Friends and Murderers

Newsletter Article for October 1998

© 1998 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

Imagine what it would be like if we lived in a society where the government allowed doctors to kill their patients in certain circumstances. In this society life would not be valued for its own sake, nor would it be valued as a precious gift of God (which it is). Instead, the value of life would be measured in far less scrupulous ways. For example, the value of life would be measured by the ability of the person to appreciate the good things in life. In this way someone who is chronically ill, or suffering, or in a coma would be considered as having a less valuable life than someone who is healthy. The value of life could also be measured in purely economic terms. For example, the life of the owner of a factory which provides jobs for 100 people is viewed as more valuable than a thief who steals from people. In this society everyone's life is cheapened simply by the fact that in some way a price tag has been placed on their life.

Obviously I am not necessarily talking about a potential future in which Michigan voters approve the proposal this November which would allow doctors to kill their patients under certain conditions. It is obvious that I am talking about history. Doctors in Germany in the late 1930's and early 1940's had the kind of authority which we are considering giving to doctors in Michigan in the late 1990's. They began by killing only those people whose lives were "not worth living" in their view; the mentally ill and those with incurable diseases. They soon expanded this to the chronically ill, then to those who were not able to hold a useful job, and finally to those of Jewish descent because they wrongly believed that the Jews were not a productive part of German society. So obviously I am not talking about the future, I'm talking about the past, or am I?

I admit there are vast differences between Michigan today, and Nazi Germany 60 years ago. But we should not stop from learning from history simply because of the differences. A rattlesnake is much different from a tiger, but that doesn't mean that its bite is any less deadly. Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it. That means that we should be wary not to fall into the same traps that others have fallen into.

In the 1930's Germany was struggling to dig themselves out of the depression (as was everyone else) but they had further to go than most because they suffered severe economic punishments for their role in the first World War. Times were hard, and it was easy to be resentful of people such as the severely mentally ill, the disabled, and those who were dying. Viewed in the cold, barbaric terms of economics, those people were a drain on the economy. It seemed a waste of resources to spend money to care for people who could never contribute, or give back to society. It was not enough that caring for such people was an expression of basic human compassion and dignity, nor was it enough to care for such people out of Christian love and concern. And that is why when these people starting dying mysteriously no one objected or complained.

The German government was sly enough to know that they could not announce a public policy of killing people whose lives were deemed "worthless", they knew that the people would clearly object to that. Instead they instituted a secret policy while still being able to publicly deny involvement in murder. Now, I must say that I am not suggesting a government conspiracy in our day to murder sick or depressed old women, that is not the point of comparison. The point of similarity is the society's attitude which accepts that someone's life is worthless and doesn't scream in outrage when poor helpless people are convinced that their life is without hope and then murdered. The fact that the Oakland County prosecutor doesn't pursue all cases where the coroner rules death by homicide doesn't necessarily indicate a conspiracy, but it does raise some very disturbing questions.

As the Germans expanded their program of killing "worthless" people they still did not admit to what they were doing, but they did take steps to minimize the backlash or public outcry against the program. They came out with a propaganda film in 1941 called "I Accuse". This film appealed to emotion rather than reason as it made the case in favor of doctor assisted death. It depicted a doctor who gives his wife an overdose to end her suffering from a debilitating disease. With this kind of image of doctor assisted suicide in the people's minds, the government was free to expand its program of killing which ultimately included the extermination of millions of Jewish people (among others).

Now I am not saying that we are on the brink of a holocaust, at least not yet. But perhaps the Nazi holocaust against the Jews wouldn't have happened if people had spoken up for those who couldn't speak for themselves. If the German people had protested that it was wrong to kill innocent people then they wouldn't have given their lives to keep the murderous Nazis in power. This may be where we stand today.

If we allow doctors to kill their patients in a few instances then what is to keep them from killing others? When we get comfortable with a certain minimum level of killing then we will be able to justify more and more instances. Don't believe me? It is already happening. For years we have allowed doctors to murder unborn babies and we justify the killing by refusing to admit that the baby is a person, despite the fact that each baby is genetically unique. I am sure that there are abortion doctors who have killed far more people than Jack Kevorkian, and we are numbed to the horror of this. Perhaps we don't believe that there is anything that we can do. However, when a vote comes up like Proposal B on November 3 we can make our voice heard, and we can stand up for what is right.

I have heard the arguments in favor of doctor assisted death, and I am not unsympathetic, but there are many more compelling arguments against this practice, especially for the Christian. It is God who gives life, and it is God who takes life away. Genesis 2:7 tells us that "the Lord God ... breathed into [Adam's] nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." Those who say that they have the right to choose the time and manner of their death are just as guilty of idolatry as those who say there is no God because neither recognize God's control over their lives.

However we should not think for a moment that God wants to make us suffer. Instead as Christians, we should recognize all that God has done to save us from suffering. Galatians 2:20 tells us, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I life in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. "

Philippians 1:23-25 "I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith."