Pat Robertson has uttered another
outrageous commentary during a “700 Club” program on the Christian Broadcasting
Network. He advocated divorce if a
spouse became incapacitated by Alzheimer’s disease, citing the disease as a
“kind of death.” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/14/pat-robertson-divorce-alzheimers_n_963305.html)
Pat Robertson is a native Virginian
(born in Lexington and a graduate of Washington and Lee
University) and founder of the
Christian Broadcasting Network in Virginia
Beach. He attended law school at Yale, was ordained as a minister in the Southern Baptist
Church and ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Republican Presidential
nomination in 1988. When he ran for office
he relinquished any church affiliation.
He remains, however, a prominent spokesperson for the “Christian right.”
I have had many patients over the
years that have Alzheimer’s. I have watched patients progress through the stages
of this cruel disease as their personality was removed layer by layer like an
onion peel These patients also have
other problems including vascular and heart disease, diabetes, etc. The Alzheimer’s adds another dimension of
risk because of the difficulties with compliance (remembering their
medications, for instance), mobility issues and confusion. These patients often exhibit fairly radical
personality shifts as well. A sweet,
cooperative elderly gentleman can turn into a combative and argumentative patient
very quickly. I have been amazed over
the years by the supportive, caring and loving spouses that often accompany
these patients to visits. They have more
than likely been “covering” for their spouse for years, helping them stay
organized and functional. They are
present when their loved one says something spontaneous which is often embarrassing
or silly. These spouses suffer social
isolation when other folks stop having them over. First and foremost, they watch as their
partner for decades dissolves in front of their eyes. They lose that companionship and support
which is the hallmark of long standing relationship. They lose life as they knew it.
According to Pat Robertson, this is
the time to punt and run. Give up. In his own words, when asked by a viewer of
his “700 Club” program if it was alright for a man to see other people if his
wife was incapacitated with Alzheimer’s, Robertson said “I know it sounds
cruel, but if he's going to do something, he should divorce her and start all over
again, but make sure she has custodial care and somebody looking after
her.” Cut your losses, start over, live a
little. Really?
Where’s the honor and dignity in
that? Leave aside all religion,
scripture and Beatitudes and look at it from a strictly moral point of
view. Is that really the right and moral
thing to do? Is that what you would want
your spouse to do for you were you to become incapacitated by Alzheimer’s or
any other disease? Why limit it to
Alzheimer’s dementia? Extrapolate this
thinking to stroke victims, people with multiple sclerosis or debilitating
diabetes. What’s next,
euthanasia? When did spouses become
disposable possessions to be discarded when they don’t work like they used to
like an old VHS player?
I’ve got news for Mr. Robertson. Everybody gets something. Everybody dies, and before they do, they
usually have some sort of illness that limits them. It’s the rare bird that lives to a ripe old
age and dies in their sleep without ever being seriously ill. I, for one, am very grateful for a spouse who
I know has and will be with me every step of the way, wherever that might lead.
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