Material
Statement Opposing Brain Death Criteria (2000-)
*About the following documents, please make an inquiry to Citizens United Resisting Euthanasia. We are not their members.
*You can read papers on the anti-brain death movement in Japan on International Networl for Life Studies.
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Below is a position statement, signed by over 120 people from 19 nations, including physicans, philosophers, and theologians, opposing brain death criteria for human death. It has been released through the auspices of Earl Appelby, Jr. of Citizens United Resisting Euthanasia (cureltd@ix.netcom.com; he would have the most updated list of those who signed the statement), but those who signed the list are a very diverse group. I hope that the list both stimulates discussion and makes the wider community aware that there are a large number of individuals who believe that there are good reasons for opposing brain death criteria.
Michael Potts, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Philosophy, Methodist College, Fayetteville, NC; personal e-mail: mpotts20@hotmail.com
"Brain Death" - Enemy of Life and Truth
Pope John Paul II's August 29, 2000, address to the International Congress of the Transplantation Society has awakened renewed interest in the ongoing controversies surrounding "brain death" and organ transplantation. Inasmuch as these controversies quite literally involve matters of life and death physical and spiritual, a clear understanding of their nature is vital to the survival of both life and truth, life's guardian. Since the question of organ transplantation cannot be properly judged either logically or ethically in the absence of what the Pope describes as "a scientifically secure means of identifying the biological signs that a person has indeed died" (4), we must first examine the concept of "brain death," which serves as the rationalization for the removal of vital organs from those described as "donors."
"Brain Death"
Noting a shift in emphasis in the determination of death "from the traditional cardio-respiratory signs to the so-called " neurological criterion," the Holy Father states that this change consists in "establishing, according to clearly determined parameters commonly held by the international scientific community, the complete and irreversible cessation of all brain activity (in the cerebrum, cerebellum, and brain stem)." (5) The parameters variously set forth for declaring a person "brain dead," however, are neither "clearly determined" nor are they "commonly held" by the scientific community. Rather the myriad permutations of "brain death" criteria introduced since the publication of the revealingly titled "A Definition of Irreversible Coma" in 1968 -more than 30 sets in the first decade alone have grown increasingly permissive. At the same time, a growing number of members of the scientific community have taken a closer look at "brain death" and are voicing their concerns. To know with moral certainty that "the complete and irreversible cessation of all brain activity (in the cerebrum, cerebellum, and brain stem)" has occurred would require the total absence of all circulation and respiration. Confirmation of this absence would necessitate that the cerebrum, cerebellum, and brain stem have been destroyed and the circulatory and respiratory systems as well. None of the shifting sets of "so-called neurological criterion" for determining death fulfills the Pope's requirement that they be "rigorously applied" to ascertain "the complete and irreversible cessation of all brain activity." (5) In fact, "brain death" is not death, and death ought not to be declared unless the entire brain and the respiratory and circulatory systems have been destroyed.
Organ Transplantation
Reiterating his words in Evangelium Vitae (86), the Holy Father "suggested that one way of nurturing a genuine Culture of Life is the donation of organs, performed in an ethically acceptable manner." (1) A manner that is "ethically acceptable" is one that corresponds to the Natural Moral Law and its four axioms: (1) Good ought to be done, and evil must be avoided. (2) Good may not be withheld. (3) Evil may not be done. (4) Evil may not be done that good might come of it. Thus the harvesting of organs in a manner that would bring about the debilitating mutilation or the death of the "donor" would not be "ethically acceptable." Describing the decision to donate an organ quite aptly as "a decisive gesture," the Pope cautioned, "The human authenticity of such a decisive gesture requires the individuals to be properly informed about the processes involved, in order to be in a position to consent or decline in a free and conscientious manner." (3) To be properly informed, the person considering organ donation should be educated about the nature of organ transplantation. In particular, he should be advised that prior to excision, his heart is healthy and capable of normal circulation and respiration, but after any vital organ necessary and required to live has been moved from his body, he will die. The prospective "donor" should also be informed that a paralyzing agent will be administered to prevent him from moving when the incision is made and advised whether anesthesia will be administered to him prior to the excision of his organs, as has been recommended by anesthesiologists. Lest freedom be confused with license, it must be noted that freedom consists in the liberty to exercise one's free will in accordance with right reason, which seeks good and avoids evil. To murder oneself or another can never be in accord with right reason. The Holy Father makes a critical restriction on the removal of organs in light of "the unique dignity of the human person," stipulating that "vital organs which occur singly in the body can be removed only after death, that is from the body from someone who is certainly dead." (4) He goes on to add that "the requirement is self-evident, since to act otherwise would mean intentionally to cause the death of the donor in disposing of his organs." (4) For vital organs to be suitable for transplantation, however, they must be living organs removed from living human beings. Moreover, as noted above, persons condemned to death as "brain dead" are not "certainly dead" but, to the contrary, are certainly alive. Thus adherence to the restrictions stipulated by the Pope and the prohibitions imposed by God Himself in the Natural Moral Law precludes the transplantation of unpaired vital organs, an act which causes the death of the "donor" and violates the fifth commandment of the divine Decalogue, "Thou shalt not kill" (Deut. 5:17).
