Life-or-death matter yields varied reactions

Published March 23, 2005 - Glendale News Press - Los Angeles Time

IN THEORY

Life-or-death matter yields varied reactions

Q:

Is it right to keep Terri Schiavo alive with feeding tubes, or should she have a "right to die" based on what her husband says was her wish not to be kept alive artificially? Do you believe Congress was justified in intervening to keep Schiavo alive?

A:

The Terri Schiavo case is much more than an issue of a right to life versus a right to die. With her, we see our perceptions, our values and our sensitivity being violated, abused and destroyed.

It has been a slow process of desensitization over the years, but we have arrived: Life is measured by a heartbeat rather than a spirit. And government, rather than God, is allowed to determine its span.

When we speak of life, we have to include the words "dignity" and "respect" in any discussion of the topic. It is vulgar and irreverent to plaster Schiavo's picture as a poster child for one cause or another. We are violating her dignity while at the same time denigrating the value of life everywhere. This is not an issue for the courts, legislature or the president. God gives us life, and when it's time, we need to bow out gracefully and with dignity.

At this Easter season, with the promise of resurrection, the message of the Christian Church is one of victory beyond the cross -- beyond our agonies and sufferings. It is a triumph of spirit over body.

I trust we all pray for Terri Schiavo, her husband and family. More importantly, let us pray for ourselves that we can see that life is much more than flesh and bone, that there is no life without spirit. Happy Easter.

Fr. Vazken Movsesian

St. Peter Armenian Church

Youth Ministries' Center

Published March 18, 2005 IN THEORY Televangelists' finances need more transparency Q: On March 6, NBC's "Dateline" aired a program that investigated the finances of popular televangelist and self-described faith healer Benny Hinn. The piece reported that Hinn's healings could not be documented and that the ministry -- which reportedly brings in millions of dollars -- lacks financial accountability. Should audited financial statements, salary information, fundraising appeals and board compositions of such ministries be made public -- at least to donors, who give millions? Further, do you believe in the "miracles" shown by Hinn and other televangelists? A: A ministry is accountable to God and to the people who support it. The final assessment is God's, while regular audits should be demanded by shareholders. After all, the faithful people who follow a ministry and subscribe to it have a vested interest in making sure ethical standards are upheld. If they don't, sadly, it's no one else's business. Certainly, we don't hear gasps when people blindly pump a slot machine or cash a paycheck on lottery tickets, despite the overwhelming odds against them. Likewise, if they want to dump their checks into some pie-in-the-sky idea, it's part of the freedom granted to them in this country. "Dateline" and the like have a bottom line: to sell copy. Lavish living and sticky fingers among the clergy have all the sensational elements that sell advertising space. That's why the killing of innocents on a battlefield in Iraq will find its place on page A20, while Benny Hinn's story is deemed front-page material. The standard for running an ethical Christian ministry is laid down by Jesus Christ. There was an accounting to his people. He had a few loaves and fishes, and he provided them with substance (Matthew 14). He spoke of treasures, which moth and rust could not consume (Matthew 6). As for miracles, he would demand that the healed individual be tested by the local board of skeptics, the priests (Matthew 8). Sounds like a pretty decent model for all Christian ministries. As for miracles, I certainly believe in them and find them in the simplest expressions: in the life around me, in the love that touches me. FATHER VAZKEN MOVSESIAN St. Peter Armenian Church Youth Ministries' Center