True Compassion

Today we hear of the ten lepers who came to Jesus saying, “Jesus, Master!  Have pity on us!” 

As the Son of God, Jesus responded to their plea by curing them.  He heard their cry, “Have pity on us” and He showed them true compassion. 

Unfortunately, there are people today who think a compassionate response to pain and suffering is to end the life of the person through assisted suicide.  To make it sound better they want to call it “medical-aid-in-dying.”  It’s not medical aid to kill.  Medical aid is to cure and help with pain, not to kill. 

I wonder if they would have suggested assisted suicide to the lepers?  What about the woman who had been hemorrhaging for twelve years (Mark 5:21-43)?  What about the man who had been ill for thirty-eight years who Jesus cured on the Sabbath (John 5:1-18)?  What about the paralytics that Jesus healed (Mark 2:1-12)?  What about the man with the withered hand (Mark 3:1-6)? 

The first stanza of the responsorial psalm for today’s Mass says: 

Defend the lowly and the fatherless; 
render justice to the afflicted and the destitute. 
Rescue the lowly and the poor; 
from the hand of the wicked deliver them. 

We are called to help the lowly, afflicted, and the poor.  Assisting them in ending their life is not helping them. 

We are currently awaiting Governor Hochul’s action on the assisted suicide bill, incorrectly called the medical-aid-in-dying act (MAID).  After Mass today, we will begin our novena for end of life issues.  Our intention for the first day is to pray for Governor Hochul to veto the bill.  We also have copies of a letter drafted by our diocese to Governor Hochul that you can sign and send to her (Other dioceses in New York State are having similar campaigns). 

The current bill is only for those within six months of dying.  For those close to death, some see it as compassion and mercy to end their pain immediately by killing them.  I ask in response, how is it compassion to say their life is not worth living?  For those who speak of ending their pain, I point to palliative care (see days two and four of our novena).  There are better ways to manage pain than ending life. 

It is a fact that in most places that legalize assisted suicide for the terminally ill, it begins a slippery slope that sometimes leads to assisted suicide being legalized for anyone, including the disabled (afflicted), those with mental health illnesses, and even the materially poor. 

Living with a disability is not always easy.  Death is not the answer.  In Canada, people with disabilities can choose to end their life under the idea of ending their pain and suffering.  Yet, sometimes a person’s disability is not the real reason for them choosing to end their lives.  They find themselves in poverty, unable to find/afford housing with proper accommodations for their disability (see Kevin J. Jones, “Hungry, poor, and disabled Canadians seeking assisted suicide.”  Catholic News Agency.  December 13, 2022.  https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253067/hungry-poor-and-disabled-canadians-seeking-assisted-suicide and Niamh Uí Bhriain, “Woman offered Assisted Suicide for “abject poverty” as she couldn’t get housing for her disability.” The Life Institute.  May 16, 2022.  https://thelifeinstitute.net/blog/2022/woman-offered-assisted-suicide-for-abject-poverty-as-she-couldnt-get-housing-for-her-disability#)  Assisted suicide is not the solution.  Helping them with a proper home is. 

In Canada, poverty is not officially a reason for assisted suicide but there are those who want to make it an acceptable reason.  Poverty is not a terminal disease.  It is entirely curable as we answer Jesus’ call to feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty (see Matthew 25:31-46). 

Wherever assisted suicide is legalized, it is supposed to only be used when a person explicitly asks for it.  What about the person who asks for assisted suicide, receives the prescription and even gets the drugs but then waits.  They may have a change of heart and choose not to take the drugs.  However, if they become incapacitated and still have the drugs, another person could administer the drugs against the persons wishes. 

Suffering has value (see Pope St. John Paul II’s apostolic letter, Salvifici Doloris  On the Christian Meaning of Suffering (February 11, 1984.  Boston: Pauline Books & Media.  1984. Available online at https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_letters/1984/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_11021984_salvifici-doloris.html) and my article, “Finding Value in Suffering” https://renewaloffaith.org/finding-value-in-suffering/).  Pain can be managed through palliative care.  Compassion does not require killing.  It does require accompanient.  Let us answer Jesus’ call to visit the sick by accompanying those who are ill and suffering for any reason. 

Let us continue to pray for Governor Hochul’s veto. 

Peace, 

Fr. Jeff