Written by Fr Paschal Corby OFM Conv.
This paper was presented at the ACCC National Conference in Albury, 2023, and first published in The Priest.
4th Dec 2023
A culture of death
In his keen sensitivity to cultural shifts in morality, Pope St John Paul II identified an alarming contempt for the dignity of human life that he categorised as a culture of death. A culture that “denies solidarity” with the weaker members of society; that is, “excessively concerned with efficiency”, is dismissive of “a life which would require greater acceptance, love and care”, considering such lives as “useless” and an “intolerable burden.”[1]
This culture of death clearly surrounds us in Australia. All States of the Federation have now legalised some form of Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD). In Victoria, Western Australia, Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia, the industry of death is already in operation. Laws have been passed in NSW and will become operational later this year. While individual State legislations vary is some way, the basic procedure of assisted dying is the same. Eligible persons must be:
- 18 years or older
- Australian citizens or permanent residents
- Be capable of making decisions
- Request voluntarily (and without coercion)
- Be persistent in their request
- Have a disease, illness or medical condition that is:
- Advanced and will cause death
- Incurable
- Expected to cause death within 6 – 12 months
- Cause suffering that cannot be relieved in a way the person finds tolerable
In addition to these requirements, the eligible person must make at least three requests for assisted dying, and be assessed by at least two independent medical practitioners.
Impact of VAD upon the Church
With euthanasia and assisted suicide a reality in our country, the prospect of being confronted with it is very real – especially as priests who deal with matters of sickness and death. In light of this reality, we need to (1) consider the situations in which we might be confronted with the reality of VAD (e.g., in counselling the terminally ill, in being called to the bedside of someone who is preparing to die by VAD, or the prospect of being approached to offer a funeral for one who has died in this manner), and (2) be prepared in how to respond. To assist us in this task, the Congregation (now Dicastery) for the Doctrine of the Faith promulgated Samaritanus bonus in 2020, on the care of persons in the critical and terminal phases of life. In light of the new challenges to pastoral care provoked by assisted dying legislation, the Congregation acknowledged that “a more clear and precise intervention on the part of the Church” is needed in order to provide guidelines for the administration of the Sacraments to those who intend to bring an end to their own life: to (1) reaffirm the message of the Gospel and its expression in the basic doctrinal statements of the Magisterium; and (2) provide precise and concrete pastoral guidelines to deal with these complex situations at the local level and to handle them in a way that fosters the patient’s personal encounter with the merciful love of God.
A Pastoral Response to VAD
According to Samaritanus bonus, pastoral care at the end of life must take the form of accompaniment which characterises our life in Christ. In death, as in life, our communion with Christ is manifest in our communion with the Church. As the Apostle teaches in the Epistle to the Romans: None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s (Rm 14:7-8). This ‘we’ is expressive of a communion with Christ that is not simply personal, but is collective of all to whom Christ has joined himself. It is imaged as the body of Christ that draws us into a communion of love and concern for each other. While essential in every phase of life, it takes on a particular importance as we approach death, for the prospect of dying is often surrounded by a vulnerability that seeks consolation in the presence of others. Therefore, pastoral care for the dying requires a response of presence; of accompaniment; of compassion that takes the form of ‘suffering with’ or bearing the burdens of the dying person.
This path of accompaniment finds poignant expression in Samaritanus bonus:
“Those who assist persons with chronic illnesses or in the terminal stages of life must be able to “know how to stay”, to keep vigil, with those who suffer the anguish of death, “to console” them, to be with them in their loneliness, to be an abiding with that can instil hope [Spe salvi, n. 51]. By means of the faith and charity expressed in the intimacy of the soul, the caregiver can experience the pain of another, can be open to a personal relationship with the weak that expands the horizons of life beyond death, and thus can become a presence full of hope.”[2]
This offer of hope becomes particularly relevant for people who request assisted dying, who betray a hopelessness or despair of finding reason to live. John Paul II wisely identified that “the request (for euthanasia) which arises from the human heart in the supreme confrontation with suffering and death, especially when faced with the temptation to give up in utter desperation, is above all a request for companionship, sympathy and support in the time of trial.
It is a plea for help to keep on hoping when all human hopes fail.”[3] Perversely, legalised euthanasia undermines this plea for hope. It affirms the person’s felt despair that their life is not worth living; that there is nothing to hope for. It confounds the hopelessness felt by people with chronic or terminal illnesses.
The task of accompaniment, therefore, is to restore some sense of hope to those who consider their life to be meaningless. It acknowledges that the terminally ill need companionship, love and care; need reason to keep living and find meaning in their suffering. This is the role of family and loved ones; of Palliative care; of the Church in her pastoral outreach in seeking to assist people to live more fully during the dying process by relieving distress, and meeting their spiritual and emotional needs.
Priestly accompaniment
In the accompaniment of persons faced with the near prospect of death, Samaritanus bonus addresses a particular word to priests in their faculty as ministers of communion with Christ.
