QUIZANA, SHENEDY L.

BAAC-1A

ASSISTED SUICIDE OF MICHELE CAUSSE

1. Are the circumstances presented good enough to allow the death of Michelle Causse?

After watching the video, I think the circumstances presented is not enough to allow
her to die. Even though Michelle explained why she wanted to pass away, among them being
able to stop burdening everyone surrounding her. Her osteoporosis and crushed vertebrae
have caused her to remain bedridden for almost 19 years. She firmly insisted, concerning the
option she chose. No matter how good her reasons are, she has made a blatant mistake
through the Divine Law as her foundation. According to the theology, death by suicide is a
grave matter, same with euthanasia. The Church holds that one's life is the property of God,
and to destroy that life is to wrongly assert dominion over God's creation, or to attack God
remotely. On the other hand, if we apply the Natural Law in Principle of Double Effect, all
of her reasons for dying are legitimate. She's already struggling to survive, and all she wants
to do right now is pass away quietly. “Why would I be afraid to die when life is more
difficult?” she stated during the interview, and I recall what she says, “I was brave enough
to live for years, but death is much easier.”

2. Explain the degree of moral obligation of the characters in the video:

• Michelle- She has a moral obligation for the reasons she gave for wanting to die. She
claimed that by choosing a peaceful death, she would be able to escape the life that
God had given her. She must accept accountability for the results of her decisions and
refrain from remorse. She wants to die peacefully, and she will do so.
• Erika- She was the one who assisted Michele to compose her last will, in which she
expressed her desire to pass away with humility. In my own perspective, Erika is not
morally obligated because she is merely carrying out her work and the video shows
that she requested the patient's consent before injecting the potion. Erika's actions
show that she still cares for the patient and is simply trying to help Michelle.
• Martine- She is a good friend of Michelle's who has always stood by and valued
Michelle. She supported her and made an effort to stop Michelle's decision, but she
was unsuccessful, so I don't think she has any moral obligation. She acknowledged as
much, saying, "Friendship is defined by mutual tolerance for one another's choices. I
am not a good friend if I do not respect that, about Michelle's decision to die.
• Nikie- Since she supported her friend's happiness despite the agony it caused her, I
don't think she owes Michelle anything morally. Nikie is also friends with Michelle.
Even when Michelle spent the final moments of her life with her loved ones before
dying, she broke down in tears. Additionally, it was her who held Michelle's hands in
the final moments before her death.
3. Do you think Euthanasia can be accepted here in our country?

I think euthanasia in the Philippines cannot be accepted, euthanasia is not legal for the
reason of the predominance of the religious communities which hinders the ratification of
the Euthanasia Bill. Also, the majority of the Filipinos value the Christian doctrine as the
foundation of their conviction. The stand of the Church that euthanasia is still immoral and
unethical is the prime reason of the unacceptability of this. According to the most recent
version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2003), “All forms of suicide and euthanasia
remain strictly prohibited… Voluntary co-operation in suicide is contrary to the moral law.
Human beings are made in the image and likeness of God and are therefore of intrinsic worth
or value, beyond all prices. Almost all Christian pro-life arguments spring from the fountain
of personal dignity. Euthanasia would make moral sense only if it were possible to say,
morally, that this dignity had vanished. To commit euthanasia is to act with the specific
intention that somebody should be nobody. This is the fundamental error of all immorality
in human relations. To commit euthanasia is to fail to see the intrinsic worth or dignity of the
person. The judgement that what has worth, intrinsically, somehow does not have worth, is
both logically and morally wrong.