For years people have been faced with the questions and thoughts as to when God might decide to suddenly take their life. Will it be today, tomorrow or seventy years from now? One never really knows when life will come to an abrupt end. For the last couple of years other countries have started to introduce euthanasia or "physician assisted suicide" (PAS) into our society. Some think it's morally wrong to end one's life before their allotted "time" is up and some find the solution an easy way to end suffering. Introducing euthanasia into society would bring about the question, should one person be able to control when he or she dies? .
We all know of Dr. Jack Kevorkian who was first responsible for PAS and introducing euthanasia to society. In 1999 Kevorkian was sentenced up to 25 years in prison for helping a patient die by lethal injection (Gallup Jr., George H. 1). The debate over whether or not to use PAS continues to thrive long after the banishment of Kevorkian. .
A May 2002 Gallup survey asked U.S. adults, "When a person has a disease that cannot be cured, do you think doctors should be allowed by law to end the patient's life by some painless means if the patient and his family request it?" Overall, 72% of the population said yes, but among those who attend church weekly, results were almost evenly split. Fifty percent of regular churchgoers said doctors should be allowed to end patients" lives, compared to 47% who said they shouldn't (Gallup 1). So do the people who attend church regularly really have a strong opinion about whether or not PAS is morally correct? Some people believe that until a person's allotted "time" is up a person should not be able to end their life. Most along with myself, believe that God has a purpose for leaving some here on earth longer than others. However, when put in a situation that cannot be helped or controlled, minds seem to change. An estimated 32% surveyed support making euthanasia legal in a few cases but oppose it in most circumstances (Gallup 2).