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EUTHANASIA HYPOCRISY AGAINST JUSTICE - OPINIONS
15:38 ~U 15.01.14
An Armenian clergyman expressed on Wednesday his criticism of
euthanasia, considering the practice a condemnable intervention in
a human being's life.
"Euthanasia has to do with human suffering and love. The intervention
is unwelcome, if not unacceptable. I characterize fantasy as hypocrisy
against social justice. We could apply the same to the homeless,"
Bishop Bagrat Yesayan told a news conference on Wednesday.
He described euthanasia as a manifestation of selfishness, noting
that very often, people taking care of a terminally ill patient may
agree to have that person killed on the grounds that they rid him or
her of suffering.
Marat Zakaryan, a psychologist also attending the news conference,
referred to the etymology of the word - sweet death.
"There are passive and active forms of euthanasia. A failure to assist
in [a patient's] recovery is the passive form; when drugs are injected
to cause the patient's death, that's the active form," he said noting
that the physician-assisted suicide, which is prohibited in Armenia,
is accepted in several countries in Europe.
He noted further that not all doctors accept the practice, having
very often slight flashes of hope.
Commenting on the problem, Deacon Zhora Sargsyan stressed the need
of considering the moral responsibility issue when dealing with
euthanasia or bioethics in general.
"Suffering reveals the profundity of human life. The idea behind
overcoming suffering is that it is a chance, not a punishment. There
is life and death, the two boundaries of life, so a human being has
no rights beyond those lines; it's not within his or her competences,"
he said.
Armenian News - Tert.am
15:38 ~U 15.01.14
An Armenian clergyman expressed on Wednesday his criticism of
euthanasia, considering the practice a condemnable intervention in
a human being's life.
"Euthanasia has to do with human suffering and love. The intervention
is unwelcome, if not unacceptable. I characterize fantasy as hypocrisy
against social justice. We could apply the same to the homeless,"
Bishop Bagrat Yesayan told a news conference on Wednesday.
He described euthanasia as a manifestation of selfishness, noting
that very often, people taking care of a terminally ill patient may
agree to have that person killed on the grounds that they rid him or
her of suffering.
Marat Zakaryan, a psychologist also attending the news conference,
referred to the etymology of the word - sweet death.
"There are passive and active forms of euthanasia. A failure to assist
in [a patient's] recovery is the passive form; when drugs are injected
to cause the patient's death, that's the active form," he said noting
that the physician-assisted suicide, which is prohibited in Armenia,
is accepted in several countries in Europe.
He noted further that not all doctors accept the practice, having
very often slight flashes of hope.
Commenting on the problem, Deacon Zhora Sargsyan stressed the need
of considering the moral responsibility issue when dealing with
euthanasia or bioethics in general.
"Suffering reveals the profundity of human life. The idea behind
overcoming suffering is that it is a chance, not a punishment. There
is life and death, the two boundaries of life, so a human being has
no rights beyond those lines; it's not within his or her competences,"
he said.
Armenian News - Tert.am