Christian Worldview in 'End of Life Decisions'
The practice of health care providers at all levels brings you into contact with people from a variety of faiths. This calls for knowledge and understanding of a diversity of faith expressions; for the purpose of this course, the focus will be on the Christian worldview.
Based on "Case Study: End of Life Decisions," the Christian worldview, and the worldview questions presented in the required topic study materials you will complete an ethical analysis of George's situation and his decision from the perspective of the Christian worldview.
Provide a 1,500-2,000-word ethical analysis while answering the following questions:
How would George interpret his suffering in light of the Christian narrative, with an emphasis on the fallenness of the world?
How would George interpret his suffering in light of the Christian narrative, with an emphasis on the hope of resurrection?
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?
What sorts of values and considerations would the Christian worldview focus on in deliberating about whether or not George should opt for euthanasia?
Given the above, what options would be morally justified in the Christian worldview for George and why?
Based on your worldview, what decision would you make if you were in George's situation?
Remember to support your responses with the topic study materials.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is required.
Case Study on Death and Dying
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Each religion has its way of interpreting the worldly events, including suffering. Christians perceive the world as fallen owing to its broken nature. It exposes people to aches and pains, illnesses and accidents, and disasters and death. They live their lives on the hope of resurrection, which they deem as a redemption from the earth’s suffering. This belief dates back to the time of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, where the two great ancestors lived a happy life. However, their disobedience made God angry and decided to punish them by casting them to the earth. Therefore, Christians interpret the earth not as a destination but a journey that is full of pain and suffering. George should not choose euthanasia as it goes against his Christian beliefs. However, he can opt not to take the medicine or other life prolonging interventions and instead allow nature to take its course.
Case Study on Death and Dying
In the context of the fallenness of the world, George would perceived his condition as being a normal experience of the world. Apostle Paul provides an excellent description of the fallenness of a creation, where he says that all the creation was subjected to futility, which is in bondage, slavery, corruption and decay. That all creations have to suffer the consequences of their actions. They have to suffer from the effects of corruption, futility, emptiness and vanity (Billings, 2017). Thus, George would attribute his condition to the world’s evil nature that results from people’s evil actions. He would assess whether there was anywhere that he wronged someone and would have treated it as a punishment from God for his actions and if not, he would attribute it as a normal way and that it would only be over once he died.
On the contrary, George would interpret his suffering in light of the hope of resurrection as a way towards a better life. He would believe that the suffering is only meant for the sinful body after which he would enjoy the peace and glory of God in a new world. As noted in 1 Cor. 15:53, 43), that once the corruptible flesh has put in incorruption and once the body has been planted into the ground in dishonor and weakness and has been raised up in glory and power (Billings, 2017). This verse implies that the suffering is only a path towards a better life. That one cannot transition to God’s glory without undergoing the pain and suffering. Therefore, he would view his suffering with the hope that after this life, another more peaceful life was awaiting him. He would live the rest of his life with the hope that mistakes and sins can be forgiven and that we can have joy, peace, assurance, and security after the despair.
In the Christian world view, human life is scared and a gift from God, which must be respected and protected. Therefore, as a Christian, George would be guided by the concept of the sanctity of life, in which the Holy Scriptures teachers that human beings are created in God’s image and that they have to respect life. Jesus, the son of God, said that each person is precious to God so much that God will not let even a single person, amid the millions of people on earth, to get lost. In addition, according to the Christian world view, only God has the right to choose when life begins and ends. Therefore, it is wrong for a Christian to engage in any activity that interferes with this plan. Consequently, there are some Christian faiths that are against the use of contraceptives or in vitro fertilization because such actions interfere with God’s plan about life. In addition, Christians hold a different view concerning abortion and euthanasia because the actions lead to end of life of the human being, which is against God’s plan. Thus, as a Christian, George would not think about cutting his life but would continue praying as he awaits his end of life or a miracle, if his time has not come.
Traditionally, Christian teachings have emphasized against euthanasia and other actions that lead to the end of life, such as physician assisted suicide. Euthanasia entails taking a human life for the purpose of relieving pain and suffering. This can happen either actively or passively. Active euthanasia occurs when the physician take actions that lead to the death of an individual. On the contrary, passive euthanasia involves stopping treatment or any actions that would allow the patient to regain his health with the intention of causing death. However, Christians evaluate euthanasia based on three major arguments: autonomy, minimizing pain and suffering, and the argument that there is no morally relevant difference between taking steps to increase the rate of dying and allowing the death process to occur.
In George’s cas...
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