Special Feature
Dignitas Infinita, Euthanasia & Assisted Suicide
Dignitas Infinita ("Infinite Dignity") highlights several relevant grave violations of human dignity. This month, we focus on euthanasia and assisted suicide.
Tragically, ten states in the U.S. and Washington, D.C., have passed so-called ‘death with dignity’ laws that permit assisted suicide. Dignitas Infinita condemns the error of equating assisted suicide with dignity: “There is a widespread notion that euthanasia or assisted suicide is somehow consistent with respect for the dignity of the human person. However, in response to this, it must be strongly reiterated that suffering does not cause the sick to lose their dignity, which is intrinsically and inalienably their own. Instead, suffering can become an opportunity to strengthen the bonds of mutual belonging and gain greater awareness of the precious value of each person to the whole human family.”
The Catholic response to suffering is not to throw away a human life. Instead, we are called to share the burdens and ease the pains of the ill, aged, and infirm. Dignitas Infinita says that palliative care, rather than euthanasia, “corresponds with the enduring responsibility to appreciate the needs of the sick person: care needs, pain relief, and affective and spiritual needs. However, an effort of this nature is entirely different from—and is indeed contrary to—a decision to end one’s own life or that of another person who is burdened by suffering. Even in its sorrowful state, human life carries a dignity that must always be upheld, that can never be lost, and that calls for unconditional respect.”
Our culture tends to calculate the value of human life based on the value an individual produces. But God has given us an infinite dignity that is not lost by sickness, infirmity, or poverty. Dignitas Infinita goes on, “The right to care and treatment for all must always be prioritized so that the weakest, particularly the elderly and the sick, are never rejected. Life is a right, not death, which must be welcomed, not administered. And this ethical principle concerns everyone, not just Christians or believers... the dignity of each person, no matter how weak or burdened by suffering, implies the dignity of us all.”
No bills to permit euthanasia have been introduced in the Ohio legislature to date. Should this occur, the Catholic Conference of Ohio will work diligently to oppose assisted suicide and the culture of death underlying euthanasia.
Reflection: Suffering is an inescapable part of life. Jesus suffered on the cross, and Mary experienced profound suffering in witnessing His agonizing death. Are we tempted to justify any means to avoid suffering or seeing others struggle as they approach death? Do we step up when brothers and sisters need significant accompaniment?
For more information on the Church’s teachings on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide, visit: www.usccb.org/prolife/assisted-suicide-euthanasia
