Magyar Egyház, 1993 (72. évfolyam, 1-5. szám)
1993-12-01 / 5. szám
MAGYAR EGYHÁZ 13. oldal NO UNNECESSARY PROLONGING OF HANDICAPPED NEWBORN LIVES In exceptional cases it may be justifiable not to prolong the life of a seriously handicapped newborn child but to end it. This is the conclusion of the writers of the report “Choices of life and death” of the TotW organ for Pastoral Work. In this report they address pastoral and ethical questions about the treatment of seriously handicapped children. Every year some 4000 seriously handicapped babies are born in the Netherlands. For hundreds of them the chances of a dignified existence are so slight that parents and medical teams have to ask themselves whether it is right to keep the child alive. To answer this question doctors and parents need to consider the baby’s expected future development. Careful medical examinations are a first requirement here. Relevant questions are the degree in which the baby will be able to cope for itself in later life, possible permanent dependance on medical care, life expectancy, and many other important matters. If everything is still uncertain, or if the predicted handicap is a minor one, all efforts will be made to save the child’s life. But if the physician, in close consultation with the parents, decides not to prolong the child’s life, he can and must only try to alleviate the suffering of the child, even if the available means may precipitate death, says the report. However, there are also newborn children who can live without artificial means for the present, but for whom life in the future offers no perspectives; children with progressive brain dysfunction or a large number of handicaps and defects. In these cases another possibility suggests itself; to end life deliberately. In the Netherlands there are a few dozen of these cases every year. Besides technical, medical questions, there are in particular ethical questions to be considered. Religious parents may have serious problems with the decision to end the life of their child. All kinds of questions present themselves: are we playing for god? Who decides what is meaningful and what is not? Is it not a child God given and is it not our duty to take care of it, even if this is difficult? On the other hand: what does it mean for the child to lead such a seriously handicapped life? Now that modern technology allows us to choose, one asks oneself whether everything should be done simply because medical technology makes it possible? According to the writers of the report, we can only judge these problems properly by establishing a number of principles on which we can judge each other. Such as: human life is “holy”, it is more than physical existence and we are responsible for it. We do not bear this responsibility alone, but share it with each other: people are created in relation to each other. Thus not only the parents but many other people are co-responsible. The ultimate responsibility for medical interventions should remain with the doctor. He or she is obliged to provide parents and other people involved with proper information, without losing sight of the human aspect of the matter. Pastoral workers can play an important role alongside family and friends in supporting parents who are faced by such a choice. The report will be discussed in the various synods this autumn. —NEWSFROMOUR CONGREGATIONS— — EGYHÁZI HÍREK — NEW YORK, NY Lelkipásztor: Vásárhelyi József 229 East 82nd Street, New York, NY 10028 Telefon: 212-734-8144 Egyházi híreink a Bethlen Évkönyv elmaradása miatt is eddig csak szájról-szájra terjedtek, ezért jó alkalom kínálkozik arra, hogy azok is, akik nem élnek New York-ban vagy környékén, elolvashassák hogyan él magyar Amerika legnagyobb színmagyar gyülekezete. A 82. utcai Független Magyar Református Egyház a New York-i magyar utca szívében van. Ez a kb. 2 km-es utca a Metropolitan Múzeum és az East folyó között átszeli az Ötödik, a Madison, a Park, a Lexington, a Harmadik, Második, Első, York és East End sugárutakat. Jobb és bal oldalán találjuk meg különböző távolságokra a Magyar Házat, mely a könyvtárnak is otthona, a Független Magyar Református Egyház, Görög Katolikus és Szt. István Római Katolikus egyházak templomait. Még a Valdenseknek is ebben az utcában van templomuk. A mi egyházunk temploma a Második és Harmadik sugárút között helyezkedik el, közvetlen a New York-i Magyar Ház szomszédságában. A magyar épületeiről nevezetes utcában jelen korunk legnevesebb magyarjai fordulnak meg alkalomról-alkalomra. Tőkés László ittléte nagy áldás volt egyházunkra és a New York-i magyarságnak, Veres Kovács Attila püspökhelyettessel együtt a magyarságvédő és a magas szintű magyar oktatás szolgálatát vállalva a
