This book will help readers make better, more informed choices as they or their loved ones face: the onset of a terminal illness or an incurable, chronic, debilitating condition; a lengthy period of debility and frailty, with ever greater and more demeaning physical or mental weakness and dependency; or a hopeless medical condition marking the final agony of a fatal illness. The author wants readers to face the process of dying and death in the twenty-first century informed by the Jewish tradition. To help them make sound end-of-life choices and deal with their angst and ambivalence, the book presents a wide spectrum of viewpoints from the various strands of contemporary Judaism- traditional (Orthodox) and more liberal (Conservative and Reform).
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Chapter 1 Acknowledgments Chapter 2 Introduction Chapter 3 Looking to Jewish Law and Beyond in Matters of Life-and-Death Chapter 4 Why Me? Why Now? Why This? Looking at Suffering from the Perspective of the Jewish Tradition Chapter 5 Our Immortal Soul and the Ebbing of Consciousness: The Quest to Define Death Chapter 6 The Jewish Tradition and Pulling the Plug: Withholding or Withdrawing Medical Treatment and the Use of Pain Medication Chapter 7 Facing a Life Threatening or a Chronic Illness: The Jewish Tradition and End of Life Decisions Chapter 8 Ten Suggestions for Patients Facing a Terminal Illness or a Chronic, Debilitating Condition Chapter 9 Questions for Patients Facing a Terminal Illness or a Chronic, Debilitating Condition Chapter 10 A Loved One's Perspective on a Patient's Plight Chapter 11 Planning Ahead: Advance Care Directives and Organ Donations Chapter 12 Conclusion: Our Search for a "Good Death" Chapter 13 Selected Bibliography Chapter 14 Index
