Do we have the right to die as we choose?

ofcourse you have the right to die as you choose.

but that doesnt mean that someone has the duty to help you with that.

What is a mental illness ?

If there is a good reason that you suffer mentally , is it then still a mental illness ? For instance all you children relatives friends are gone. you are 95 nowhere to go bad physical health and alone.

Diagnosing someone with an mental illness is only usefull if there is a treatment, otherwise i do not see the need.

In short: Martyrs were "Slain for God" and did not choose to die ... those who oppose God's unfathomable plans took their lives --- while those euthanizing themselves are closer to being selfish and not savoring God's gift of life.

Euthanasia

2276 Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible.

2277 Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.

Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator. The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.

2278 Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of "over-zealous" treatment. Here one does not will to cause death; one's inability to impede it is merely accepted. The decisions should be made by the patient if he is competent and able or, if not, by those legally entitled to act for the patient, whose reasonable will and legitimate interests must always be respected.

2279 Even if death is thought imminent, the ordinary care owed to a sick person cannot be legitimately interrupted. The use of painkillers to alleviate the sufferings of the dying, even at the risk of shortening their days, can be morally in conformity with human dignity if death is not willed as either an end or a means, but only foreseen and tolerated as inevitable Palliative care is a special form of disinterested charity. As such it should be encouraged.

Marty's

1138 "Recapitulated in Christ," these are the ones who take part in the service of the praise of God and the fulfillment of his plan: the heavenly powers, all creation (the four living beings), the servants of the Old and New Covenants (the twenty-four elders), the new People of God (the one hundred and forty-four thousand), especially the martyrs "slain for the word of God," and the all-holy Mother of God (the Woman), the Bride of the Lamb, and finally "a great multitude which no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes, and peoples and tongues."

the ? is if you know when and or how you are going to die, not by suicide or by help but no chance of the situation changing. Should you be allowed to make the decision for the last few minutes of your life?

My example is I would like to die in the Pacific Ocean, I was born in Oeanside,CA and that is the last breath I want to take.

there will be no sorrows regrets, just my last wish, knowing that I have had the best life to celebrate and none to mourn, just a last wish

I think you certainly have the right to choose whether you live or die. Just as you have the right to decide whether you will go to heaven or hell. It don't think it is a mental problem I think it is a spiritual problem. Obviously there is no faith in God if you are wanting to take your life. No matter what we suffer in this life we need to believe that God will never put more on us than we can handle and when it is time for us to go he will take us. But he gave us all a will so it is up to us to decide whether we will trust him or take matters into our own hands. I choose trust!

The difference lies in the situation of the individual. The terminally ill who are in so much physical pain and whose euthenasia would only shorten their life by a few days or weeks (maybe months?) should not be considered mentally ill for wanting to die. Those who are not in the grips of endstage terminal illness and who have been diagnosed as clinically depressed should not be given assistance in commiting suicide.

Soldiers are not 100% guaranteed to die in combat, so the uncertainty of it keeps that from being 'suicide'. One who sacrifices his/her own life for the immediate saftey of those around should not be considered mentally ill. In some cases this line blurs when looking at suicide bombers. They aren't mentally ill per se, even though operating under a delusion of eternal life and reward for doing so. When you look at what is guaranteed them then their act looks reasonable. And some wonder why skeptics harp on 'faith' so often.

It's a kind of gray area, but some cases look pretty black and white to me. I would prefer to err on the side of individual choice.

Personally, I would want people to prevent me from killing myself when I am depressed, and allow me to die when I am a few weeks from it anyway but in agony.

"Conventional medical wisdom holds that the desire to end one's own life is pathological in and of itself."

Not necessarily. It isn't the desire itself but what leads to that desire that is at times seen as pathological.

Tough one, all I can do is speak for myself and state that when I want out, I will take it, and if unable due to coma or vegetative state I only hope that someone has the moral sturdiness and ethical backbone to follow through with my wishes.

Go ahead make your day, but as you near your final days, you will do anything it takes to save your hide

Job 2:4 And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.

well, even choosing how you die is not always suicide. sometimes you know you will die, but you choose to do it in a not such a "sane" way. but even that is relevant, what might seem sane to the person who is dying might be irrational to another. But even if it's not a "legal right" determined by the government, we all have the "right" to choose how we die, if it's in our physical reach.

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. [Psalms 139:14]

Said the psalmist, "I am fearfully and wonderfully made." God has given us faculties and powers of mind and body, which it is the duty of all to preserve in the best condition. If any weaken their powers through the indulgence of appetite, they decrease their power of influence, making themselves imperfect. Only by the expensive offering made upon the cross of Calvary can we understand the value of the human soul. We are placed on vantage ground by the redeeming power of Jesus Christ, to obtain freedom from the bondage of sin which was wrought by the fall of Adam.

We are to make the most of the capabilities and talents lent us by God. All who are weakening and destroying the physical, mental, and moral powers by sinful eating, sinful dressing, and violation of the laws of health in any respect, will have to render an account to God for all the good they might have done had they observed the laws of health, rather than being self-indulgent, careless, and reckless of the house they live in. . . . God says, "Ye are not your own." You are God's property. Your ransom cost the life of the Son of God. . . . All are to consider the greatness of the sacrifice made. The Majesty of heaven, the King of glory, designs that men and women shall give to Him their wholehearted service.

In the words of the apostle Paul there is a depth of meaning: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Rom. 12:1, 2). No one can bring honor to God if he pursues a course of action that will bring blemish upon the body or the soul. Our sacrifice is to be holy and without blame. This is the reasonable service of everyone. We are God's workmanship, God's building. "God wants us to honor Him with all there is of us."