Euthanasia has become an important issue in the protection of human dignity. It has been in the news a good deal lately because of the crusade of the so-called "suicide doctor," Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who has "assisted" at some 17 or 18 suicides over the past few years, all of people who were facing some debilitating and painful degenerative disease. As medical science becomes more adept at prolonging life, but not necessarily at making that life valuable, euthanasia becomes an option to be considered by those who suffer, those who love them, and those who are charged with their care. In his book Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide, Michael Manning, himself a medical doctor as well as a Catholic pastor, analyzes the issues involved, beginning with a historical examination of how the issue has developed over the centuries and then turning to questions of medical necessity, morality, and law. Manning explores the Roman Catholic point of view while also considering other arguments that have been raised, and he concludes that society must maintain its prohibition on legalized euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in the United States.
Euthanasia comes from two Greek words meaning "good death" or "happy death," and the term refers to any action that brings a painless death to a person suffering from an injury, disease, or the ravages of age. There is a distinction between active euthanasia and passive euthanasia. Passive euthanasia refers to the withdrawal of "heroic" measures that keep a moribund person alive. Active euthanasia means taking a positive action that leads directly to the death of another person, and active euthanasia is considered murder in most legal and religious systems. Voluntary active euthanasia occurs when the "terminally ill patient . . . makes a fully voluntary and persistent request for aid in dying" (2), while involuntary active euthanasia is an intervention made for someone incapable of making ...