Paul A. Byrne, M.D., FAAP, Past President, Catholic Medical Association, Oregon, Ohio
Walt F. Weaver, M.D., FACC, Clinical Associate Professor, School of Medicine, University of Nebraska, Omaha, Nebraska
Prof. Josef Seifert, Ph.D., Rector, International Academy for Philosophy, Furstentum, Liechtenstein
Mercedes Arzu Wilson, L.H.D., President, Family of the Americas Foundation, Dunkirk, Maryland
Bishop Fabian Wendelin Bruskewitz, Diocese of Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska
Bishop Robert F. Vasa, Diocese of Baker, Baker, Oregon
Julie Grimstad, Director, Center for the Rights of the Terminally Ill, Stevens Point, Wisconsin
Earl E. Appleby, Jr., Director, Citizens United Resisting Euthanasia, Berkeley Springs, West Virginia
Neleide Abila, Professor of Law, Universidade Paranaense, Guiara, Brazil
Marcos Antonio Aranda, M.D., Director, ICU Chief, Department of Pulmonology, Hospital Clinicordis, S?o Paulo, Brazil
Christopher R. Bell, President, Good Counsel, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Joan Andrews Bell, Director, PIETA Mission, Hoboken, New Jersey
Yuri Belozorov, Director, Choose Life, Vladivostock, Russia
Fr. Frederick Bentley, OHI, Anglican Priests for Life, Edinboro, Pennsylavania
Robin Bernhoft, M.D., FACS, Chairman, National Parents Commission, Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Giuseppe Bertolini, M.D., Specialist in Anesthesia and Resuscitation, Ospidali Riunti di Roma, Rome, Italy
Cledson Ramos Bezerra, Attorney at Law , Jo?o Pessoa, Brazil
Jerrold G. Black, M.D., Family Practice Physician, Lincoln, Nebraska
Wallace L. Boever, M.S., Clinic Manager, Holy Family Medical Specialties, Lincoln, Nebraska
Massimo Bondi, M.D., L.D., Former General Surgeon, Medical Board, Sydney, Australia; Professor of Surgical Pathology Universit? degli Stud? "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
Michael Brear, MB, BS, DTM&H, LMCC, General Practitioner, Vancouver, Canada
William Brennan, Ph.D., Professor, School of Social Service, St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri
Paul R. Bruch, M.D., Past President, Connecticut Right to Life Corporation, Southbury, Connecticut
L?o Brust, Attorney at Law, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Fr. Christian Marie Charlot, Professor of Bioethics, President, World for Children, Bagnoregio, Italy
Helen Cindrich, Executive Director, People Concerned for the Unborn Child, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Celso Galli Coimbra, Attorney at Law, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Cicero Galli Coimbra, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Federal University of Sao Paulo, S?o Paulo, Brazil
Greg Clovis, Executive Director, Human Life International-UK, London, England, UK
Kurt Clyne, M.S., PharmD., Director, Pharmacy, St. Elizabeth Regional Medical Center, Lincoln, Nebraska
Dr. A.P. Cole, FRCP, RFCPCH, Director, Lejeune Clinic, London, England, UK
Kathy Coll, Director, Pro-Life Coalition, Havertown, Pennsylvania
William F. Colliton, Jr., M.D., FACOG, Clinical Professor Emeritus of Obstetrics and Gynecology, George Washington University,
Washington, D.C.
