Sometimes captives actually begin to sympathize with their abductors. Abuse victims also occasionally develop illogical positive bonds with their aggressors. You may recognize the phenomenon by its popular name, Stockholm Syndrome. Sufferers who develop the disorder may diminish or dismiss the dangers they’re facing. That makes Stockholm Syndrome unhealthy, even though it may feel like relief or comfortable.
The idea of physician-assisted suicide bears striking resemblances to Stockholm Syndrome. If I deny the harms death does to me, or if I find them desirable, or if I at least perceive them as preferable to any alternatives, I have asserted my superiority. If I can’t get the credit for keeping myself alive, then I’ll take the blame for making myself dead, just to have control. A fable from the best-selling Harry Potter children’s book series has peddled this elegant lie into the public consciousness. “And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, equals, they departed this life.”
Like lipstick on a pig. Just because you scribble your signature on the sentence doesn’t mean you’ve overcome, outsmarted, escaped, or equaled the executioner. Death’s realities remain despite my sentiments. It gives no deliverance however we spin or frame it. It only takes, and it takes everything from its victims and even takes a great deal from the survivors. Surrendering to slavery differs from achieving victory. Both bring an end to war, but only one stops the violence. Feeding oneself to the beast intensifies its appetite instead of taming it. It’s not only natural to fear death, it’s honest and sensible and commendable. Liking it or making believe so hardly qualifies as liberation.
- Why can’t we regard death as an equal or a friend (Romans 5:14; Hebrews 2:15, 1 Corinthians 15:26, Ecclesiastes 8:8)?
- Where did Job find his dignity when his own wife recommended assisted suicide (Job 1:20-21, 2:9-10; Isaiah 46:3-4)?
- How did Jesus respond when given the opportunity to hasten his death (Matthew 26:32-34)? What motivated him to do so (John 12:23-33)?
- How does elderly Simeon describe death (Luke 2:25-29)? What good news does this give us about who controls death (John 11.25)?
- Why does Paul look forward to death (Philippians 1:21-25)? What value does he find in prolonging his life even at its most difficult (Romans 12.1; 2 Corinthians 12:7-9)?
- What does Jesus’ prophecy about Peter’s death tell us about whether impairments or appearances affect dignity (John 21:17-19)?
- What compassionate interventions did the Lord provide when Elijah sought assisted suicide (1 Kings 19:1-18)? What can this tell us about the real reasons people request assisted suicide?
- Luke 10:30-35 Good Samaritan How did the Good Samaritan treat the half-dead fellow he happened upon (Luke 10:30-35)? What opportunities do we have when those around us are approaching death?
Even Jesus didn’t face death as a friend or approach it as an equal. He humbled Himself, obediently subject to it, and then subdued it. He didn’t have to, and His innocent divinity emptied death. Our decisions only empower death. Self-interest sustains and sharpens death’s sting (1 Corinthians 15:56). We can’t will away our guilt, and we must die. He swallowed it up not by relinquishing but with life, relying on His Father (Luke 23:46) and loving His neighbors (Luke 23:34).
We need to get inoculated against death rather than ingratiated to it. So, no manner of death can grant us dignity. Death itself is undignified, and it indignifies all of us. Assisted suicide divests us and our loved ones of dignities such as self-sacrifice, courage, closure, a clear conscience, moments, and memories. Impairments and appearances, on the other hand, cannot negate anyone’s innate dignity. Dignity depends upon the character and the composition of a person and not on circumstances or needs. Our faith in God’s grace raises us above death’s indignities. Indeed, awaiting His will and serving others’ well-being actually dignifies all our situations, death included!