From Dr. Wolf Wolfensberger (1976)
"When legalization of euthanasia comes, it will come in the name of six favorite deceptions and disguises. They will say (as I can clearly document) that putting a person to death is good medicine and good science. The second disguise will be mercy, love, humanism and honesty. Thirdly, religion: remember that Satan pretends to be God. This is his favorite disguise at all times. So we will be, and have been, told that it is good Christianity to put people to death. The fourth one is the denial of the value of life, the claim that certain lives are not worthy, perhaps invoking cost-benefit issues. Fifthly, of course, and maybe the most obvious one, is the denial of humanness of a person and that, therefore, murder will not be murder. Sixthly, euthanasia will be good law. It is essential that we should recognize those six signs, because they have much persuasive power." ( The Prophetic Voice and Presence of Mentally Retarded People in the World today, 1976, p 30).
In all the discussion revolving around the NY, Virginia and Vermont laws, there seems to be the underlying idea that infanticide/euthanasia is particularly ok if a child is born with a disability. Somehow, #5 above is always in play because if someone is disabled their lives are not worth living. It is crazy that the same people who would support the taking of the lives of children with disabilities, claim to support children and adults with disabilities. I wonder how long that will last if we move down the slope of infanticide. If it is ok to murder newborns, why not ok later in life. We have seen in Europe the permission to euthanize children up to age 4 (autism is often not diagnosed till age 30 months or later). Is that the next step that will be advocated in the name of "women's health?"
We all have heard of Roe vs. Wade, but have you heard of Doe vs. Bolton? This is the law that basically permits late term abortions for just about any reason. Don't believe me? Search the law.
"In a Los Angeles Times analysis, David Savage explained: ""[Supreme Court Justice Harry] Blackmun had said that abortion'must be left to the medical judgment of the pregnant woman's attending physician.' So long as doctors were willing to perform abortions - and clinics soon opened to do so - the court's ruling said they could not be restricted from doing so at least through the first six months of pregnancy." During the final trimester, "It soon became clear that if a patient's 'emotional well-being' was reason enough to justify an abortion, than any abortion could be justified." (https://secure.mccl.org/doe-v-bolton.html more information is available on this website).
Could the "health" of the mother be considered as a reason for infanticide if it is use as a justification for late term abortions? Seems like a logical next step. Mothers will often experience emotional stress at the birth of a child with a disability. Get ready for the horror of the next likely step.
Please wake up Democrats and Republicans too if it applies to you as well! Do not support this evil.
McNair
"When legalization of euthanasia comes, it will come in the name of six favorite deceptions and disguises. They will say (as I can clearly document) that putting a person to death is good medicine and good science. The second disguise will be mercy, love, humanism and honesty. Thirdly, religion: remember that Satan pretends to be God. This is his favorite disguise at all times. So we will be, and have been, told that it is good Christianity to put people to death. The fourth one is the denial of the value of life, the claim that certain lives are not worthy, perhaps invoking cost-benefit issues. Fifthly, of course, and maybe the most obvious one, is the denial of humanness of a person and that, therefore, murder will not be murder. Sixthly, euthanasia will be good law. It is essential that we should recognize those six signs, because they have much persuasive power." ( The Prophetic Voice and Presence of Mentally Retarded People in the World today, 1976, p 30).
In all the discussion revolving around the NY, Virginia and Vermont laws, there seems to be the underlying idea that infanticide/euthanasia is particularly ok if a child is born with a disability. Somehow, #5 above is always in play because if someone is disabled their lives are not worth living. It is crazy that the same people who would support the taking of the lives of children with disabilities, claim to support children and adults with disabilities. I wonder how long that will last if we move down the slope of infanticide. If it is ok to murder newborns, why not ok later in life. We have seen in Europe the permission to euthanize children up to age 4 (autism is often not diagnosed till age 30 months or later). Is that the next step that will be advocated in the name of "women's health?"
We all have heard of Roe vs. Wade, but have you heard of Doe vs. Bolton? This is the law that basically permits late term abortions for just about any reason. Don't believe me? Search the law.
"In a Los Angeles Times analysis, David Savage explained: ""[Supreme Court Justice Harry] Blackmun had said that abortion'must be left to the medical judgment of the pregnant woman's attending physician.' So long as doctors were willing to perform abortions - and clinics soon opened to do so - the court's ruling said they could not be restricted from doing so at least through the first six months of pregnancy." During the final trimester, "It soon became clear that if a patient's 'emotional well-being' was reason enough to justify an abortion, than any abortion could be justified." (https://secure.mccl.org/doe-v-bolton.html more information is available on this website).
Could the "health" of the mother be considered as a reason for infanticide if it is use as a justification for late term abortions? Seems like a logical next step. Mothers will often experience emotional stress at the birth of a child with a disability. Get ready for the horror of the next likely step.
Please wake up Democrats and Republicans too if it applies to you as well! Do not support this evil.