“The ministry of listening and of consolation that the priest is called to offer, which symbolizes the compassionate solicitude of Christ and the Church, can and must have a decisive role. In this essential mission it is extremely important to bear witness to and unite truth and charity with which the gaze of the Good Shepherd never ceases to accompany all of His children.”[4]
To bear witness to and unite truth and charity. We hear deliberate echoes here of the Apostle’s admonition to speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15). In the context of VAD, therefore, pastoral accompaniment must be informed by the objective moral truth at hand. In the words of Samaritanus bonus, “the pastoral accompaniment of those who expressly ask for euthanasia or assisted suicide today presents a singular moment when a reaffirmation of the teaching of the Church is necessary.”[5]
Accompaniment, therefore, has a clear objective: to encourage the person to resist the temptation to despair and embrace the truth of God’s love. Guidelines offered by the Archdiocese of Vancouver (Canada) in this context could not be more clearly expressed: “the priest must do everything in his power to explain the Church’s teaching and gently move the person to accept natural death as essential to the duty of accepting God’s plan for our lives”; to move the person “to experience the loving presence of Jesus in the mystery of the Cross, and find strength to accept ‘a death like his’”; and to “help the patient to prepare for the life of the world to come”.[6]
Sacramental Accompaniment
Ordinarily, the priestly ministry of care for the dying in preparation for “life of the world to come” assumes the form of spiritual accompaniment through prayer and the Sacraments. Indeed, the sacraments of healing (Penance and Anointing) and presence (the Holy Eucharist) offer a comfort and effect a communion more profound than any spirituality of presence could ever afford. However, it is precisely here that we perceive an obstacle in the priestly care of those contemplating VAD through euthanasia or assisted suicide.
In administering the Sacrament of Penance, the priest confessor must always discern evidence of sincere contrition on the part of the penitent. Indeed, such contrition is essential for proceeding with the Sacrament and for the validity of absolution. In the situation of a person preparing for death by VAD – not simply one who is contemplating the possibility, but who has actively engaged and enrolled in the program – there exists a manifest lack of awareness and contrition for the course that they have embarked on. As Samaritanus bonus notes:
“In this situation, we find ourselves before a person who, whatever their subjective dispositions may be, has decided upon a gravely immoral act and willingly persists in this decision. Such a state involves a manifest absence of the proper disposition for the reception of the Sacraments of Penance, with absolution (Code, can. 987), and Anointing (Code, can. 1007), with Viaticum (Code, can. 915 and can. 843 § 1). Such a penitent can receive these sacraments only when the minister discerns his or her readiness to take concrete steps that indicate he or she has modified their decision in this regard. Thus, a person who may be registered in an association to receive euthanasia or assisted suicide must manifest the intention of cancelling such a registration before receiving the sacraments.”[7]
The withholding of the Sacraments in this situation does not constitute an abandonment of the person. Rather, it serves to highlight the gravity of the situation and offers the incentive for repentance and turning away from their destructive plan. “To delay absolution,” we read in Samaritanus bonus, “is a medicinal act of the Church, intended not to condemn, but to lead the sinner to conversion.” It therefore requires that the priest remain present to the person, carefully looking “for adequate signs of conversion, so that the faithful can reasonably ask for the reception of the sacraments.”[8]
The Funeral
While Samaritanus bonus remains silent on the issue of funeral rites for a person who has ended their life through VAD, the Vancouver document offers some clear guidelines. It clearly states:
“In the case of euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide, this final action of the person’s life has been chosen in violation of the clear teachings of the Church; it is an act which expresses a serious defect in belief and in unity with the faithful. It is not a death like Christ’s.”[9]
In light of this clear separation of faith and action, and in accordance with canon 1184 of the Code of Canon Law, a Catholic funeral Mass would be deemed inappropriate.
An objection is foreseen, that since the Church offers Funeral Masses in cases of suicide, why should she act differently in situations of assisted-suicide? In response, the Vancouver document explains that there is a real difference between the two. In situations of suicide, the taking of one’s life is usually marked by psychological illness – depression, uncontrolled anxiety, psychotic compulsion. And the relative impairment of free will in such cases renders the person less than fully responsible for their actions. However, in situations of euthanasia and Physician-assisted suicide, freedom from psychological illness and coercion is a pre-requisite for proceeding. Indeed, VAD is presented as a rational choice from a competent person. Far from being an impulsive, spur of the moment decision, it requires multiple requests sustained over a period of time. It therefore constitutes a willed decision to act in a way contrary to the faith.
But as the Vancouver document notes, “faith requires us to be clear and consistent in our faith and practices.” It would therefore be scandalous to offer a public funeral Mass for one who has chosen to end their life by means contrary to the faith. It would give scandal to the Church’s consistent teaching against euthanasia and assisted-suicide; scandal to those who are striving to remain faithful to Christ and His Church in the demands of daily life; scandal to those who are terminally ill and resisting the subtle pressure to see their lives as worthless.
To refuse a funeral Mass in this circumstance, therefore, is consistent with the principle of speaking the truth with love – a love that is due not only to the one who has died, but to the whole community of faith. “We do not seek to punish the dead or the living by refusing a Funeral Mass,” the Vancouver document adds. “We simply wish to remain true to the One to whom we all belong: Christ Jesus ‘who will come to judge the living and the dead’.”
While excluding the Funeral Mass, it seems reasonable that other services and signs of the Church’s compassion and love can appropriately be offered in charity for the soul of the deceased and in compassion for loved ones. This might include a graveside service (thus avoiding giving scandal within the church) and/or a (private) Mass offered for the repose of the soul of the deceased, after burial has taken place, and at a time reasonably separated from the event.
Conclusion
In Samaritanus bonus we read:
“Given the centrality of the priest in the pastoral, human and spiritual accompaniment of the sick at life’s end, it is necessary that his priestly formation provide an updated and precise preparation in this area.”[10]
This need for a precise preparation is offered within the relatively new context of legalised euthanasia and Physician-assisted suicide. However, beyond Samaritanus bonus, (and the Guidelines from the Archdiocese of Vancouver), resources for guidance and formation are few. An internet search for pastoral responses from Dioceses and Bishops’ Conferences yields little fruit. And while the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference website contains worthy statements against VAD, it contains no guidance as to how to respond to pastoral situations. This paper is an initial effort to respond to that lack, to inform myself and help my brother priests to apply faith and reason to the sensitive pastoral issues that we are likely to face in the near future; to speak Christ’s word of truth within each pastoral situation as His offer of hope and love.
