Are Advanced Medical Directives or Living Wills wrong?
Question:
In my country, there is an arrangement called "Advance Medical Directive (AMD)". "It is a legal document that you sign in advance to inform the doctor treating you (in the event you become terminally ill and unconscious) that you do not want any extraordinary life-sustaining treatment to be used to prolong your life." Is it a sin for Christian to sign up for this? Is this equivalent to "Physician Assisted Suicide"?
Answer:
Life comes from God, and so it must be respected (Acts 17:25).
Advanced Medical Directives tell doctors how much effort you want them to expend in trying to sustain your life. It is not assisted suicide, which tries to end life before it would naturally come to an end. Think of Advanced Medical Directives as more of an acceptance that your life is coming to an end and that spending large amounts of money to keep you alive for a few more days is not necessary.
An Advanced Medical Directive could be wrong in asking that the basics of life, such as food and water, be withheld. However, it is not wrong to decline a medical treatment that might add a few months to your life if you think the added time is not worth the resulting pain and suffering caused by the treatment.
Response:
Thank you, Jeffrey. It is always energizing to communicate with you.
