Terry Schiavo

There is so much here, so much going on, so much to consider...

There are parts of me, very different parts, that are reacting in ways that surprise me. On the one hand, the side of me that would fight tooth-and-nail against taking the life of both unborn child and death-row convict also insists that, no matter the cost, no matter the objection, we must preserve this life that has not yet been extinguished. I find myself agreeing with the President (and this is not a common thing for me!) that, "in extraordinary circumstances like this, it is wise to always err on the side of life."

And yet...I do find it a bit...odd...that Congressional Republicans, who themselves (allegedly) fight tooth-and-nail to keep Big Brother out of our personal affairs are now overruling the state of Florida's judicial system which, right or wrong, sided with the spouse, who has the say over the parents regarding this matter. Sky on Now and Ever rightly points out that these supposed champions of Terry's are "subverting the separation of the powers of government. don't be mistaken that there isn't an enormous political war being fought in DC - with many electoral issues at stake that have little to do with whether or not terri schiavo lives or dies."

Add to the mix that Terry--unlike the death-row convict and the unborn child--may not (and, by all current accounts, does not) have a good chance of developing to the point of a "religiously significant" person, and you have a compelling question: are we, in fact, sinning in prolonging a "life" that is merely physiological and nothing more? Would we, in reality, truly entrust her directly into the hands of God by allowing for her to either live or die by "natural" causes?

I don't claim to know the answers to this; life certainly isn't about one's mental capacity, and Terry may, in fact, benefit from further testing. But it's on those who would seek to prove her yet-abiding presence to provide the evidence of such; until then, the husband--to whom she cleaved upon leaving the parents who would seek to trump his spousal rights--has every right (right or wrong) to do as he's done.

I will not judge his thoughts; I will not blame the parents. May God--the only one Who could ever be the Author and Sustainer of Life itself--have mercy on us all.

Later edit, 3/25/05: I wrote this with an (apparently) imperfect picture of how far gone Terry was. "Religiously significant" means independantly operational in any way...she apparently can breathe on her own and has brain activity that reacts to some stimuli.