Forever_Jung
Active member
- Joined
- May 23, 2009
- Messages
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- MBTI Type
- ESFJ
Short story: If an atheist is babbling incoherently on their deathbed, is it ethical to coerce a deathbed conversion out of them? Does it even "count"?
Long story:
Long story:
Recently my aunt died, but it was no shock to the family, since she had been dying for quite some time (plus she was pretty old at 73). She was a sharp-tongued, pragmatic, sensible ESTJ. She was very old school and factual (I'm tablesetting, not eulogizing, don't worry). She also had no belief in God and, more specifically, felt that Christianity was "sentimental nonsense", despite the fact that her parents and her 19 siblings (I have impoverished, Catholic-Acadian roots, so 20 kids isn't SO unusual.) were all Christians.
When she first checked into the hospital, towards the end, a priest came by and she said: No, no, no, get outta here you vulture! You're not gonna get me! She then proceeded to tell us she didn't want to have her funeral in a church, she just wanted people to toast her and have a nice meal. Then you can just dump me in the ground, and be done with it, she added, in her gruff tone. Hearing this, we thought that the matter was settled. However, over time, a lack of oxygen made her very disoriented and weak. She started mixing up people's faces, and speaking gibberish. She started calling me by my father's name, and referring to incidents that happened 40 years ago as if they were happening now. Anyway, at the very end, on her literal deathbed, her daughter brought a priest in and according to her, conveniently converted my aunt moments before she died. She claims that her mother was a bit foggy, but the "priest could tell" she was lucid when she agreed to change all of her last wishes and accept Jesus Christ as her Lord and saviour.
So at her funeral she had a full mass, and the priest went on this big spiel about Jesus, and how if you don't think he's the son of God, then you're calling Jesus one of the worst liars ever, blah, blah, blah, and also rewrote my aunt's life to make it seem like she was always a devoted woman. Most people in my family don't care, because they're all about Jesus, but I was furious. I'm not an atheist per se, but it seemed unconscionable to rewrite someone's spiritual history (or lack thereof) and take advantage of them at a weakened state, just to claim them as a believer.
I am a bit skeptical she really converted on her deathbed, and even if she did, how can a deathbed conversion count if she was out of her mind for the two weeks leading up to it? My aunt had the upbringing and every opportunity to become Christian for 73 years, and she chose not to.
When she first checked into the hospital, towards the end, a priest came by and she said: No, no, no, get outta here you vulture! You're not gonna get me! She then proceeded to tell us she didn't want to have her funeral in a church, she just wanted people to toast her and have a nice meal. Then you can just dump me in the ground, and be done with it, she added, in her gruff tone. Hearing this, we thought that the matter was settled. However, over time, a lack of oxygen made her very disoriented and weak. She started mixing up people's faces, and speaking gibberish. She started calling me by my father's name, and referring to incidents that happened 40 years ago as if they were happening now. Anyway, at the very end, on her literal deathbed, her daughter brought a priest in and according to her, conveniently converted my aunt moments before she died. She claims that her mother was a bit foggy, but the "priest could tell" she was lucid when she agreed to change all of her last wishes and accept Jesus Christ as her Lord and saviour.
So at her funeral she had a full mass, and the priest went on this big spiel about Jesus, and how if you don't think he's the son of God, then you're calling Jesus one of the worst liars ever, blah, blah, blah, and also rewrote my aunt's life to make it seem like she was always a devoted woman. Most people in my family don't care, because they're all about Jesus, but I was furious. I'm not an atheist per se, but it seemed unconscionable to rewrite someone's spiritual history (or lack thereof) and take advantage of them at a weakened state, just to claim them as a believer.
I am a bit skeptical she really converted on her deathbed, and even if she did, how can a deathbed conversion count if she was out of her mind for the two weeks leading up to it? My aunt had the upbringing and every opportunity to become Christian for 73 years, and she chose not to.