be extended much longer than at any time during history. So the question/dilemma which we now face is, at what point should a patient, family members, or doctor be permitted to end a life which could be extended through medication, surgery, or other measures? While it may appear to be some gray area on this subject, there is a distinct difference between an advance directive declaration and choosing to prematurely end your life. Advance directives are legal documents that allow you to spell out your decisions about end-of-life care ahead of time. They give you a way to tell your wishes to family, friends, and health care professionals and to avoid confusion later on. The key here is that this only comes into effect during a life or death situation and if that person who is in that condition cannot communicate themselves what their wishes are. Euthanasia and/or physician-assisted suicide is where a person, who may be suffering, chooses to take medication or drugs which will end their lives prematurely.