A Slippery Slope - Part 2 -Maid

 (by Cindy Mead)

There was a day when hearing about someone ending their own life was tragic news, no matter how young or old the person was. It didn’t matter what the person’s social or economic status was, it was still tragic.

But what is even more tragic is hearing about a loved one knowingly taking the life of a family member. In 1993, there was such a case. Tracy, one of the four Latimer children, was born with severe cerebral palsy due to an interruption of the oxygen supply during birth. Tracy’s cerebral palsy included both mental and physical disabilities, as well as seizures.

Tracy’s father, Robert murdered Tracy one day while the family was at church. Robert confessed to putting Tracy in his truck and connecting a hose from the truck’s exhaust pipe into the cab. Robert said he killed Tracy out of his love for her, and to end her suffering. He was charged with first degree murder.

     What is M.A.I.D.? It is Medical Assistance in Death. Medical assistance in death is an umbrella term that includes clinician-administered MAID and self-administered MAID. These practices include what is known as “euthanasia.” Euthanasia is clinician-administered while “assisted suicide” is self-administered or voluntarily assisted.

I don’t know if you remember when euthanasia was the big issue. It was prevalent in the 1980’s. I did a paper on, “Euthanasia” in Bible College. At that time, the case of Sue Rodregus was in the news. Sue wanted assisted suicide, but at that time it was not legal. Rodregus suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Sue fought in the courts, but each time her case was turned down. Sue wanted the right to end her life with the help of a physician, but was turned down in the Supreme Court 5 – 4. Sue committed suicide with the help of an anonymous physician in February 1994.             

Both MAID and euthanasia have one major point in common which goes against the Word of God. It breaks one of the Ten Commandments. “You shall not murder.” (Exodus 20:13). How much clearer could the Lord have been when He gave this commandment?  Both of these practices (abortion and M.A.I.D) give humanity the authority over the length of their own lives and the lives of others, and the precise time of their own death and the death of others. God never intended man to exercise such power or authority. God alone is to decide the length of our lives.  How do we justify ourselves before God when we take human lives into our own hands?

“And in Your book, they were all written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.” (Psalm 139:16b).  The Lord has planned each and every day of our lives long before the foundations of the earth were laid. Who are we, as mere humans, to take the authority which belongs to God alone – that is the authority to shorten our own lives, or the lives of others, even when the pain and suffering seems to be unbearable? Believe me, I know what unbearable pain feels like as I lived for years with a deteriorated hip. Even after two surgeries to correct it, I still had unbearable pain (especially after the first surgery, as the surgeon did not put a replacement hip in). But never once did the thought of ending my life ever enter my mind. How do we justify ourselves before God?

Here is an abbreviated paragraph from the original Hippocratic Oath which Physicians are required to sign before beginning their Medical Practice (written in 1964 by Louis Lasagna, Academic Dean):

“I will use those dietary regimens which will benefit my patients according to my greatest ability and judgment, and I will do no harm or injustice to them. Into whatsoever houses I enter, I will enter to help the sick.  

I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant:

Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. Above all, I must not play at God.

I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure.

If I do not violate this oath, may I enjoy life and art, respected while I live and remembered with affection thereafter. May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling and may I long experience the joy of healing those who seek my help."

Both abortion and MAID are wrong as they go against Biblical authority which resolutely speaks against such practices from the Old Testament to the new.

I remember, while living in Barrie and I made several trips to the hospital, one doctor in the ER, without any permission from me, my best friend, or my family, wrote DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) on my file. Upon entering the hospital he had also cut my muscle relaxers to the point that I could not control my spasms or even speak clearly. When my family or friends came to visit, the doctor said, “Do you want Cindy to live like this?” Without meds enabling me to speak clearly, the doctor was trying to persuade them to consider euthanasia. My best friend wrote a letter to every department in the hospital stating that it was not my wish, or my family and friends wishes for a DNR to remain on my file and certainly euthanasia was NOT a consideration. I will wait for the Lord to take me home to be with Him on the day He has appointed. “Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. “And in Your Book, they were all written for me the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.” (Psa. 139:17).

May we as Christians stand for what is right in the sight of God. God is the author of LIFE not DEATH.

As a society, we are moving into a time when MAID is not only for those who have unbearable physical pain, but it is also being sought by those who have mental illness, including depression, and now, even the young who may be facing challenging mental conditions are in the sites of MAID supporters in the government. No vitally needed help offered, just death. No protection of life, just death. May we watch our step and avoid putting one toe any further down the “SLIPPERY SLOPE.”