Washington state recently followed Oregon’s lead in legalizing physician-assisted suicide. The Netherlands and Belgium have passed even broader laws allowing assisted suicide and limited euthanasia. These trends reflect an evolution in medical technology and culture surrounding death though they generate controversy about the meaning and significance of active control over the timing of one’s death. In this presentation, I explore the ethical, cultural, and religious implications of this debate, attempting to formulate a distinctly Mormon approach to the problem.

SAMUEL BROWN