Czy eutanazja to „dobra śmierć”? Orędzie listu Samaritanus bonus w świetle doświadczeń doktor Elizabeth Kübler-Ross

Abstract

An issue that constantly raises questions and doubts is death and the process of the person’s dying preceding it. Everyone wants to die “well”, that is, happily, calmly and with dignity. This human desire was expressed by the ancient Greek term “euthanasia”. In today’s times of dehumanization and technicization of good and dignified medicine, death is understood differently. Above the principle of the sanctity of life, what counts is its quality and the freedom to decide about it. Faced with these challenges, the Church reminds in the published letter Samaritanus bonus that contemporary moral problems related to the end of human life must be looked at in the spirit of the Gospel, in terms of personalism and traditional Hippocratic ethics, emphasizing and protecting the value of every human person. An example of a Samaritan ser¬vice to the dying is Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. Her experience shows that today it is necessary to return to the original understanding of the concept of “euthanasia” that can be achieved through palliative care, for “mercy killing”, in which showing mercy involves deliberately killing patients, does not solve the problem of “good” dying.

Keywords

• euthanasia
• Samaritanus bonus
• Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
• palliative care
• personal dignity