Abstract

Mariéle Wulf:
Euthanasia - influences on the formation of law
(FKTh 2021-3, p. 161–199)

The recent decision of the German constitutional court with regard to suicide gives rise to business, selling self-chosen death. Meanwhile the violent end of the natural process of dying is regarded as a right. Weighting up the legal interests as life and autonomy, the appreciation for autonomy is finally higher than the appreciation for life. Thereby the highest of our legal interests, human dignity, is in danger. In the meanwhile this is obvious in German neighboring countries. The new legislation implies a philosophical statement on the deciding subject. It sets new standards for legislation, individualizes the executive and gives space for moratoriums in jurisdiction, as we can nowadays state in other countries. The theological dimensions of an eschatological responsibility, of reconciliation with life and of letting earthly life go in order to gain the new life are not considered any more. Furthermore, moral theology has to ask how to judge a suicide, which is wanted by a free and responsible subject. Pastoral care can offer alternatives for a “good dead” which contribute to the meaning of life and suffering and thus give a more adequate answer.