Notes
CHAPTER 1: Painful Words
. Joni Eareckson Tada, Joni: An Unforgettable Story, 4th ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012), 79–80.
. Derek Humphry, Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying (New York: Random House, 1992).
. Today Show transcripts (August 5, 1991).
. Bonnie Angelo, “Assigning the Blame for a Young Man’s Suicide,” Time (November 18, 1991), 13, http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974297,00.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Terminology of Assisted Dying,” Death with Dignity, www.deathwithdignity.org/terminology (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Paul Marx, And Now . . . Euthanasia, 2nd ed., Issues in Law and Medicine (Terre Haute, IN: National Legal Center for the Medically Dependent and Disabled, 1985).
. Sheri Linden, “‘Me Before You’: Film Review,” Hollywood Reporter (May 24, 2016), www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/me-before-you-film-review-896289 (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Sharon Begley, “Choosing Death,” Newsweek (August 26, 1991), 43.
CHAPTER 2: The Pain Is Real
. God loves perfectly, no matter what level our spiritual maturity; however, many attest that God reserves special affection for individuals who seek Him and fear Him in the manner of the apostle John or King David, men who enjoyed a “best friend” status with God. My use of Peter Kreeft’s quote is to underscore that God is more concerned with who we become than with what we do, thus giving each of us, no matter what our functioning ability, the opportunity to please God, regardless of our vocation.
. By tragic moral choices, I mean choices where the option that seems most morally correct directly contradicts another moral directive. In these scenarios, there is seemingly no correct choice, and one fears that the best option is merely the lesser of two evils.
CHAPTER 3: Why Not Die?
. “Suicide Statistics,” American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, taken from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Data and Statistics Fatal Injury Report for 2015, https://afsp.org/about-suicide/suicide-statistics (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Oregon Death with Dignity Act: Data Summary 2016,” Oregon Public Health Division, Center for Health Statistics (February 10, 2017), https://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Documents/year19.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017); “Washington State Department of Health 2015 Death with Dignity Act Report: Executive Summary,” www.doh.wa.gov/portals/1/Documents/Pubs/422–109-DeathWithDignityAct2015.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Prioritized List of Health Services,” Oregon Health Plan, www.oregon.gov/oha/HSD/OHP/Pages/Prioritized-List.aspx (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Oregon Death with Dignity Act: 2015 Data Summary,” Oregon Public Health Division (February 4, 2016), https://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Documents/year18.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Isaac Asimov, in an endorsement in Derek Humphry’s Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying (New York: Random House, 1992), i.
. Bob Smietana, “Most Americans Say Assisted Suicide Is Morally Acceptable,” LifeWay Research (December 6, 2016), http://lifewayresearch.com/2016/12/06/most-americans-say-assisted-suicide-is-morally-acceptable (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Charles Colson, “Keeping Pets in Their Place,” Christianity Today (April 29, 2008), www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2008/april/35.80.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. C. Everett Koop, “Euthanasia: Murder or Mercy?” Berean League Backgrounder 2 (March 1987): 1.
. “Terminology of Assisted Dying,” Death with Dignity, www.deathwithdignity.org/terminology (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Jason Barber, “Dignity in Dying,” Death with Dignity (October 2015), www.deathwithdignity.org/stories/jason-barber-dignity-dying (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See “The Hemlock Maneuver,” Physician Magazine (March/April 1991), 2.
CHAPTER 4: Your Decision Matters to Others
. See Editors, “Euthanasia: Final Exit, Final Excuse,” First Things (December 1991), 5.
