Rabbi, my friend. I hear a lot of pain in your posts about this, and I think in the grip of that pain, you have two different lines of argument very mixed up. I am hearing you are against state-dictated euthanasia, but I am also hearing that you wish for humane euthansia. Rabbi, I would just ask, is even humane euthanasia of human beings really all right with you?

Ah, there is the place where our too-human compassion meets our theology, eh?

Yet, must we not bless a Creator who gives us our own will with which to wrestle that out ourselves, one heart at a time?

It is very hard to find only pure compassion in one's heart... so, in the humanness of our pain, we argue as we look for it. Rabbi, I hope you find peace in this somewhere, and I hope when you do, you will send me a PM about it.

I pray for all concerned.

And Bobert-- aw, my friend. I didn't know. I did not know. That big ole heart of yours-- it must have been so sorely tried. I'm glad you still leave it open to loving people as deeply as I know you do.

~Susan