Organ Donation: Certain Perspectives of Serbian Orthodox Church Believers and a Critical Reflection on the Foundation of the Practice
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2298/GEI2503311J UDC: 271.222-4:616-089.843(497.11) Original research paper
Abstract
Organ donation has been the subject of diverse discussions and a particularly relevant area of research across various disciplines in recent decades. The rapid development and application of biomedical technologies have allowed for multiple interpretations of this practice. By analyzing the perspectives of our interlocutors who closely identify as Orthodox Christian believers, we explored several pertinent themes reflected in their responses. Forming opinions based on a variety of sources, our interlocutors reveal the contradictions and nuances that characterize the social understanding and implementation of this practice. The analysis of their stories is supplemented with a critical review of the history of transplantation technology, the cultural foundations of its key principles, and the interpretations of relevant actors involved in its practice and the formation of ideas surrounding it at a given time. By focusing primarily on the practice of organ donation rather than experiences of organ recipients, we aimed to broaden the scope of research on this and similar topics within local scholarly practices.
Keywords: organ donation, Eastern Orthodox Christianity, bioethics, brain death, bodily integrity, altruism
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