JOSEPH W. TKACH
PASTOR GENERAL

January 1988

Dear Friend:

Thank you for your recent question concerning the subject of "mercy killing."

There has been a great deal of controversy about this practice. Euthanasia, as it is called in medical circles, according to the "Van Nostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia," is defined as "easy or painless death brought on to end a lingering, hopeless, painful disease."

Few, it seems, look to the Bible to see what God says. When we do, we find that from the beginning God intended that each human being live out a productive and fulfilling life in preparation for eternal life with Him in His Kingdom. We also find that the giving and taking of life is a prerogative which belongs only to God, the Giver of life (Ps. 36:9; John 6:35).

While God has authorized man's governments to end the lives of those who have committed murder and the like (see Romans 13), there is no support in Scripture for ending the life of an innocent person simply because of sickness, old age, or disease. In fact, God's Word shows that the weak are to be cared for, not murdered. See I Thessalonians 5:14.

On the other hand, the idea that heroic measures must be taken to keep a terminally ill person alive as long as possible is not biblical either. There is no sense prolonging a person's dying. Many righteous people in the Bible knew when they were dying, got their affairs in order, gathered their families to say good-bye, and simply died. It is not wrong to ask God in His mercy to allow a suffering person to peacefully die.

We hope you will let us know whenever we can assist further with your study of the Bible. It is our pleasure to serve you.

PERSONAL CORRESPONDENCE DEPARTMENT