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Euthanasia and Religion Essay

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Euthanasia and Religion

Some people believe human life is to respect above all other forms of life whilst others believe that all life (both human and non-human species) is to be given equal respect and treated as 'sacred' (special).

Most religions believe humans are special. For instance, they teach that we have a soul (a part of us that lives on after death), and that we have been given an opportunity to have a relationship with God. Some religions, such as Judaism and Christianity, also teach that humans have been created in 'God's image'. This means that humans have certain qualities and characteristics that God has (E.g. They can make things, they have the ability to reason things, they …show more content…

Thus all living things are to be respected. As a result of this many Hindus promote ahimsa (non-violence) towards all living things (both human and non-human species) and as such would condemn war and may choose not to eat meat. A similar idea can be seen in Buddhism where one of the Five Precepts (moral codes), says that life should not be harmed. Once again, this means that Buddhists, like Hindus, would want to condemn war and would probably be vegetarian. Both Hinduism and Buddhism are Indian religions. Another Indian religion, Jainism, has such a respect for life that its followers often place a handkerchief over their nose and mouth so that they do not breath in small flies. They also sweep the ground before they walk on it so that they do not kill small creatures by treading on them. Finally, Islam teaches that Allah alone is the one who gives life. Thus any attack on human life is an attack against God (the second greatest sin in Islam).

Those religions, which teach that life has come from God, also believe that it is only God who should decide when life is to be taken away. Once again the following passage from the Bible illustrates this well:

'The Lord brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up.' (1 Samuel 2:6)

Despite the fact that religions often teach we are special on the

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