title: Relational responsibility, and not only stewardship, a Roman Catholic view on voluntary euthanasia for dying and non-dying patients.
abstract: The Roman Catholic theological approach to euthanasia is radically prohibitive. The main theological argument for this prohibition is the so-called "stewardship argument": Christians cannot escape accounting to God for stewardship of the bodies given them on earth. This contribution presents an alternative approach based on European existentialist and philosophical traditions. The suggestion is that exploring the fullness of our relational responsibility is more apt for a pluralist--and even secular--debate on the legitimacy of euthanasia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Centrum voor Biomedische Ethiek en Recht, Kapucijnenvoer 35, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. Paul.Schotsmans@med.kuleuven.ac.be
authors.forename: Paul T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Schotsmans
mesh_terms: D026683:Advisory Committees; D001530:Belgium; D002410:Catholicism; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D033101:Euthanasia, Active, Voluntary / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009042:Motivation; D010166:Palliative Care; D019452:Terminally Ill; D028725:Theology
chemical_list: D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives