Till' Death Do Us Part

Is death coming for you next? What do the three Abrahamic religions have to say about end-of-life care and different death situations? Each religion has its own unique perspective and ideology surrounding death and what happens when we die. It gets further complicated when we put their theologies into practice and use them to create an ethical framework. I researched the different medical ethical frameworks of the three Abrahamic religions and what rules and guidelines are in place regarding things like risky treatments with low chances of success and end of life care like euthanasia and suicide. I found that all three religions had a consensus that suicide and euthanasia are always forbidden but for most other things it depends on the circumstances. In Islam and Judaism, abortion is allowed only when medically necessary. In fact, if and abortion is necessary to protect the life of the mother than women are religiously obligated to have one. This is not the case in Christianity, but Christian medical ethics follow a similar structure to those of Islam and Judaism with all three placing the sacredness of the body at the forefront of medical ethics. I chose to do my project in the form of a children's book because I think explaining concepts like death to children can be difficult, but it also forces one to think critically about what they are saying and to look at the world from the mind of a child. It de-centers us from our own reality, allowing us to see things from a new perspective. While this story doesn't delve super deep into the different religious ideologies about making difficult medical decisions it does introduce it. It emphasizes the main point I learned in my research, that although the religious traditions may be different, the ethical frameworks are actually very similar and are all based around a love and devotion to God. They may look different and be applied in different ways for different circumstances but at the end of the day they are one in the same.