. “Oregon Death with Dignity Act: 2015 Data Summary,” Oregon Public Health Division (February 4, 2016), https://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Documents/year18.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See Melissa Bailey, “So Long, Hippocrates: Medical Students Choose Their Own Oaths,” STAT (September 21, 2016), www.statnews.com/2016/09/21/hippocratic-oath-medical-students-doctors (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See Kathy Ostrowski, “Doctors Issued DNR Order for Disabled Newborn without Telling His Parents,” LifeNews.com (April 4, 2016), www.lifenews.com/2017/02/23/doctors-issued-dnr-order-for-disabled-newborn-without-telling-his-parents (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See Peter Daniel Murray, Denise Esserman, and Mark Randolph Mercurio, “In What Circumstances Will a Neonatologist Decide a Patient Is Not a Resuscitation Candidate?” Journal of Medical Ethics 42 (March 2016): 429–34, http://jme.bmj.com/content/42/7/429.info (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Alex Schadenberg, “Euthanasia: Theory and Reality,” Euthanasia Prevention Coalition (September 29, 2015), http://alexschadenberg.blogspot.com/2015/09/euthanasia-theory-and-reality.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Susan Donaldson James, “Death Drugs Cause Uproar in Oregon,” ABC News (August 6, 2008), http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=5517492&page=1 (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See “Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act—2014,” Oregon Public Health Division (February 2, 2015), http://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Documents/year17.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Life Expectancy for Type 1 Diabetes May Be Improving,” Fox News Health (January 7, 2015), www.foxnews.com/health/2015/01/07/life-expectancy-for-type-1-diabetes-may-be-improving.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See N. Gregory Hamilton, MD, and Catherine Hamilton, MA, “Competing Paradigms of Responding to Assisted-Suicide Requests in Oregon: Case Report,” Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Foundation (May 6, 2004), www.pccef.org/articles/art28.htm (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Eline Gordts, “Marc and Eddy Verbessem, Deaf Belgium Twins, Euthanized after Starting to Turn Blind,” HuffPost (January 15, 2013), www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/14/marc-eddy-verbessem-belgium-euthanasia_n_2472320.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See “Success Stories,” Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults, www.helenkeller.org/hknc/success-stories (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See Philippa Willits, “I Am Disabled and People Tell Me on a Regular Basis That They Would Rather Die Than Be Like Me,” XOJane (January 30, 2015), www.xojane.com/issues/assissted-suicide-leans-towards-helping-non-disabled-people (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See “Portland Neighborhoods Littered with Hate Letters Targeting Disabled,” Fox 12 Oregon (September 6, 2013), www.kptv.com/story/23089900/flyer-targets-people-with-disabilities-mayors-office-says-author (accessed June 15, 2017); Ben Baumberg, Kate Bell, and Declan Gaffney, “Scroungers, Fraudsters and Parasites: How Media Coverage Affects Our View of Benefit Claimants,” New Statesman (November 20, 2012), www.newstatesman.com/economics/2012/11/scroungers-fraudsters-and-parasites-how-media-coverage-affects-our-view-benefit-cl (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Crime Against Persons with Disabilities, 2009–2014—Statistical Tables,” Bureau of Justice Statistics (November 2016), www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/capd0914st_sum.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Lana Shadwick, “Texas Man Who Hospital Wanted to Kill Has Died,” Breitbart (December 23, 2015), www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/12/23/texas-man-who-hospital-wanted-to-kill-has-died (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Kaitlin McCulley, “Mom Fights to Save Life of Son on Breathing Machine,” ABC13 Eyewitness News, Houston (December 4, 2013), http://abc13.com/news/mom-fights-to-save-life-of-son-on-breathing-machine/1110135 (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Family Struggles with the Question of Whether Mom Is Capable of Choosing to Die,” The Oregonian/Oregon Live (February 4, 2015), www.oregonlive.com/health/index.ssf/2015/02/physician-assisted_suicide_a_f.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. At the time of this writing, the UK has not amended Suicide Act 1961 outlawing assisted suicide; however, ongoing attempts threaten the soundness of this law, especially in light of Justice Eleanor King’s blatant disregard for protecting life.
CHAPTER 5: Your Decision Matters to You
. Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning, 3rd ed. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984), 86–87.
. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning, 87, 135, italics mine.
. Idea gleaned from James M. Wall, “In the Face of Death: Rights, Choices, Beliefs,” Christian Century (August 21–28, 1991).
. Quoted in Duane Riner, “Quadriplegic Petitions Court to Let Him Die,” Atlanta Constitution (August 15, 1989), A1, A18.
. For further insight into Dr. Viktor Frankl’s views on God, refer to his book The Unconscious God (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1975).
