Incorvaia Aubrey DeVeny
School of Public Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology, 685 Cherry St, NW, Atlanta, GA 30332-0345, USA.
Palliat Care Soc Pract. 2022 May 31;16:26323524221101074. doi: 10.1177/26323524221101074. eCollection 2022.
Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking (VSED) is a legal means of hastening death through refusal of food and fluids - a topic rarely addressed in Christian Protestantism. Among this group, U.S. Mainline Protestants comprise nearly 15% of the population and are more likely to include social moderates and liberals who emphasize quality of life (over mere life) and may therefore be open to the practice.
Leveraging the well-established and validated Theory of Planned Behavior - that posits a person's intentions to carry out an action are motivated by one's attitude, perception of subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control - this research elucidates clergy and congregants' normative beliefs and anticipated tactical support for VSED, including their reactions to Christian-based justifications for this end-of-life option. Such reasoning includes that VSED is a "fast into eternal life" and is based on the example of Jesus Christ, who, in the face of ongoing suffering, determined the end of his own life when he stated, "It is finished," and gave up his spirit - an insight originally argued by John Donne in Biathanatos (1647/1982).
This case study of one southern Anabaptist congregation employs a focus group and one-on-one interviews, capturing reactions to a vignette in which a hypothetical fellow parishioner intends to VSED in the face of ongoing suffering from a terminal illness.
In response to the presented vignette, study participants reported their affirmation of VSED. Responses to faith-based justifications for the practice varied widely.
Individuals aiming to VSED in the face of terminal illness may have their intention affirmed by a church community, but will likely require additional caregiving support to achieve a hastened death. A nascent framework for future comparative studies of faith communities' assessments of VSED is also proposed.
自愿停止进食和饮水（VSED）是一种通过拒绝食物和液体来加速死亡的合法手段——这是基督教新教中很少涉及的一个话题。在这一群体中，美国主流新教徒占人口近15%，他们更可能包括强调生活质量（而非仅仅是生命）的社会温和派和自由派，因此可能对这种做法持开放态度。
利用成熟且经过验证的计划行为理论——该理论认为一个人实施某一行为的意图受其态度、主观规范认知和感知行为控制的驱动——本研究阐明了神职人员和教友对VSED的规范信念以及预期的策略支持，包括他们对基于基督教的这种临终选择理由的反应。这种推理包括VSED是“通往永生的禁食”，其依据是耶稣基督的例子，耶稣基督在面对持续的痛苦时，当他说“成了”并放弃自己的灵魂时，决定结束自己的生命——这一观点最初由约翰·多恩在《论自戕》（1647/1982）中提出。
这项对一个南方再洗礼派教会的案例研究采用了焦点小组和一对一访谈，捕捉对一个虚构故事的反应，在这个故事中，一位假设的教友因身患绝症且饱受痛苦而打算选择VSED。
针对所呈现的虚构故事，研究参与者表示他们认可VSED。对基于信仰的这种做法理由的反应差异很大。
面对绝症打算选择VSED的个人可能会得到教会团体对其意图的认可，但可能需要额外的护理支持才能加速死亡。还提出了一个用于未来对信仰团体对VSED评估进行比较研究的初步框架。