McNair
I did not hear about New York passing the abortion law until after reading a post on Facebook. This post was rather difficult to read because I could relate to it. It was this woman who described the pain her daughter went through after she delivered a still born. My sister Emily was a still born. She was born May 4, 1998. It was something I never really talked about with people until it was the topic in one of my classes last school year. The loss of a child is horrible and my heart breaks for this woman and her family. I asked my mom years ago if she knew Emily would be different. My mom said that she knew that Emily would either be medically fragile or not make it. Yet, she still continued with the pregnancy knowing the outcome. I am not for abortion because each embryo is destined to make their mark in this world. My mom did not lose a baby, she lost my sister. While I only knew Emily for one moment in time, she still left her imprint on our hearts. Whether it is an embryo who came unknowingly or who could present challenges they should not be terminated. Every life is precious no matter what!
ReplyDeleteReading this post made me feel upset and sad. There are so many laws out there that I believe does not benefit anyone and hurts many innocent people. Reading this post made me realize the negative effect that abortion has. It is sad when the opinions of the ones in charge matters more than anyone else. I see abortion as the law passed by the people who are in power and do not know what is better. Kids are innocent and deserve to live no matter of what their ethnicity and disability is. Abortion is killing innocent lives that were not given an opportunity to live and have a life. We are all children and people of God and we are going against his will when we allow abortion. Only God should have the power of life. Psalm 127:3-5 sates “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.” The bible informs us that a child is a gift from God, and we have no right to take their life. We have no right to judge who is worthy or not. We need to love all our children equally and fight to give children an opportunity to come into this world.
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing news about the law passing in New York about having late-term abortions and I was heartbroken and angry. Why would such people want to kill innocent human beings? Don't they stop to realize if it wasn't for their giving birth to you-you would not be here alive? God has given the purpose to live a life. Only God knows when it is okay to leave the earth. But ending it at a late-term is just ridiculous. Children with or without a disability are such a precious miracle God can ever give to us and they mean a lot. Abortion is killing your baby and people do not even think about how their own mothers did not abort them. Aborting your own child is a sin and giving that baby life is so important. Then again there are some women that have the audacity to say that they were happy with the fact that aborting their child was the best decision ever. Really, are you kidding me ?! Psalm 139:13-16 states " For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." The Bible informs us that a child is formed in the mother's womb and that it is meant for it to be a special day to get to see that baby get formed. How exciting is it to see mothers today that are pregnant feeling their baby kicking and moving. We need to give unborn babies an opportunity at life instead of just murdering them and not getting to see them grow.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, to utilize euthanasia to end the life of a child with a disability is completely monstrous and evil. The disability is not the fault of the child and God created that child to among his ultimate plan. To end the life of one of God’s children is the ultimate sin and should be punished by the law of men and suffer God’s wrath. Furthermore, children can live a long joyous life regardless of their disability.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to abortion, I understand that is completely immoral and against god’s code. However, I believe that it may not be a black and white scenario. In some situations, such as sexual assault, the mother being addicted to drugs or even in home that is riddled with a history of molestation, being a baby into those scenarios are excusable. Now to be clear I absolutely do not believe that abortion should be used as a form of birth control. I believe teenagers and adults both need to use extreme caution and sound judgement when it comes to intercourse. Unfortunately, society is riddle with promiscuity and I believe that is where intensive intervention need to be implemented.
I like how you started out the post with pointing out the fact that often times, euthanasia is disguised as something as humane. I think that one time in my life, I agreed with this mentality. I thought that in the case that a person was so severely disabled, that it was the correct thing to let have physician assisted suicide. However, after taking this class, I realized that all like has a purpose and that everyone is a part of God's plan. As humans, it is not our choice to decide whether or not a human being has the right to live. It is so shocking to me to hear that children in Europe are euthanized up until the age of four. I have a niece right now that is three and a half years old and she has brought so much joy into our lives and I could not imagine even considering putting her to death for having autism. I have also had very great experiences with children with autism and although it is difficult at times, death is not the answer. Humans have lost a sense of what is right and wrong and rather go with what is convenient and what makes sense financially. As Christians, it is our jobs to wake others up from the idea that euthanasia is a "good thing".
ReplyDeleteThis post really spoke to be because surprisingly for someone who's been raised Catholic, I have been surrounded by family members that have been and are for and against the euthanasia of children with disabilities. I will be honest that when I was younger and thought about the challenges a family faces raising and living with someone with disabilities it scared me and I in a way sided and understood why expecting parents opt for euthanasia. However, as I grew and matured, and with the long time I've spent working with children, I saw how wrong that was for me to think it is even ok. It is inhumane and every child is born how God intended for that person to be born. It is our responsibility to love and treasure all lives. We have no right to decide which lives have more value over others.
ReplyDeleteThis post is insightful and really does a great job at explaining how a twisted perspective of health and societal well-being could end up being used to justify unimaginable horrors. As the yardstick of acceptable societal norms keeps getting pushed further past the brink of no return and the focus on one's own self becomes the primary motivator in all decisions, it would not be difficult to imagine a world where selective birth and euthanasia are commonplace. It was particularly disturbing to find out that there are countries that have taken the time to address these issues through the law and decided to codify an age requirement for euthanasia. How a life with such innocence and potential could be extinguished in such a way in unimaginable. It seems that any parent would find this reality difficult to imagine, let alone the parent of a four-year-old child. Yet, there exists enough desire in the world for this kind of behavior to be written into law. How hard of a heart one must have to be able to make such a determination and carry out such a judgment. Whatever the rationalization or reasoning, it is my sincere hope that those who would ever think to explore this desperate path, regardless of preconceived notions, realize that all of us are created in God’s image.
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