To Live or To Die

Concerns about Singapore’s aging population, and calls to think about what it means to age well and die well, have appeared both in the mainstream media and online.

WHAT THE FACTS TELL US

In 2025, Nuffield Trust, an independent think tank in the UK that focuses on public health research and policy analysis, released a report on assisted dying. Amongst the findings:

Assisted deaths have increased as a proportion of total deaths over time in most countries where it has been legalised.
Frameworks assessing eligibility vary widely, with some countries restricting assisted dying only to patients with terminal conditions, and others adopting more permissive frameworks that allow access based on “unbearable suffering” (Canada, many European countries) and no medical diagnosis at all (Switzerland).
Over time, criteria for eligibility either remain consistent once implemented, or broaden to allow more people access. There are no cases where eligibility criteria have been tightened or made more restrictive after laws have been passed.
Safeguards to ensure that vulnerable individuals are protected vary, and regulation is inconsistent or inconsistently enforced.

https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/news-item/diverging-paths-how-other-countries-have-designed-and-implemented-assisted-dying

Are even the strictest frameworks sufficient to protect the most vulnerable?

Can we really be sure that strict criteria for allowing assisted dying will not be gradually loosened?

What message are we sending when we say that certain individuals “should be allowed” to die?

FOR ASSISTED DYING

Arguments for the legalisation of assisted suicide or euthanasia have typically centered around respecting an individual’s right to choose even as they enter the last days of their lives (personal autonomy), allowing the individual to maintain dignity as they die, and/or relieve suffering. Advocates and activists have used terms like “Right to Die” and “Dying with Dignity” to suggest that it is a basic human right to be allowed to choose when and how to take one’s own life, and that allowing for assisted dying is the only respectful and compassionate thing to do.

AGAINST ASSISTED DYING

Objections to assisted dying have highlighted the potential risks to vulnerable populations, the availability of alternate means of alleviating suffering, and the inherent contradictions in directing physicians to both heal and end lives. The very decision to allow certain lives to be ended sends the message that certain lives are less worthy than others. Should assisted dying be allowed, vulnerable individuals, such as the mentally ill, sick or elderly, might experience direct or implicit pressure to end their lives in order not to be a burden to others.

The Christian Response

The Christian is uniquely privileged to share a perspective on the value of life that is rooted in God’s word.

In Genesis, we are told that “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27). A human being’s life is uniquely precious because of this (Genesis 9:6).

In Exodus, we are taught that the intentional taking of human life is wrong. The sixth commandment explicitly states, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13), and additional verses (e.g. Exodus 21:12,14) make it clear that actions that lead to someone’s death are equally wrong.

The Bible also makes exceptions clear. Exodus 21:12-14 makes provision for accidental death, and Exodus 22:2-3 relieves a homeowner of bloodguilt if he were to strike the person who broke into his house in the dark and caused the person’s death. Deuteronomy 20 lays out the rules of engagement in warfare.

Through various passages in the Old Testament, we are reminded that God alone gives us life and decides when life ends (1 Samuel 1:17-20; Job 12:10; Psalm 139:16). Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, declared, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price…” (I Corinthians 6:19-20)

Age, infirmity, and adverse circumstances do not change these fundamentals.

Job lost his wealth, his children, his reputation and his health. In the midst of his immense suffering, he cursed the day that he had been born and wished that he had died instead (Job 3:1, 11). Yet he recognised God’s sovereignty over his life, saying “…his (man’s) days are determined, and the number of his months is with you, and you have appointed his limits that he cannot pass,” (Job 14:5).

Rather than encouraging us to seek death as a means of relieving suffering, the Bible teaches us that

There is purpose in our pain. (Genesis 50:20; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6-7)
There is hope even when we see none. (Isaiah 55:8-9; John 16:33), and
There is a God-appointed end to all suffering. (2 Peter 3:9; Revelation 21:4)

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” (Proverbs 14:12)

When faced with debilitating illness, unrelenting pain and a sense of loneliness so profound that nothing seems to help, it is not unreasonable to desire relief. Yet hastening one’s death and insisting that we should be allowed to die on our own terms is not the answer.

MINISTERING TO THOSE WHO WOULD SEEK TO DIE

“Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.” (Proverbs 24:11)

The needs of those who seek to end their suffering through assisted dying are real.

The Apostle John tells us, “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:18). Christians are called not just to teach theological ideals, but to meet the needs of those who are in despair. This might mean visiting and praying with the person who is in the end stage of illness, offering practical and even financial help to those who are struggling with costs, supporting carers with the burden of caregiving, and being that community of love to those who find themselves rejected and alone.

Resources from a Biblical Worldview

Ethos Institute (Christian)

Regardless

Whatwouldyousay.org

Assisted Suicide is Compassionate

Legal Resources