. Luke 22:42, 44.
. Associated Press, “Judge Rules Quadriplegic Entitled to End Own Life,” Tulsa World (September 7, 1989), www.tulsaworld.com/archives/judge-rules-quadriplegic-entitled-to-end-own-life/article_be2547e6-2339-5662-9f10-c4eff0d6d612.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. John Donne, “Meditation XVII,” in Devotions upon Emergent Occasions (1623).
. Idea gleaned from Erika Schuchardt, Why Is This Happening to Me? Guidance and Hope for Those Who Suffer (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1989).
CHAPTER 6: Your Decision Matters to the Enemy
. Matthew 4:3, 5–6, 9.
. John 8:44.
. C. Samuel Storms, To Love Mercy: Becoming a Person of Compassion, Acceptance, and Forgiveness (Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1991), 18.
. Storms, To Love Mercy, 32.
. Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning, 3rd ed. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984), 100–101.
. 2 Corinthians 4:8–10 LB.
. Matthew 18:8.
. “Deliverance from Hell,” Hemlock Quarterly 45 (October 1991): 5.
. Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4. Without referencing Ezekiel 28:11–19, it is universally held among Christians that the devil is one of the fallen angels mentioned in Jude 6 and 2 Peter 2:4. It’s a logical conclusion that the greatest among demons would be Satan.
. 2 Corinthians 4:4.
. Revelation 20:7–10.
CHAPTER 7: Your Decision Matters to God
. 2 Samuel 1:9–10 LB.
. See 1 Chronicles 10:4.
. The real issue in this story is, indeed, not one of mercy killing, but one of harming the person set apart for the Lord’s service. David was angry that the Amalekite chose to “destroy the LORD’s anointed” (2 Samuel 1:14). We should certainly have as much respect for the life of a chosen child of God as the Israelites did for their king.
. Exodus 20:13.
. See Judges 9:54–57; 2 Samuel 1:9–16; 1 Kings 16:15–19; Matthew 27:5.
. 1 Corinthians 6:19–20.
. Mark 15:23.
. John 19:29.
. David Mathis, “The Wine Jesus Drank,” Desiring God (May 27, 2010), www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-wine-jesus-drank (accessed June 15, 2017).
. John MacArthur, “A Closer Look at the Cross,” Grace to You (March 27, 1988), www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/80-48 (accessed June 15, 2017).
. For example, Romans 12:9, 17, 21; 1 Thessalonians 5:22; 1 Peter 3:9–12. Some evangelicals believe moral principles can be violated when there is a conflict of duties. However, in Scripture, it is never right to disobey a command of God, and it is never sinful to do right. For further study on whether it is ever right to morally disobey God, see Dr. John Frame’s book Medical Ethics: Principles, Persons, and Problems (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1988).
. Norman L. Geisler, Christian Ethics: Contemporary Issues and Options (1989; repr., Grand Rapids: Baker, 2010), 175.
. “Ol’ Man River,” lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II; music by Jerome Kern. The song was first performed live in December 1927.
. Hebrews 2:14–15 LB.
. 1 Corinthians 15:26.
. John 10:10 LB.
. George MacDonald, A Book of Strife in the Form of the Diary of an Old Soul (London: Hughes, 1880), 163.
. See 1 Corinthians 15:53–54; 2 Corinthians 5:2–4.
. Ephesians 3:10 Phillips.
. Matthew 6:34.
CHAPTER 8: Sustaining Life, but Not Prolonging Death
. Job 1:21.
. C. Everett Koop, MD, “Right to Die (II),” in Human Life Review 2, no. 2 (Spring 1976): 45.
. See Deuteronomy 30:19; 2 Kings 18:32.
. See Christian Medical and Dental Associations, “Euthanasia,” CMDA Ethics Statements, https://cmda.org/library/doclib/CMDA-Ethics-Statementsworeferences14.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017); see also “Euthanasia Ethics Statement with References,” https://cmda.org/library/doclib/Euthanasia-with-References.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. C. Everett Koop, “The Surgeon General on Euthanasia,” Presbyterian Journal (September 25, 1985), 8.
