Euthanasia - The Supreme Court of Canada's Recent Ruling

My beloved nation of Canada took a progressive step this past week. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that preventing doctors from helping the seriously ill end their lives violated the rights of my fellow citizens. It decided that if someone suffered from an incurable disease that led to "enduring and intolerable suffering," they should have medical personnel available who could effectively and painlessly bring an end to their pain (see http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-31170569).

In a nation which increasingly rejects the Christian worldview this decision was unavoidable. The human rights movement sees it as a great victory. It is empowering for the individual to have full control over one's body. And while I feel great distress for those suffering with horrific and painful diseases, I can't help but see this decision as a great mistake. It is a decision which demonstrates the fact that while many believe we are giving greater dignity to human beings with rulings like these, the opposite is actually true.

The book of Genesis teaches that human beings are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). If we are made in the image of God, we inherently possess great dignity. It is unthinkable to take the life of such a valued creature. Murder is wrong. "'Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image."  (Genesis 9:6).

While it may seem compassionate to end a human being's suffering, it reduces his or her worth to that of a horse or dog that needs to be put down. We are of great worth and must be treated as such.