December 3, 2023 - "End-of-Life Decisions"

A few weeks ago, we listened to the parable of the ten virgins waiting for the bridegroom. Five of them foolishly did not bring oil with them for their lamps.  That lesson from that Gospel can be applied today as well. Be patient. Plan ahead because delays can happen.  One of the ways we should prepare would be with end-of-life decisions.  Several years ago, the Roman Catholic Bishops of Maryland issued a pastoral letter “Comfort and Consolation,” which is well worth reading.  I have copies of this pastoral letter available for those who wish to have one. Please feel free to ask me for a copy.
 
The Bishops recommend that the first step in preparing to address end-of-life decisions is to take the time to think through, in light of our Catholic faith, the sorts of choices we may face in times of serious illness. They have posed some questions that could help us begin to think through these issues with loved ones and take the steps necessary to ensure our wishes as faithful Catholics are clear when the time comes to make end-of-life decisions. Let’s look at three of those questions now.
 
When should I accept or continue treatment? God’s gift of human life is the foundation of all His other gifts. The most basic right of each person includes the right to preserve his or her life.  When professional medical care is needed, we should consent to the reasonable use of appropriate medical care and treatment out of respect for our God-given dignity and the sanctity of life and also so that we can meet our duties to God, our loved ones, and all who depend on us. When patients consent to medical interventions, they expect a cure, improvement, comfort, or life-sustaining help, but this does not mean that all such beneficial treatments are morally obligatory.
 
When is it appropriate to deny or withdraw treatment?
No patient is obliged to accept or demand medical care or treatments that have no beneficial effect. In addition, no one is morally obliged to employ every possible beneficial means. While the most basic principles of Christian morality oblige us to preserve human life, these same principles clarify that there is no obligation to accept interventions that impose serious risks, excessive pain, prohibitive cost, or some other extreme burden out of proportion to its anticipated benefit. Furthermore, when death is imminent and inevitable despite the means used, it is permitted in conscience to refuse forms of treatment that would only secure a precarious and burdensome prolongation of life, so long as the normal care due to the sick person in similar cases is not interrupted. Determining whether a particular treatment is excessively burdensome is not a matter of preference or merely a medical decision, but a reasoned judgment by the patient that often requires the advice of a priest or someone else well-trained in sound moral theology.
 
What if I don’t want to burden my family by prolonging treatment? A patient may make a morally correct decision to forego a potentially beneficial treatment proposed by his or her doctor because the treatment itself is too burdensome or because it is useless. However, no one—including the patient, family members, medical professionals, or members of the clergy—ever have the right to decide that a patient’s life is useless.  We should not stop medically useful interventions because we are tired of living, feel we no longer have a contribution to make, see ourselves as helpless or believe our dependency on others is too great a burden for them and, thus, would like to hasten the end of life.
 
We’ll look at some more questions on this topic next week.
 
Until next week,
Fr. John