. Rita L. Marker, “Advance Directive: Protecting Yourself and Your Family (Part 2),” Patient Rights Council (December 2006), www.patientsrightscouncil.org/site/advance-directive-protecting-yourself-and-your-family-part-two (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Christian Medical and Dental Associations, “Withholding Nutrition,” CMDA Ethics Statements, https://cmda.org/library/doclib/CMDA-Ethics-Statementsworeferences14.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. C. Everett Koop, “The End Is Not the End,” Christianity Today (March 6, 1987), 18, www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1987/march-6/end-is-not-end.html (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Patient in ‘Vegetative State’ Not Just Aware, but Paying Attention,” University of Cambridge Research (October 31, 2013), www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/patient-in-vegetative-state-not-just-aware-but-paying-attention (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Callista Gould, “Two Real Life ‘Awakenings’ Challenge PVS Diagnosis,” National Right to Life News (January 1992), 34.
. Nicole Ireland, “Medically Assisted Death Has Been Legal for Almost a Year, but Another Battle Is Brewing,” CBC News (April 20, 2017), www.cbc.ca/news/health/medically-assisted-dying-court-case-julia-lamb-1.4067629 (accessed September 13, 2017).
. Joseph J. Fins, “Brain Injury and the Civil Right We Don’t Think About,” New York Times (August 24, 2017), www.nytimes.com/2017/08/24/opinion/minimally-conscious-brain-civil-rights.html (accessed September 13, 2017).
. Eric Metaxas, “BreakPoint: Minimally Conscious, not Minimally Human,” BreakPoint (September 1, 2017), http://breakpoint.org/2017/09/breakpoint-minimally-conscious-not-minimally-human (accessed September 13, 2017).
. John Wessells, Conversations with the Voiceless: Finding God’s Love in Life’s Hardest Questions (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), 18.
. Matthew 16:17.
. See Luke 1:44–45.
. Dr. John M. Frame, personal letter.
. 2 Corinthians 5:16 LB.
. 2 Corinthians 4:18.
. Robert N. Wennberg, Terminal Choices: Euthanasia, Suicide, and the Right to Die (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989), 159.
CHAPTER 9: Knowing the Difference Isn’t Easy
. “Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care” (California Civil Code Sections 2410–2443).
. Ecclesiastes 3:2.
. 2 Corinthians 5:8–9.
. Philippians 3:20–21.
. This can be found at National Right to Life, www.nrlc.org/medethics/willtolive/states (accessed June 15, 2017).
. “Statistics Every Hospice Administrator Should Know” Total Triage: Blog (April 7, 2015), http://afterhourstriage.com/blog/hospice-nursing/statistics-every-hospice-administrator-should-know (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Dan Hogan, “Why Hospice Care Is More Important Than Ever Before,” National Association for Home Care and Hospice, www.nahc.org/news/why-hospice-is-more-important-today-than-ever-before (accessed June 15, 2017); see also Sarah Friebert and Conrad Williams, “NHPCO’s Facts and Figures: Pediatric Palliative and Hospice Care in America, 2015 Edition,” National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, www.nhpco.org/sites/default/files/public/quality/Pediatric9_Facts-Figures.pdf (accessed June 15, 2017).
. See Christopher Hogan, “Spending in the Last Year of Life and the Impact of Hospice on Medicare Outlays (Updated August 2015),” www.medpac.gov/docs/default-source/contractor-reports/spending-in-the-last-year-of-life-and-the-impact-of-hospice-on-medicare-outlays-updated-august-2015-.pdf?sfvrsn=0 (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Gilbert Meilaender, “I Want to Burden My Loved Ones,” First Things (March 2010), www.firstthings.com/article/2010/03/i-want-to-burden-my-loved-ones (accessed June 15, 2017).
. Philippians 1:21.
CHAPTER 10: Life Worth Living
. 1 Kings 19:4.
. 1 Kings 19:7.
. John 8:12; Matthew 6:25; John 10:10; 11:25; 14:6; 6:68.
. Matthew 10:29–31.
. Luke 12:32.
. Colossians 3:12.