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I grew up in a conservative, Protestant family and I might be able to shed a little bit of light on this. A few points, simply based on the environment I grew
by adriand 8y ago
I grew up in a conservative, Protestant family and I might be able to shed a little bit of light on this. A few points, simply based on the environment I grew up in, which means of course this is just one perspective on just one religious denomination - I won't provide more caveats than that:
- Christians take the afterlife very seriously. One must be judged by God. Regardless of how confident you are in your final destination, the prospect of being called to account for your actions in front of an omnipotent being is not something they take lightly.
- Protestant Christianity teaches that one must be "saved", that is, accept Jesus Christ and have a profound spiritual experience and subsequent spiritual connection with God. Many Christians are honest people who may not have had such an experience and are aware of this fact, which naturally creates fear when the end of life approaches. In other words, they may have doubts about whether or not they are indeed saved. The alternative to being saved of course, is spending an eternity in hell. As you might imagine, this can be nerve-wracking.
- Christians believe that whether or not someone ought to live or die is in God's hands. They take the view that whatever humans ought to do to extend life ought to be done, since death will come when God wills it. Choosing to stop life support is tantamount to choosing to end someone's life, a power they believe only God wields righteously.
- Lastly, regardless of one's personal or religious beliefs, death is scary. I think the appropriate reaction to a Christian (or any other religious person) who is terrified that they, or their loved one, may die, is not observing that this fear may be incompatible with their professed beliefs. The appropriate reaction is compassion.
Note: I'm an atheist, so telling me that all or part of the above is irrational is...uh...preaching to the choir.
- saagarjha 8y ago> Christians believe that whether or not someone ought to live or die is in God's hands. They take the view that whatever humans ought to do to extend life ought to be done, since death will come when God wills it. Choosing to stop life support is tantamount to choosing to end someone's life, a power they believe only God wields righteously. On the flip side, couldn’t life support be considered thwarting God’s will?
- sagebird 8y agoIf God gave man brains and free will, then Christians should be ok with the tools and medicine man creates, because it’s still God’s creation at the root, if even indirectly. (I know this doesn’t square with Luddites/ Amish etc.)
- saagarjha 8y agoGod gives man the ability to make tools that can both prolong their life and end it prematurely. Is there anything special about the latter than makes it “forbidden”?
- scotty79 8y agoChristian pragmatism.
- sagebird 8y agoI don’t think there is some sort of list of forbidden tools. Though Wikipedia says that Protestants think you go to hell if you commit suicide: Psalm 139:8 ("If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.") has often been discussed in the context of the fate of those who commit suicide
- koenigdavidmj 8y agoThis is not universal among Protestants. It is the doctrine of the Roman church (suicide is mortal sin, and you are outside a state of grace if you commit it, and you can’t be reconciled if you’re dead).
- learc83 8y agoAs another poster said this is Catholic doctrine. I'll go further than they did and say that this is uncommon amongst Protestant churches.
- djakjxnanjak 8y agoI think ultimately there’s no good answer to this line of questioning, because an omnipotent god can make whatever he wants happen regardless of what humans do. Claims that someone is thwarting or enabling God’s will are subjective and religious leaders can deploy them however they wish.
- sonnyblarney 8y agoI think you should rephrase those very specific items as belonging to your very specific sect because those ideals don't hold fast and true for most, even Protestants. Also, the decision to 'pull the plug or not' is agonizing for everyone, not just one specific group. And it's definitely not 'irrational' to fear dying.
- OJFord 8y ago> Christians take the afterlife very seriously. That's very variable with denomination.
- lurquer 8y agoGood post. The third bullet point is accurate. But, maybe needlessly complicated... In short, the law is clear: Thou shalt not kill. If someone's life is in your hands, inaction -- such as not consenting to a feeding tube or repirator for your unconscious relative -- is ethically the same as actively killing them. Maybe it is. Maybe it isn't. But the qualms come from relatives not wanting to be responsible for killing grandpa.
- JshWright 8y agoI"m not sure what "law" you're referring to there, but I'm quite sure the Bible does not mention feeding tubes or ventilators. As a Christian, I would have no issue following someone's directives that they don't want such care (and I've made it clear to my family the very limited circumstances in which I would consent to those sorts of treatments).
- LargeWu 8y agoTo your second bullet, I think those beliefs are much more prevalent in so-called Evangelical denominations, and less so in mainline Protestant denominations. As a Lutheran, for example, the notion that any Christian would be relegated to hell is basically unthinkable, and there's very little emphasis placed on it otherwise.
- someguydave 8y agoIndeed, we Lutherans take comfort in Baptism and Christ's saving work.