Religion and Ethics: Sanctity of Life - Essay Example

Religion and Ethics: Sanctity of Life The “Sanctity of life” is a common phrase used in recent decades in the political and moral debates to discuss issues such as abortion, cloning, genetic engineering, embryo research, and euthanasia. Often, the term has been used by religious experts who oppose technologies or practices that defile the value of human life. The “Sanctity of life” is more than a religion culture and a slogan that believes that human life should be protected and reserved at all cost. By definition, sanctity of life is the principle or religion ethic that protects the sentient life. Many religions such as Christianity and Islamic believe that human life is sacred and it should not be violated. The term “Sanctity of life” has gained recognition when issues such as abortion or euthanasia come up. Religious leaders talk of life being sacred or holy and for this reason no one has the right to take expect God. Christianity emphasizes that human life is sacred and made in God’s likeness and image. This essay seeks to provide a comprehensive review about religion and ethics on the basis of “Sanctity of life”. For the past decades, the sanctity of life has increasingly become a contentious topic, and the growing concern of whether human life is sacred has gained more attention. It is crucial to note that, opponents of the subject believe that human life is not sacred. Specifically, some people accept various notion that rejects that human life is sacred such as death penalty, abortion, and euthanasia just to name a few. Various nations believe that human beings should be punished for their wrongs and thus, support death penalty or capital punishment that in ideal fact defile human life. Still, some people support abortion on the basis of protecting the mother’s life or if there are circumstances that may affect the mother and baby. Thus far, it is evident that the subject “Sanctity of life” has become a controversial subject in many circles. However, the main question that this essay poses is whether human life is sacred. In response to this, this essay base its argument on the fact that human life is sacred and it should be protected or preserved at all means1 Sanctity of life is a crucial ethic that emphasizes that, human life is a precious gift from a higher authority (God) and he alone can take it away. This principle has laid a strong ground for people to understand the importance of life and the value posed in preserving and protecting it. It evokes the feeling and understanding of life’s worth. It is a crucial concern that most religion believes in. In other words, it a moral conviction that educates people on how human beings should be treated, preserved, and perceived. The perception of sanctity of life leads to behavioural implication on human beings should be treated. The sanctity of life is the broadest and most inclusive understanding of our moral obligations to human beings. All human beings are encouraged to preserve life at all cost. Human beings understand that they have value that transcends human capacity to measure or count destroying human life. Every effort to violate someone else’s life requires one to examine his/her fidelity to the demanding and exalted moral norm. It is important to consider the question of whether or not the conviction about human life’s sanctity can survive in this era. Indeed, human beings can embrace the ideal of sanctity of life because it is God’s will that human life should be preserved. The principle that human life is inviolable and holy and physicians should refrain from defiling or destroying it, is a common argument that runs through medical ethical debate in the present times. Specifically, the principle entered the U.S. politics in 1970s when the Supreme Court stated that abortion should be legalised2. Since then, the sanctity of life has become a central argument in providing adequate facts and information on the holiness of human life. In the 21st century, the principle of sanctity of life plays a crucial role in the modern debates about intensive care and related problems of euthanasia and terminating treatment. Rigorous care is based on the attempts to maintain and preserve the human body and saving life. Preserving and protecting human life is viewed as the prime duty in the medical field. The ethical contentious issue surrounding technological involvement on human reproduction has been mentioned in various countries such German. The subject of sanctity of life gained attention in the 1960s when the debate of legislating heterologous insemination came into being. This form of reproduction was a hot issue considering this form of reproduction technology requires one to remove the sperm donor. In response to this, many religious experts viewed this form of technology as the violation of human life and its dignity. As a result of the debate, interventions were made in German in 1991 to preserve human life and its dignity. The interventions in the human cloning, creation of animal-human hybrids, and human germ-line were perceived worth of criminal imprisonment and punishment. The infliction of the crime was accompanied with the punishment of 5 years imprisonment or a fine. Additionally, Switzerland established the need of protecting human life in 1992 following a national ballot. In these countries, the important reason of initiating the law was to protect human dignity. In several European countries, the concept of preserving human life plays a crucial role. In 1982, the European Parliament emphasized that human life should be protected as indicated in the Article 2 and 3 of the European Convention for Human Rights3. The Bioethics Convention of the Europe Council Article 1 emphasize on protecting the integrity and dignity of human beings. With regard to the notion “sanctity of life”, the term is used with a religious and secular framework. Many countries have established the need to protect human life from injury, pain, or death. In essence, the term sanctity of life has gained recognition especially in the debate of capital punishment. Those who support human life believe that executions are inherently barbaric and cruel and cannot be imposed in a way that promotes human life and dignity. Many people content that capital punishment promotes the execution of innocent lives and reflects arbitrariness in the form of invidious and random infliction of the death penalty. The debate of capital punishments poses a serious moral question on whether human life is precious. In respond to the subject, many people possibly believe that capital punishment is crucial since it discourages people from committing crime. With this, some people believe that capital punishment may be morally right to prevent crime in the society. The foundation of whether or not capital punishment is right bears not only political and moral debates, but also religious questions. It is undeniable fact that, those who accept capital punishment or death penalty fails to recognize the “sanctity of life”. The sanctity of life is a principle that has created contentious issues in the 21st century. From the ongoing discussion, it is obvious that the term is commonly used to protect and preserve human life. The term emphasizes that human life should be protect at all cost and only God can take it. The notion is derived from religious doctrines that God created human beings in his likeness. Therefore, human life is worth and no one has the right to remove it. The aspect of whether or not human life is precious has attracted more attention. Some opponents believe that even though life is precious, human beings have the right to choose to live or not. For instance, when an individual commits crime, he should bear the consequences associated with his act or deed. At this point, critics of the notion “sanctity of life” believe that capital punishment or death penalty should be imposed. Still, there are some opponents who support abortion arguing that it may be done to save the mother or protect her from future harms or challenges. Despite the raise arguments, religion ethics respect that human life is worth and thus should be preserved and protect by all means. The sanctity of life is a common principle that emphasizes on life’s worth and dignity. Works Cited Ali, Murad Syed. "Ethics and Absolute Values: Connection with Society and Religion." International Journal of Business and Social Science 2.23 (2011)ProQuest. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Singer, Peter. "The Sanctity of Life." Foreign Policy.150 (2005): 40-1. ProQuest. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Sunstein, Cass R., and Adrian Vermeule. "Is Capital Punishment Morally Required? Acts, Omissions, And Life-Life Tradeoffs." Stanford law review 58.3 (2005): 703-50. ProQuest. Web. 16 Oct. 2013. Read More