On the side of life, till the end

The German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) is conducting a series of meetings and discussions with representatives of the various political parties represented in the Bundestag to discuss the major social and political issues of this period. On January 28, at the headquarters of the Catholic Office in Berlin, the president of DBK, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, together with Card. Karl Lehmann and some bishops of various dioceses, met with a delegation of politicians of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen (Alliance 90 / Greens). Bishops addressed the current debate on euthanasia and assisted suicide, and renewed their request for a ban on all forms of assisted suicide. In particular, they received confirmation of the political commitment of the Greens to expand the range of palliative treatment and hospices, with particular attention to be placed on home care and on the spiritual preparation of the relatives of the terminally ill. A further reflection for German Catholics comes from the diocese of Regensburg that posted on its website a large dossier titled "Dying with dignity – because a person must die taken by the hand by another person and not at the hands of another person” (http : //www.bistum-regensburg.de/aktuelle-themen/sterben-in-wuerde/#accordion ) reporting assessments of several witnesses and experts. What is the dignity of death? Robert Spaemann, professor emeritus of philosophy at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich, reflected on the fact that "dying with dignity" is upheld by the supporters and opponents of euthanasia alike. He pointed out that "modern ideology suffers from a deep inner contraction signalled in the dual significance ascribed to the term "dignity". According to Spaemann, the desire to die “can be felt by a seriously ill patient. But that is very different from the desire to be killed". "At most, the request can be addressed to God: Call me to you! Assuming – the philosopher argues -that a person close to me asked me to help him/her die, to be killed, I should answer: you cannot expect me to tell you that you must no longer exist.” For the professor, in fact, this goes beyond what a person can do and say: “That person may ask for everything; but he cannot expect me to want him to be gone forever. And if he asked me to accompany him to Switzerland to see an organization for euthanasia, I would try to change his mind. It wouldn’t help but I would be close. That person should know that I believe that what he is doing is absolutely wrong. He should reflect till the end. This is also a form of solidarity towards sinners. No matter what he does, I stay close to the person. But you do not exercise mercy by encouraging sin. Love the sinner and hate the sin, wrote St. Augustine". Giving loving company to the dying. "We need to strengthen practical assistance" in the moment of pain also "through the prevention of suicide" said Mechthild Löhr, national president of Christdemokraten für das Leben (Christian Democrats for Life) because "the truth is that anyone can commit suicide. This is true in terms of human freedom, but most people do it because they are desperate, depressed; sometimes serious illness is perceived as a hopeless situation where death is seen as a solution". But for a Christian involved in such situation, “suicide cannot be accepted as a solution to the problems of life,” Lohr said. Indeed, "sickness and death will become a central field of action of the ministry of the Church in an increasingly aged and pleasure-oriented society, where Christians must prove themselves competent and sensitive" towards hospice or hospital patients. "This remains our Christian mission: to give loving companionship to the dying. I have accompanied the dying in outpatient hospices, so for me it is more than a personal experience when I say that everyone should be assisted, loved, cared until the end". Extending a helping hand until the end. "Our life is a gift that cannot be simply discarded”, stressed the nurse Bärbel Kiechle, trainer of palliative treatment workers at the Regensburger Caritas Krankenhaus St. Josef. “Some of the people who need support, for example, with personal care, believe they are losing their dignity, they say they are useless. And everyone knows that there are times in life when it becomes too much. Just at that moment, but also on the deathbed,” assisted patients need “people who are there to tell them, even if you have wounds or your appearance has changed, life is worth living.” The nurse pointed out: “There will always be patients who need a hand to hold on to, and although the pain with palliative care can be bearable, we must prepare them against the fear of losing control of their body.” Until the time comes when “at some point, they no longer need that hand. It becomes evident that they have reached a state of peace, they’re at the end of the road and they can undertake it alone, which is why I support the dying, because I think they will go where they will feel no pain and they will be fine.