Carlito V. Cruz, M.D., General Surgeon, St. John Hospital and Medical Center, Detroit, Michigan
Gregg Cunningham, Esq., Executive Director, The Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, Los Angeles, California
Joseph W. Cunningham, Esq., President, The Society of Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Lorna L. Cvetkovitch, M.D., Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Lincoln, Nebraska
Michael Davies, President, International Una Voce Federation, London, England, UK
Dr. Michael Delany, London, England, UK
Robert Desmond, M.D., Emergency Department, Wood County Hospital, Bowling Green, Ohio
Marie Dietz, Director, Center for Pro-Life Studies, North Troy, Vermont
Dr. Bert P. Dorenbos, President, Schreeow Om Leven, Hilversum, Netherlands
John F. Downs, Director, Partners in the Cross, Mt. Jackson, Virginia
Jim Dowson, National Organizer, Precious Life Scotland, Cumbernauld, Scotland
Sr. Lucille Durocher, Founder, St. Joseph's Workers for Life & Family, Vanier, Canada
Cheryl Eckstein, R.N., Founder and President, Compassionate Health Care Network, Surrey, Canada
David Wainwright Evans, M.D., FRCP, Fellow Commoner of Queens' College, Cambridge, England, UK
Martyn Evans, B.A., Ph.D., Swansea, Wales, UK
Joseph C. Evers, M.D., FAAP, Pediatrician, McLean, Virginia
Timothy R. Fangman, M.D., FACC, Cardiovascular Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska
Sydney O. Fernandes, M.D., M.B.B.S., F.C.P.S., ABIM, ABFP, Internal Medicine, Oregon, Ohio
Vera Maria Vargas Ferreira, Attorney, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Timothy H. Fisher, M.D., Family Practice Physician, Lincoln, Nebraska
Jeffrey L. Fortenberry, M.S., M.A., Member, Lincoln City Council, Lincoln, Nebraska
Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, Ph.D., Professor of History and Humanities, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
Nelson Fragelli, Director, Droit de Na?tre, Paris, France
Luigi Gagliardi, M.D., Head Physician, Department of Thoracic Surgery (retired), Ospidale Forlalini di Roma;
Professor Emeritus, Universit? degli Stud? di Roma "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, CFR, Ed.D., Director, Office for Spiritual Development, Archdiocese of New York, Larchmont, New York
Karel F. Gunning, M.D., President, World Federation of Doctors Who Respect Human Life, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Denny Hartford, Director, Vital Signs Ministries, Omaha, Nebraska
Lucky M. Hatta, Founder and President, Pro Life Indonesia, Turanggaa Bandung, Indonesia
The Rt. Rev. Mark Haverland, Ph.D., Bishop Ordinary, Diocese of the South, Anglican Catholic Church, Athens, Georgia
Paul L. Hayes, M.D., Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Lincoln, Nebraska
David J. Hill, M.A., FRCA, Emeritus Consultant Anaesthetist, Cambridge, England, UK
Helen Hull Hitchcock, Director, Women for Faith & Family, St. Louis, Missouri
James Hitchcock, Ph.D., Professor of History, St. Louis University, St.Louis, Missouri
Benno Hofschulte, Director, Aktion SOS LEBEN, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
The Reverend Canon Eric Jarvis, M.A., Canon Emeritus, Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Winfred, Ripon, England, UK
Fr. David Albert Jones, O.P., M.A., Director designate, Linacre Centre for Healthcare Ethics, London, England, UK
Anthony M. Kam, M.D., FACS, Chief of Staff, Sheridan Community Hospital, Sheridan, Michigan
M.A. Klopotek, Dr. Eng. Habil., Professor, Institute of Computer Science, Akademia Polska, Siedice, Poland
Paul Lagan, President, Alliance for Life Ministries, Madison, Wisconsin
Thomas H. Lieser, M.D., MPH, FACOEM, Board Certified, Family Practice and Occupational and Environmental Medicine; Adjunct Faculty, Medical College of Ohio, Toledo, Ohio
Johann Loibner, M.D., General Practitioner, Graz, Austria
Luiz Anderson Lopes, M.D., Pediatric Department, Ecola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal S?o Paulo; Professor of Pediatrics, Universidade de Santo Amoro, S?o Paulo, Brazil
Prof. Roberto de Mattei, Professor of Modern History, University of Cassino, Cassino, Italy
Maria Cristina Mattioli, Federal Labor Judge, Federal Labor Court of the 15th Circuit, Campinas, Brazil
Fr. Daniel Maurer, C.J.D., Canons Regular of Jesus the Lord, Vladivostok, Russia
Philip D. McNeely, M.D., Family Practice Physician, Lincoln, Nebraska
Walter Menz, Attorney at Law, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Judge Joseph Moylan, Omaha, Nebraska
