Fr. Michael Williams

This Sunday has been designated by the Bishops of England and Wales as the Day for Life. This year its theme is the meaning of Christian death and care for those who are dying.

In these days there is serious concern that some people are calling for Euthanasia for those who are terminally ill- it is also called Assisted Suicide or Mercy Killing. Killing is the right word, because that is what it is. And it is never legitimate to end someone’s life, even if they are seriously ill, as this contravenes the Fifth Commandment, ‘Thou shall not kill’. There is no difference whatsoever in giving someone a lethal injection and putting a gun to their head: they are exactly the same.

When people are terminally ill the Church encourages the practice of Palliative Care. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that, ‘Palliative Care should be encouraged’, as it helps the patient to die well (2279). Good Palliative Care does not bring the death of a person, but it helps them to encounter death as comfortably as possible. The Catechism also reminds us that, ‘Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary or disproportionate…can be legitimate’ (2278). Sometimes we cannot do anything when someone is in the final stages of their lives, other than make them as comfortable as possible, as they prepare to leave this world.

As a hospital Chaplain I often encounter those who are nearing the end of their earthly lives. The end of our life is a sacred moment that needs to be treated with the utmost care and respect. In many respects the end of our lives is as significant as the beginning of our lives in our mother’s wombs. In fact we could say that at the end of our lives our Holy Mother, the Church, wishes to hold and nourish us, as we prepare to be born into eternity.

On Friday a man, Alf Nazareth, became very poorly in hospital and he wanted the priest to bring the Sacraments to him. I arrived and thankfully he was still well enough to receive Holy Communion for the last time; I also administered the Sacrament of the Sick to him. I was called back to him a few hours later and he had passed away. Towards the end of his life he kept repeating the words, ‘Jesus’. He had died in the bosom of the Church strengthened and consoled. His was a holy death, which was the result of the holy life he had lived. We too need to constantly strive to live a holy life, so that a holy death will flow from it.

Towards the end of our lives on earth, our spiritual welfare, is a fundamental element of the care we receive. And if loved ones or friends are dying we should encourage them to receive the Sacraments, and we should pray and make sacrifices for them. People only die once, so we need to prepare ourselves and others spiritually. It’s a critical moment of our life and one we should not avoid thinking about. We need to prepare for it now.

Ultimately, we need not fear death. But with Jesus, we can confidently turn to Our Father in Heaven and say, ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit’.