atement reads, " A nurse must not act deliberately to end a person's life." These are two of the very basic arguments against euthanasia. However, the subject is much more complex than these two defining pieces of literature suggest - there are many reasons why it is morally wrong and unethical to take a patients life away, even though they may have requested it.
             The religious argument is one of the strongest and most powerful opponents to assisted suicide. It is based on two main points, the first defining the sanctity of life. "All life, but particularly human life, is recognized as a direct gift from God, one that never becomes personal property. It is ours not to give away, to damage, or to destroy at will, but to preserve intact until the moment when it is taken back" (McKhann, 1999, p.
             63). The second point is entrenched in the Christian belief that suffering can be beneficial in its own right. Suffering should be looked at as a positive thing when it is unable to be avoided because it means the entry to something good. "An extension of this thinking is that suffering is a result of guilt that leads to repentance. The greater the suffering, the greater the guilt, hence the greater the need for repentance" (McKhann,
             Besides the religious case against physician-assisted suicide, another argument would be that it violates medical ethics. The American Nurses Association (ANA) position statement reads, "A nurse must not act deliberately to end a person's life" (Sullivan, 1999, p. 31). The Hippocratic oath also states; "I will give no deadly medicine
             to anyone if asked, nor suggest any such counsel" (Woodman, 1998, p. 162). Taken from two of the most pres
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