Introduction: Beyond Brain Death

Potts, Michael; Byrne, Paul; Nilges, Richard G.

doi:10.1007/0-306-46882-4_1

Cited by 3 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…This divides the human family into rights holders and non-rights holders. The pro-life response to such attempts to deprive human beings of the right to life under the pretext that they are not really persons is that any such attempt to separate a human being from a human person is “arbitrary” (Potts 2000, 123). No matter what criteria is chosen to separate a human being from a human person, there is never a fully rational, justifiable basis for these criteria.…”

Section: Part Ii: Human Beings Declared “Brain Dead” With Living Bodi...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The answer, though inconvenient for many, is yes, without any equivocation or doubt. Human beings declared “brain dead” generally possess a beating heart and a functional circulatory system (Potts, Byrne and Nilges 2000, 8), respiration is occurring in their body at the cellular level (Potts, Byrne and Nilges 2000, 8), their blood pressure often rises and their heart rate increases prior to the extraction of vital organs (Potts, Byrne and Nilges 2000, 10–11), and they can often “digest food, filter wastes, [and] maintain body temperature” (Siegler and Wikler 1982, 1101–1102). Furthermore, many women declared “brain dead” have given birth to healthy children (Watanabe 2000, 177).…”

Section: Part I: Human Beings Declared Brain Dead Possess Living Bodiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Moral Illicitness of Relying Solely on Neurological Criteria for the Determination of Death: A Catholic Response to “Brain Death”

Vacca¹

2023

Linacre Q

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This paper presents the biological, philosophical, and theological arguments against “brain death” or death determined strictly through neurological criteria. It is rooted in a realistic, Thomistic metaphysical and anthropological view of the human person and the objective reality of death. Part I of the paper reviews the medical evidence that the bodies of those declared brain death are alive and makes clear that the bodies of “brain dead” patients are not biologically analogous to severed body parts. Part II presents the philosophical and theological argument that it is impossible to be a live human being and not a person. Since then those declared brain dead are somatically alive, they are live human persons with the right to life and cannot be subject to the extraction of vital, unpaired organs, since this would violate the dead donor rule. Part III reviews why the Magisterium has not unconditionally approved the determination of death through neurological criteria, and why it would be within the competence of the Magisterium to preclude medical professionals from determining death strictly through neurological criteria. The paper argues that there should be a ban on all vital, unpaired organ donation from “brain dead” donors.

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Section: Part Ii: Human Beings Declared “Brain Dead” With Living Bodi...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Part I: Human Beings Declared Brain Dead Possess Living Bodiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Moral Illicitness of Relying Solely on Neurological Criteria for the Determination of Death: A Catholic Response to “Brain Death”

Vacca¹

2023

Linacre Q

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“…In the 1980s and 1990s there was a relatively stable moral theological and medical consensus among Catholic scholars in favour of accepting neurological criteria for death, 7–11 though not without some dissenting voices. 12–16 Nevertheless, through this whole period there was neither any explicit magisterial 17 endorsement of neurological criteria for death, nor was there any explicit magisterial condemnation. It was not until 2000 that Pope John Paul II gave a cautious and conditional endorsement of neurological criteria for death.…”

Section: Catholic Acceptance Of Neurological Criteria For Deathmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…55 The identification of the rational soul as the principle of bodily life can therefore be understood as implying that while the body is alive, the rational soul is present, even if the person cannot exercise the full range of human abilities. 56…”

Section: Two Ways Of Understanding Catholic Dogma In Relation To Deathmentioning

confidence: 99%

Loss of faith in brain death: Catholic controversy over the determination of death by neurological criteria

Jones¹

2012

Clinical Ethics

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The diagnosis of death by neurological criteria (colloquially known as ‘brain death’) is accepted in some form in law and medical practice throughout the world, and has been endorsed in principle by the Catholic Church. However, the rationale for this acceptance has been challenged by the accumulation of evidence of integrated vital activity in bodies diagnosed dead by neurological criteria. This paper sets out 10 different Catholic responses to the current crisis of confidence and assesses them in relation to a Catholic understanding of philosophical anthropology. Having considered each of these responses, none is found to provide good grounds for the moral certainty about death needed for current transplant practice to be ethically acceptable. Unless adequate grounds for the use of neurological criteria can be restored, current transplantation practice will have become what Pope John Paul II called a ‘furtive, but no less serious and real, form of euthanasia’.

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“…The case for considering brain death as equivalent to true death has undergone further trenchant scientific and philosophical critique. 27 The notion of irreversible loss of circulatory and respiratory function as a criterion of determining death has also been seriously challenged. This notion means either that the heart cannot be restarted spontaneously (a weaker definition), or that the heart cannot be started despite standard cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (a stronger definition).…”

Section: Organ Harvesting After Cardiac Deathmentioning

confidence: 99%

Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation

Shea

2010

Linacre Q

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Since 1968, vital organs, necessary for life, have been removed from patients for transplantation into patients in whom corresponding organs have ceased to function. Since then this has been morally justified by the claim that the donor is “brain dead” or has suffered “cardiac death.” Brain death is defined as complete and irreversible loss of all brain function, and cardiac death is declared two to five minutes after cessation of the heartbeat. The moral problem is that the criteria used to declare that brain death or cardiac death has occurred are arbitrary, open to serious world-wide debate, variable in definition and application, and, more seriously, do not necessarily provide moral certainty that real death has occurred and that such organ retrieval does not actually cause the death of the donor. This problem has been debated over the years at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and remains a subject of legitimate debate to this day. The declaration of brain death or cardiac death also does not appear to be consistent with the teaching of Pope Benedict XVI that the definition of death receive the consensus of the entire scientific community and does not give everyone certainty that the primary criterion is respect for the life of the donor and that the organs are removed from a dead body, a cadaver.

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Introduction: Beyond Brain Death

Cited by 3 publications

References 9 publications

The Moral Illicitness of Relying Solely on Neurological Criteria for the Determination of Death: A Catholic Response to “Brain Death”

The Moral Illicitness of Relying Solely on Neurological Criteria for the Determination of Death: A Catholic Response to “Brain Death”

Loss of faith in brain death: Catholic controversy over the determination of death by neurological criteria

Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation

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