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Abortion Advance directives Bioethics Death and dying

Two brain-death cases

There have been two medical cases recently which involved the diagnosed brain-death of a patient.

The first case is that of Jahi McMath, the 13-year old California girl who was declared brain dead by the doctors and then was handed over to her family for care. As this article in the National Catholic Register details, the case has intensified an ongoing vigorous debate especially among Catholic moral theologians about the validity of brain death as a criterion for determining with moral certainty whether a person is dead, especially in light of Pope John Paul II’s statements supporting the criterion. The article features the positions of UFL member Dr. Paul Byrne and Wesley Smith, of the Discovery Institute, who take different sides on the adequacy of brain death. It also includes input by Bobby Schindler, Terri Schiavo’s brother, UFL member Fr. Michael Orsi, of Ave Maria University, Dr. Daniel Sulmasy of the University of Chicago and Bishop Robert Finn of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, MO.

The second case involving the diagnosed brain death of a patient has a direct bearing on our society’s understanding of the status of the unborn. In this case, a pregnant Fort Worth woman, Marlise Muñoz, was declared brain dead. Her family wanted her taken off life support in accordance with her own instruction. The hospital refused because of a Texas law that required them to wait until the baby is viable so it might survive.  UFL member E. Christian Brugger discusses the details of this case in this National Catholic Register article. Brugger points out that in a society where the unborn baby was considered fully human and fully alive, this would not be a controversial case–the woman would be kept on support until the baby could be delivered. In our society, where the status of the unborn is not fully accepted, the case appears to be about the autonomy of the woman to make medical decisions in light of an unjust law, as can be seen in this NYT article: the woman could have chosen an abortion at the same point, so why not state in advance she doesn’t want to be kept on supprt, even if it means the death of the baby?

RGotcher

Robert Gotcher is a dogmatic and moral theologian and long-time member of UFL who received his Ph.D. from Marquette University. He and his wife, Kathy, are raising their seven children in Franklin, Wisconsin.