PROVIDENCE — It’s easy to consider oneself pro-life when advocating for the unborn. There is a sentimental impact in seeing bright-eyed, chubby-cheeked babies on posters calling for an end to abortion. Praying outside of Planned Parenthood clinics presents a visual witness to desperate women afraid to choose life.
To be fully pro-life, however, one must respect both ends of life, conception and death, and not only death, but natural death. The Catholic Church teaches that assisted suicide is morally unacceptable and it is “gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person,” according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2277).
Championing the sick and dying poses a greater challenge than for the unborn. There are no death clinics as there are abortion clinics, no marches for life. Even the secular terms used to describe end-of-life decisions are problematic, with proponents of assisted suicide utilizing softer terms like “physician-assisted death.” The Catechism consistently uses the term “euthanasia” to describe any act that puts “an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons” (CCC 2277).
Father Christopher M. Mahar, Ph.D., S.T.D., pastor at St. Augustine Parish in Providence and author of the book “Finding God in Suffering,” pointed out that “the desire to eliminate suffering at the end of life, unfortunately, has become a predominant attitude from our culture.”
Well-versed in the topic, Father Mahar spoke with Rhode Island Catholic to explain the Church’s teaching on end-of-life issues. He has testified before the Rhode Island legislature against physician-assisted suicide and has even enlightened doctors on Church teaching, who generally agree with his explanation.
Father Mahar acknowledges the pain and suffering some may experience throughout a life-threatening illness. This often leads others to believe that physician-assisted suicide is a caring, loving option, meant to allow one to “die with dignity.” The Church, a staunch defender of the dignity of all human persons, created in God’s image and likeness, disputes this. Rather, Father Mahar argues that euthanasia is more often fear induced.
He explained that – similar to terminology used by pro-abortion advocates – a dying person faces choices.
“The choice for physician-assisted suicide is the ultimate choice that can never be reneged, and it’s the end of all choices. … It eliminates all the choices that one can make; it’s actually a choice for nothing,” Father Mahar said.
The Church recognizes a difference between physician-assisted suicide – essentially euthanasia – and allowing a person to pass away naturally rather than attempting to impede death. In some cases, such as for Terri Schiavo in 2005, if the person benefits from nutrition and that is removed, that person is euthanized. Schiavo died not of a disease but of dehydration, “which is a terrible way to die,” he said.
“There is a general obligation to provide nutrition and hydration to patients who are unable to receive nourishment by mouth. But when a patient suffers an underlying fatal condition, and is dying from that condition, measures sure as nutrition and hydration, drugs, or artificial respiration might prove more a burden (as in the case of a person who can no longer digest the nutrition) than a benefit to the person actively dying,” Father Mahar said.
“If a person is truly dying, those are things that can be removed; those are good choices that one can and should make.”
Extreme measures may also include refusing experimental treatment options for terminal illnesses or even those too costly – more of an issue outside the U.S. than within. In a case that Father Mahar shared, a woman sought his advice regarding an experimental cancer treatment. He asked her what another eight or so months might give her. Her response was that she could see her daughter receive her First Communion, and with that in mind, she chose the treatment option, witnessed that beautiful moment and gained nearly a year of life before passing away.
Not everyone will reap the same benefits, however, and may endure more than they can physically and mentally handle. A person’s mental health can greatly factor into end-of-life decisions.
Father Mahar explained that those who are overwhelmed by fear and anxiety “may be less free to make that decision,” and instead will chose what seems the easier option – death. However, he allowed that there “could be a lot of room for God’s mercy in the midst of a decision that’s made in fear” and not with sound judgement.
Sometimes a person may suffer more than seems bearable, leaving the question of why suffering exists, as Father Mahar expounds on in his book. Yet suffering, especially at the end of life, can have a deep purpose – preparing the soul to meet God.
In the Catholic Church, he says, “we believe in dying well. Dying well is physical, it’s spiritual and it deals with relationships in one’s life as well.”
Dying well means the person and his or her family collaborates with the patient’s doctor or team of doctors to provide for their physical needs through palliative care, ensuring their comfort and that their spiritual needs are met. Even more important than physical needs is the care for one’s soul.
“Their soul is about to enter eternal life and are they prepared to do that?” Father Mahar asks.
“We want to make sure that someone who is getting to the end of his life has a chance to reconcile with friends, with family members, with people around them, but most importantly, to reconcile with God, to be able to enter eternal life reconciled with all these relationships gives people peace of mind.”
During his twenty-plus years in the priesthood, Father Mahar professed that he has been “privileged” to be called to the bedside of a person about to enter eternal life, to care for their spiritual well-being at this “sacred moment” and administer the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.
“It always awakens in me the reality of the importance of the priesthood. I’m many times the last person they see and the next person they see is God.”
To have a priest present at that moment is so crucial that Father Mahar strongly encourages family members not to hesitate to call on him and his brother priests in the event that a person may need that final sacrament immediately.
“It’s never too early to call a priest,” he stated, emphasizing that it can be too late, as the sacrament cannot be administered to a person who has already passed from this life.
In Rhode Island, physician-assisted suicide remains illegal. With the new legislative season beginning in January, representatives will debate Rhode Island House Bill 7100, introduced by 10 members of the House, that would allow physician-assisted suicide in the state.
So far, about a dozen other states have passed similar legislation, including two others in New England.
As with most important issues, education is key to ending physician-assisted suicide. Father Mahar stressed the importance of educating lawmakers and building friendships among those in government positions to help them gain a greater understanding of the dignity of human life, even at the end, when a person’s body may seem too weak or fragile to sustain life.
While legalized physician-assisted suicide creeps farther and farther across the U.S. map, the Church stands as a beacon of hope, Father Mahar says.
“We have a long history of standing for the truth in moments that are not popular. As long as we continue to do that, I think we provide a voice for those who are elderly, those who are weak, those who are suffering, those who are dying, that there is room for you, we love you, we can support you, we don’t want you to make that decision.
“As long as our voice is heard and it is loud, I think that option will always provide an avenue of hope for those who are trying to make difficult decisions at the end of life.”