“These men have lost their faith but are either in denial or despair, or both.”
yeah, but instead of admitting that and either going to lie in the gutter where they belong, or seek some gainful work elsewhere, they still want to “wear the collar”.
They enjoy too much the influence they have over others and the material trappings of their positions.
Just give me an honest crook or atheist, better than a phoney baloney like this guy.
Mrs. Don-O is right, as sympathetic as one might be to the fellow mentioned here, it never stops there and it’ll be you, me and your Aunt Tillie once these creeps get to have their way.
I also venture that anyone has the right to refuse treatment and even to refuse nourishment if they so desire.
You've got to get your beliefs, preferences and directives in writing, AND! AND! AND! you've got to have somebody --- your spouse, your oldest child, your brother or whoever --- who really understands what you want, to be there to advocate for you. As important as a document is, a document won't speak up for you and bang its fist on the Clinical Manager's desk when there's a dang medical ethicist saying your life is meaningless, and a hospital administrator who wants to free up a bed.
My personal recommendation is to go HERE and click on your state and evaluate for yourself what you want when you're too weak to be as communicative or as assertive-as-you-wanna-be.
Get it in writing, and let your nearest and dearest know.