Christians Should Oppose Euthanasia Those who support euthanasia have capitalized on people's confusion, ambivalence, and even fear regarding the use of modern technologies that they prolong life. Furthermore, borrowing language from the abortion debate, they insist that the “right to choose” must prevail over all other considerations. Being able to choose the time and manner of one's death, regardless of what is chosen, is presented as the ultimate freedom. The decision to take one's own life or to allow a doctor to kill a suffering patient, however, is very different from the decision to refuse extraordinary or disproportionately burdensome care. As Christians, we believe that life is the most fundamental gift from a loving God. -a gift over which we have administration but not absolute dominion. Our tradition, declaring a moral obligation to care for our lives and health and to seek such care from others, recognizes that we are not morally obligated to use every available medical procedure in every set of circumstances. But that tradition clearly and forcefully states that, as a responsible steward of life, one must never have the direct intention of causing one's own death, or the death of an innocent victim, by an action or omission. Euthanasia and voluntary suicide are offenses against life itself that poison civilization. Nothing and no one can in any way allow the killing of an innocent human being, be it a fetus or an embryo, a newborn or an adult, an elderly person or a suffering person. from an incurable disease or from a person who is dying. Furthermore, we have no right to demand this act of killing for ourselves or those entrusted to our care; nor can any authority lawfully recommend or permit such action. This is a violation of divine law, an offense against the dignity of the human person, a crime against life and an attack on humanity. Legalizing euthanasia would also violate American beliefs about human rights and equality. The Declaration of Independence proclaims our unalienable rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” If our right to life itself diminishes in value, our other rights will have no meaning. Destroying the boundary between healing and killing would mark a radical departure from our country's long-standing legal and medical traditions, posing a threat of unpredictable scope to vulnerable members of our society..