To the
members of the Pontifical Academy for Life
DEFEND The dignity of the
dying
27 February 1999
1. Distinguished Members of the Pontifical
Academy for Life, who have come to Rome for your annual general assembly,
welcome! As I extend my cordial greetings to each one of you, I thank your
President, Prof. Juan de Dios Vial Correa, for his
kind words expressing your sentiments. I also greet the Bishops present: Bishop
Elio Sgreccia,
Vice-President of the Pontifical Academy for Life, and Archbishop Javier Lozano
Barragán, President of the Pontifical Council for
Pastoral Assistance to Health-Care Workers, with which the Pontifical Academy
for Life is associated.
A special mention should be made of your
unforgettable first President, Prof. Jerome Lejeune, who
left us almost five years ago on 3 April 1994. Foreseeing the growing threats
emerging on the horizon, he keenly desired this new institution, almost as his
spiritual testament to safeguard human life. I would like to express my
pleasure with all the work of meticulous research and wide-ranging information
which the Pontifical Academy for Life has been able to organize and accomplish
in its first five years of existence. With the theme you have chosen for your
reflection, “The dignity of the dying”, you
intend to shed the light of doctrine and wisdom on a frontier that is new and
crucial in many ways. The life of the dying and the seriously ill is exposed to
many dangers today, at times expressed in forms of dehumanizing treatment, at
others in disregard or neglect, which can even reach the point of euthanasia.
2. The phenomenon of abandoning the dying,
which is spreading in developed societies, has various causes and many
dimensions which you have carefully analyzed. There is a sociocultural
dimension which is known as “concealing death”: societies governed by the quest
for material well-being see death as meaningless and, in order to eliminate the
question it raises, sometimes propose its painless anticipation. The so-called
“culture of well-being” often involves an inability to see life's meaning in
the situations of suffering and debilitation that accompany human beings as
they approach death. This inability is all the worse when it occurs in a humanism
closed to the transcendent, and is often expressed as a loss of trust in the
value of the human person and life.
Then there is a philosophical and ideological
dimension which appeals to man's absolute autonomy, as if he were the author of
his own life. In this perspective, the principle of self-determination comes
into play, with even suicide and euthanasia being exalted as paradoxical forms
of both self-assertion and self-destruction. There is also a medical and
care-giving dimension which is expressed in a tendency to limit the treatment
of the seriously ill, who are sent to health-care structures which cannot
always provide personalized and humane care. The result is that the
hospitalized person often loses contact with his family and is subject subject to a sort of technological invasiveness that
humiliates his dignity.
Lastly, there is the hidden pressure of the
so-called “utilitarian ethic”, which governs many advanced societies according
to the criteria of productivity and efficiency: in this perspective, the
seriously ill and the dying who need prolonged specialized treatment feel, in
the light of the cost-benefit relationship, that they are a burden and a
liability. This mentality prompts people to give less support to the final
phase of life.
3. This is the ideological context behind the
evermore frequent public opinion campaigns aimed at legalizing euthanasia and
assisted suicide. The results already achieved in some countries, with supreme
court judgements or parliamentary votes, confirm how
widespread certain convictions have become.
It is an indication of how far the culture of
death has advanced, which can also be seen in other phenomena which in one way
or another are traceable to the lack of respect for human dignity: such as
death caused by hunger, violence, war, the lack of traffic control, disregard
of safety regulations at work. In the face of these new manifestations of the
culture of death, it is the Church's duty to remain faithful to her love for
man, “the primary and fundamental way for the Church” (Redemptor hominis, n. 14). Today it is her task to
cast on the human face, particularly the face of the dying, the full light of
her teaching, the light of reason and faith; it is her duty, as she has done on
various crucial occasions, to summon all the forces of the community and of
people of good will so that with renewed warmth they will embrace the dying in
a bond of love and solidarity.
The Church knows that the moment of death is
always accompanied by particularly intense human sentiments: an earthly life is
ending; the emotional, generational and social ties that are part of the
person's inner self are dissolving; people who are dying and those who assist
them are aware of the conflict between hope in immortality and the unknown
which troubles even the most enlightened minds. The Church raises her voice so
that the dying are not offended but are given every loving care and are not
left alone as they prepare to cross the threshold of time to enter eternity.
4. “The
dignity of the dying” is rooted in the fact that they are created by God
and personally called to immortal life. This hope-filled vision transfigures
the destruction of our mortal body. “When the perishable puts on the
imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the
saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory”” (1 Cor 15:54; cf. 2 Cor 5:1). Thus
in defending the sacredness of life, even that of the dying, the Church is not
in some way absolutizing physical life, but is
teaching respect for the true dignity of the person, a creature of God, and is
helping him to accept death serenely when his physical powers can no longer be
sustained. In the Encyclical Evangelium vitae I
wrote: “Certainly the life of the body in its earthly state is not an absolute
good for the believer, especially as he may be asked to give up his life for a
greater good.... No one, however, can arbitrarily choose whether to live or
die; the absolute master of such a decision is the Creator alone, in whom we
live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28)î (n.
47). From this stems a line of moral conduct towards the seriously ill and
dying which is opposed, on the one hand, to euthanasia and suicide (cf. ibid.,
n. 61) and, on the other, to those forms of “aggressive medical treatment”
which do not really maintain the life and dignity of the dying person.
It is appropriate here to recall the
condemnation of euthanasia, understood precisely as “an action or omission
which of itself and by intention causes death, with the purpose of eliminating
all suffering”, since it is a “grave violation of the law of God” (ibid., n.
65). The condemnation of suicide should also be borne in mind since “suicide,
when viewed objectively, is a gravely immoral act. In fact, it involves the
rejection of love of self and the renunciation of the obligation of justice and
charity towards one's neighbour, towards the
communities to which one belongs, and towards society as a whole. In its
deepest reality, suicide represents a rejection of God's absolute sovereignty
over life and death” (ibid., n. 66).
5. Our times call for the mobilization of all
the forces of Christian charity and human solidarity. Indeed, we must meet the
new challenge of the legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide. To this
end it is not enough to oppose this deadly trend in public opinion and
parliament, but society and the Church's own structures must also be involved
in providing dignified care for the dying.
With this in mind, I willingly encourage those
who promote projects and initiatives to help the seriously ill, people with
chronic mental disorders and the dying. If necessary, they should work to adapt
social structures to the new needs, so that no dying person will be neglected
or left to face death alone and helpless. This is the lesson that many saints
have left us over the centuries, and recently Mother Teresa of Calcutta with
her caring initiatives. Every diocesan and parish community must be taught to
look after its elderly, to care for and visit its sick, at home or in special
structures, according to need. Heightening the awareness of families and
hospitals will certainly encourage a more widespread use of “palliative care”
for persons who are seriously ill and dying, in order to alleviate the symptoms
of pain and, at the same time, to bring them spiritual comfort through diligent
and loving care. New institutions should be established for elderly people who
are not self-sufficient but alone, and above all an organized network should be
promoted for the financial and moral support of home care: families who want to
keep a seriously ill person at home must make sacrifices that are sometimes a
very heavy burden.
The local Churches and religious congregations
have an opportunity to offer a pioneering witness in this field, in the
knowledge of what the Lord said about those who devote themselves to aiding the
sick: “I was sick and you visited me” (Mt 25:36).
May Mary, the sorrowful Mother who stood by
Jesus as he died on the cross, pour out his Spirit on Mother Church and
accompany her in the fulfilment of this mission.
My Blessing to everyone.