The Ashley Treatment- Four Years Later

Four years ago, the story broke about a nine year old girl who, three years earlier, had undergone growth attenuation surgery and had had her uterus removed. This was not done for any medical purpose, but rather it was done to intentionally keep the girl from reaching puberty and to keep her from growing to be more than 75 pounds. Ashley has a profound developmental and cognitive disability. Deemed the "Ashley Treatment", this surgery was performed so that her parents could care for her easier. It was later found that Ashely's rights were violated by sterilizing her without a court order.

So, Ashley, you're what, about 13 years old now? And you've been denied puberty. I know it's not this surgery that has denied you the social aspects of adolesence. I know it's your disability that keeps you fom school dances and middle-school-hallway-"who's that cute boy?"-gossip. And I know it's your parents and others referring to you as 'pillow angel' and seeing you as some sort of mental infant that keeps people from understanding that, chronologically, you are not an infant and, theologically, you are not an 'angel'. And I know that because 'ethically confused', to put it politely, doctors decided to remove your uterus, your body will never mature, a deception in that you ARE 13 years old.

I know how difficult it is to provide physical care to a fully grown adult who has no ability to assist in any part in his own care. However caring for such individuals can be and is done all the time. And, with technology progressing, it's getting easier. I fear this surgery was performed on you, not because it makes caring for you easier, though, that was probably your parents sincere intention. Rather, I fear society allowed this surgery because of our ignorance about and prejudice towards people with disabililities as profound as yours.

You are not an infant, you are not any kind of angel (nor demon), and your needs are not any more 'special' than anyone else's. You are not a 13-year-old with the mind of a baby- you are a 13-year-old with a profound disability. You are not to be laid on a pillow to be cooed at or gazed at like we do with a newborn. You have the life experience of a 13-year-old girl, which should be respected, with a wisdom about life that is uniquely yours, whether you can ever express that wisdom or not.

You're called a 'pillow angel', but you are neither an angel nor a demon; you are a human being. You have been created in God's image just like every other human. You are no more of a sinner nor any less of one, no more nor any less in need of a Savior.

Your needs- to eat, to breathe, to love and to be loved- your need for Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins and for hope- are just like anyone else's. You may need more assistance than others in having those needs met, but your needs are the same as my needs. They're just not that special- and we don't have to keep you small and attempt to deny your sexuaility to better meet your needs any more than we do mine.

Ashley, because of your disability I know that you may never understand the indignity that was done to you. But, I know- and it really hurts my heart. I just wanted you to know that I see you- you- as a young woman. You are female. You are one of us, one of the gang. Women with profound cognitive disabilities are created to reflect God's image in their femininity as much as women without them.

And femininity is not all in the body- it's in the soul, in the spirit God gave you. You can still reflect beauty, mercy, and grace. THAT no doctor or hospital ethics committee can take away from you.

Thoughts On a Couple of Books

I've been reading again. Not very fast and not very much, but I am very much enjoying having this gift of reading back.

I've read two very different books this past month and a half, Vintage Jesus by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears andCulture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America by Wesley J. Smith.

Book One

Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions (Relit Theology)

I chose Vintage Jesus because it promised to give a sort of 'theology lesson' in response to today's lack of basic Bible knowledge. I've been acquiring a taste for theology and doctrine again. The prospect of studying those things has been scary for me considering how much spiritual abuse I endured as a child in the name of both.

In addition, God spent about two years knocking out most of the legalism in me disguised as theology and doctrine to get to the 'heart' stuff and to establish a relationship between the two of us and His community. So, I have a worry that studying theology and doctrine will take me back into legalism.

But the book Vintage Jesus seemed 'light' enough according to various reviews I read of it. More importantly, after watching Mark Driscoll's teachings online, he seemed truthful enough. In addition, Mark Driscoll is a Reformed pastor, and I was curious about Reformed theology. However, the book didn't get too much into Reformedtheology as much as it did basic theology.

Still, it felt very good to read basic theology again. I had not really done so, except where it pertained to areas of inner healing, since I was in elementary school. I loved theology as a kid, the real, truthful theology, because it felt like history and the reasons for the history. I loved history and true stories as a kid, as well as, 'the reason for it all'. Still do.

However, this book didn't go beyond much of the basics, and I was left asking a lot of questions. The book, I think, addressed of lot of 'Who', 'what', 'where', and 'when' questions, like Who was/is Jesus?, what did/does He do?, and when/where did/will it all take place?, but I found myself asking a lot of why and how questions. Not a bad thing, I guess. Just leaves me curious for more theology.