Nerina Negrello, President, Lega Nazionale Contro la Predazione di Organi e la Morte A cuore Battente, Bergamo, Italy
Dr. Claude E. Newbury, M.B.B.Ch., D.T.MTH., D.O.H., M.F.G.P., D.P.H., D.A., D.C.H., M.Prax. Med., President, Pro-Life South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa
Richard G. Nilges, M.D., FACS, Neurosurgeon, Valparaiso, Indiana
Dr. Peggy Norris, MD, ChB, BAO, Chairman, A.L.E.R.T.; Hon. Secretary, Doctors Who Respect Life, London, England, UK
Marquis Luigi Coda Nunziante di San Fernando, President, Famiglia Domani, Rome, Italy
Dr. Charles OfDonnell, MRCP, DA, EDIC, FFAGM, Consultant in Emergency and Intensive Care Medicine, Whipps Cross Hospital, London, England, UK
Ruth D. Oliver, M.D., FRCP(C), Psychiatry, Surrey, Canada
Tony C. Palmer, ScD, FRCVS, Veterinary Neurologist, University of Cambridge, England, UK
Larry Parsons, M.D., Family Practice Physician, Board Certified, Omaha, Nebraska
Captain (Ret.) Charles J. Pelletier, II, President, Mother and Unborn Baby Care of Northern Texas, Fort Worth, Texas
Mary Patricia Pelletier, Vice President, Raphael (God Heals) of Northern Texas, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas
Luca Poli, M.D., Neurologist Boselga de Pin?, Trento, Italy
Michael Potts, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Philosophy, Methodist College, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Walter Ramm. Director, AKTION LEBEN, e.V., Absteinach, Germany
Marlene Reid, President, Human Life Alliance, St. Paul, Minnesota
Charles E. Rice, Ll.M., J.S.D., Professor Of Law, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana
Fr. George M. Rinkowski, Toledo, Ohio
Maria Luisa Robbiati, M.D., General Medicine and Specialist in Anesthesia and Resuscitation, Rome, Italy
Gelson Luis Roberto, Clinical Psychologist, Associa??o Brasileira de Etnopsiquiatria e Psiquiatria Social, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Gilson Luis Roberto, M.D., Clinical Medicine, Medical Clinic, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Jaqui Rose, Catholic Action Life League, Cape Town, Republic of South Africa
Derek Sakowski, Seminarian, Pontifical College Josephinum, Columbus, Ohio
Rich Scanlon, Executive Director, Human Life Alliance, St. Paul, Minnesota
Joseph M. Scheidler, Executive Director, Pro-Life Action League, Chicago, Illinois
Ingolf Schmid-Tannwald, M.D., Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Medical School University of Munich; President, ?rtze f?r das Leben e.V., Munich, Germany
Elida Seguin, Ph.D., Professor of Law, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Mary Senander, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Giueseppi Sermonti, Professor Emeritus of Genetics, Universities of Palermo and Perugia, Editor, Rivista di Biologia, Rome, Italy
Rogerio Passos Severo, MA, Professor of Philosophy of Law and Logic, Faculdades Ritter dos Reis, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Jerome T.Y. Shen, M.D., FAAP, Clinical Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics, St. Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
Saulo Sirena, Attorney at Law, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Fr. Robertas Gedydas Skrinskas, President, Pro Vita, Kauno, Lithuania
Dick Sobsey, Professor of Educational Psychology, University of Alberta, Alberta, Canada
Robert Sutherland, President, Right to Life Association of Thunder Bay and Area, Thunder Bay, Canada
Dr. Pravin Thevatathasan, MRC Psych., MSc., Consultant Psychiatrist, London, England, UK
Fr. Hugh S. Thwaites, S.J., Bexhill, England, UK
Adrian Treloar, MRCP, MRC Psych., Consultant and Senior Lecturer in Old Age Psychiatry, Guys, Kings, and St. Thomas Hospital, London, England, UK
Sue Turner, M.Sci., Troy, Alabama
Dr. Cristina Valea, President, Pro Vita Medica, Timasoara, Romania
Sr. Paula Vandegaer, SSS, LCWS, Founder, Scholl Institute of Bioethics, President, International Life Services, Los Angeles, California
Josephine Venn-Treloar, MRCGP, General Practioner, London, England, UK
Prof. Guido Vignelli, Director, SOS Ragazzi, Rome, Italy
Dr. Paul Vooht, Stevenage Herts, England, UK
Yoshio Watanabe, M.D., FACC, Professor Emeritus of Medicine, Fujita Health University; Consultant Cardiologist, Chiba Tokushu-kai Hospital, Funabashi, Japan
Germaine Wensley, R.N., B.S., Immediate Past President, California Nurses for Ethical Standards, Los Angeles, California
John W.S. Yun, M.D., FRCP(C), Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology,
Richmond Health Science Centre, Richmond, Canada