books
Life, Death & Catholic Medical Choices: Why Do I Need A Book Like This?
As I wrote in my Catholic Post review of Life, Death and Catholic Medical Choices, the excellent guide, virtually everyone would benefit from having this book on hand:
Some are thinking “I can go ask my parish priest, or read some encyclicals, or read some blogs about these tough issues.” I say, yes to all of that, especially consulting your parish priest (who might have this book already). But the well-reasoned and easy to read wisdom of centuries of Church teaching distilled in Life, Death and Catholic Medical Choices is a true treasure.”
My own personal story wouldn’t fit in my monthly print Post column, but I thought it would be helpful to share here.
In the last few years, both of my parents died within a few months of each other. There were many medical moral issues that arose during the years before their death; that’s pretty common, as I’m sure readers will agree who have had a loved one face death in recent years.
I feel enormously blessed to be part of a large and trusting Catholic family. Among parents, my siblings and spouses we had two physicians, too many lawyers to count, and a Catholic moral theologian. The latter is my dear husband, who has a wealth of wisdom, in addition to a caring and patient personality that could explain and help us navigate through the medical care persons at the end of life.
And yet with all of that, our family still grappled with issues of treatment and care. I know that I would have found this book enormously comforting and helpful to read and consult during that time.
Another factor for many families, and which helped ours tremendously, was a Catholic healthcare setting. Fortunately, after a number of less-than optimal settings, my parents at the very end lived in a Catholic nursing home staffed with caring professionals who were led by a small group of devout white-habited Carmelite sisters. The nursing home’s motto is “The difference is love,” and I can’t tell you what comfort those loving, well-formed professionals meant to our family.
There was a sad NY Times story over the weekend about the decline of religious sisters leading Catholic healthcare systems. Keeping the Catholic vision in healthcare, in books like Life, Death & Catholic Medical Choices; is extremely important, I’m convinced. In preparing my review, I read numerous other books about health care and end-of-life care, and the lack of Catholic vision can lead to some strange conclusions and muddled thinking.
But keeping the Catholic healthcare we enjoy in our country (and especially in our local diocese, staffed with sisters and dedicated lay leaders) is another critical component to health care. I’m not trying to say that great care can’t occur in non-Catholic settings; I’m sure it does in many places. But the Catholic history and vision of caring for the vulnerable, the sick and the dying is a treasure we must never underestimate.
What are your thoughts on this? (Please overlook the strange font size changes, line spacing, and other “creative” things Blogger is arbitrarily applying to this post. I can’t seem to fix it.)
A Quote for Monday: Life, Death and Catholic Medical Choices
There’s a little–okay, a lot– of blogger guilt about how little I’ve written here this month about the book Life, Death and Catholic Medical Choices. I truly believe this is a great, easy-to-read guide for people about the richness of our Catholic faith. As I wrote about in my Catholic Post review of the book:
“Just because someone slept at a Holiday Inn Express– or has read a lot of Church documents–doesn’t guarantee good results when one tries to charitably explain or defend Church teaching accurately, especially on complicated and critical issues of life and death. In this area, what’s most needed is loving and well-formed professionals. Two of these have written Life, Death & Catholic Medical Choices. Take advantage of their wisdom and guidance, and keep this book on hand.”
I hope to write more about this concept during this week, to catch up for what I’ve missed conveying about this excellent resource and the necessity to “trust the professionals.” In the meantime, I wanted to share with you an excerpt from the book. The book is in a question and answer format, which makes it easy to read and reflect in short sections:
What is the difference between medical intervention and basic healthcare?
Medical interventions to restore health, alleviate pain, or prolong life usually require medical professionals. Other activities such as ensuring cleanliness and warmth, feeding, the giving of water, and respecting the personal dignity of belong to basic healthcare, sometimes referred to as natural care. Church statements give the impression that all forms of natural care are normally obligatory. Of course there can come a time when it is unreasonable to force a dying person to eat or drink in the normal fashion because such as insistence is too burdensome for the patient and there is very little to be gained.
Perhaps we should include spiritual care of the person under the heading of natural care. Here, too, we need to be sensitive to the condition of the patient. Sometimes a faith-filled dying person may ask family members to tone down vocal prayers, as wonderful as they may be, because noise causes her pain or agitation. There are appropriate and inappropriate times to raise spiritual matters with the sick and dying.
One may ask if artificial nutrition and hydration are a medical intervention or natural basic healthcare? Interesting, John Paul II in 2004 stated: “I should like, particularly, to underline how the administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act.” The pope goes on to state that, in principle, such nutrition and hydration are morally obligatory until they have attained their proper finality, which is providing nourishment and alleviating suffering.
So, in the case where a patient’s body can no longer process such nutrition or hydration or its administration causes them more suffering, we would have a situation where what is normally natural care is causing more burden than benefit and would cease to be obligatory. The fact that an action is termed natural care does not necessarily mean that it cannot be judged extraordinary in certain circumstances. In fact, is it well-known that both Pope John Paul II and Cardinal John O’Connor refused nutrition and hydration when it had become an extraordinary measure for the preservation of life, when it had become an excessive burden, or when their bodies could no longer assimilate the nutrients provided.
Meet a Reader: Birgitta Sujdak Mackiewicz
Like many Catholic Post readers, I have various favorites depending on the genre, but here are a few particular books and authors that stand out to me that may be of interest to readers of the Post.
I find myself reading a number of books at a time. I’ve just finished The Great Typo Hunt: Two Friends Changing the World, One Correction at a Time by Jeff Deck and BenjaminHerson. Yes, this is a book about people traveling around the USA looking for typos on signs. If you’re an avid reader, a former Lit major, a teacher, or someone who wonders what’s happened to the proper use of the English language chances are you’ll enjoy this book. Interestingly, the book started as a blog — a sign of how technology is changing what we read!
"Life, Death & Catholic Medical Choices" a True Treasure
Catholic Post Book Group Receives the Papal Seal of Approval
Well, not exactly, but this article from Vatican Radio does relate how the Holy Father “recommends summer reading for the faithful.” Many thanks to my husband for alerting me to this nice little article (and indirect endorsement from the Holy Father for reading good books, the main reason for this blog).
What I loved in the Holy Father’s endorsement of reading good books was his suggestion to pick a book of the Bible to read through during the summer for reflection and spiritual enrichment.
I’ve decided to choose Ecclesiastes, one of the ones specifically suggested. Care to join me, and share what you discover new in reading Scripture along with your regular reading?