I was put off at first by author Mark Driscoll's sophomoric humor and his sureness in making rude, and even crude, comments. He makes a lot of off color remarks (such as referring to 'liberals' as 'limp wristed') and made a lot of 'he's crazy' and 'he needs to take his medication' jokes, doing what a lot of us do, using 'crazy' and 'sinful' interchangeably.

But beyond the offensive jokes, his love of Jesus shone brightly and the glimpses he gave of his own testimony gave a lot of glory to God. So, I stuck out reading the book, and I'd recommend it, but with caution because of the rude and crude humor.

Book Two

The Culture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America

Wesley J. Smith

Wesley J. Smith's book Culture of Death, though, I recommend even though I'm sure any reader with any kind of heart will be offended. As in the the subtitle, the book addresses the assault on medical ethics.

The relatively new field of bioethics is on its way to taking over the medical field and is becoming an ideology in itself. "Where medical ethics deals with the behavior of doctors in their professional lives vis-a-vis their patients, bioethics... focuses on the relationship between medicine, health, and society", pages 4-5. This means that the Hippocratic method of doctors doing what is best for their patients first (in fact many, if not most, doctors do not even take the Hippocratic oath anymore) is being abandoned for the bioethical ideals of what is 'best for society'.

The implications of this leads to things like legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia (for reasons such as easing the burden of family members who have a very sick family member or a family member with a severe cognitive disability). In addition, Futile Care Theory, where medicine is rationed, leaving the most sick and vulnerable medically neglected, is being practiced so that 'limited' resources can go to those with the best possibility for the greatest 'quality of life'.

The book addresses that society is abandoning the 'equality of life' ethic and actually valuing some lives as unworthy of life. Those designated 'unfit' in eugenics theory and 'useless eaters' during the Third Reich are now being termed 'nonpersons' in contemporary bioethics.

Smith sums us this book with this paragraph:

Whatever our moral future- whether based on life's inherent equality or upon subjective judgments of quality- that which we sow through our public policies and ethics protocols, we surely shall reap in the way in which we and those we love are treated in our individual lives. We all age. We fall ill. We grow weak. We become disabled. A day comes when our need to receive from our fellows adds up to far more than our ability to give in return. When we reach that stage of life, will we still be cherished, cared for, valued? Will we still be deemed persons, entitled to equal protection under the law? These are the questions that hang in the balance as we enter the new century.

This is a must read, or even a must 'skim through', not just for those in the field of medicine or healthcare, but for all of us. These are society's responsibilities. We need to know these things to be informed voters. More importantly, though, as Christians (this was not a Christian book) we need to informed pray-ers.

That's it?

So, that's it for my summer reading... But, I think I'd like to read something else. Any suggestions?

Update of Janet Rivera

Update of Janet Rivera

From the Fresno Bee:

Rivera cousin granted temporary conservatorship

The cousin of Janet Rivera, a comatose Sanger woman, was granted temporary conservatorship of Rivera this morning, which means she will be kept on life support for now.

see full article

Related post, A Waste of Life?

Does Life Have Absolute Value Simply Because It Is Human?

Does life have absolute value simply because it is human?

We have to answer that question. We have to. We have to.
We have to realize that bioethicists today, SAY NO. We have to become educated, at the very least aware, of what the consequences have been and will be of them saying no! We have to.

What do we say, Christ followers? How do we answer this question? A simple yes or no will suffice- for now. It's a start.

Most of us are already aware when we listen to God and let Him put His Truth in our hearts that the once taken for granted sanctity of human life is no longer a given, we will grieve for the life that has been lost, for the lives that will be lost, and for what our part has been. And it will hurt.
I know, believe me, I know, it's hard to look at what's happening. It makes us have to do all that 'thinking'. I know it's 'uncomfortable' when we seek God's Truth in this matter because we have to 'feel stuff'. We might offend people, even our friends, and be contraversial. We might even be called to speak out, make a stand.

You don't have to watch all of these videos. They are of a lecture given by Wesley Smith at Trinity Law School on the value of human life and what is happening in the field of ethics today. Watching all four will take two hours total of your time. So, you don't have to watch all of both videos.

But you do have to answer the question- Does life have absolute value simply because it is human? You have to.