Do patients in a “persistent vegetative state” (PVS) represent a special case?
First of all, no human being created in the image of God should ever be called a “vegetable.” While PVS may be a correct medical term, it fails to describe the person. We would do better to speak of the patient as what they are: “a person in a coma,” or “a patient in a non-responsive state,” or “my Aunt Millie with brain damage.” Some theologians conclude that an unconscious person cannot advance their spiritual good because they are unable to perform any conscious, free acts. This argument assumes that our worth in God’s eyes is based upon what we are able to do or not do rather than God’s power at work within us (Ephesians 3:20). Here is something to ponder: Might our Heavenly Father be ministering to an unconscious person even more deeply than He does to a conscious person who is distracted by the cares of the world? The nature of disease and the prognosis for persistently unconscious patients is not fully understood and no established test exists which enables physicians to determi
