Assisted dying is an attempt to control death. But Christianity says the grave is not the end

Throughout the ages, humans have grappled with the meaning of death. It points towards the fact that we were made for eternity, says Andrew Fellows. In a society obsessed with controlling dying, only Christianity really makes sense of it 

Last week, the Scottish Parliament was defeated in its latest attempt to make assisted dying legal. The Isle of Man and Jersey have already introduced such legislation and in England, the debate remains ongoing. All of this has led to a fresh examination of what constitutes a “good death”.

Death, like tax, is an inevitability that every person must face. The challenge in our secular age is that we haven’t been able to solve the problem of human mortality. Despite remarkable advances in science and medicine, death continues to be our fate. And while modern healthcare may significantly extend our lifespan, it simply cannot conquer death.

While animals are free from the burden of their mortality, we carry a consciousness that, one day, our bodies will be food for the worms. The American philosopher William James famously referred to this awareness of death as “the worm at the core”. All this raises what is perhaps the most profound question for our times: What does it mean to die well?