Pope Leo - Medicine must never become the servant of programmed death!

"we must reject the temptation to cause death under the guise of false compassion."

Pope Leo speaking in Lourdes

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director

Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

I rarely comment on Catholic news but the recent comment from Pope Leo, who was visiting Lourdes France, condemns euthanasia and assisted suicide. (English Translation).

Pope Leo first speaks about the dignity of human life. He then states:

I know that for some of you, because of particular illnesses and, at times, terrible pain, your horizon may appear dark, uncertain and without hope. But no human law should ever make you lose the certainty of your dignity. On the contrary, it is precisely in the name of this inalienable dignity of the human person that we must reject the temptation to cause death under the guise of false compassion. It is impossible to regard causing death as something normal. What is legal is not necessarily moral.

Pope Leo then urges healthcare professionals to care and not kill:

Here in Lourdes, the city of the sick and of hope, I appeal to the entire healthcare community to remember the profound meaning of your vocation, which is to care for a suffering person, not to eliminate that person. Yes, dear friends, be passionate servants of life. ...Medicine must never become the servant of programmed death!”

Pope Leo then comments on the vocation of accompanying and caring for the sick.

In this regard, I urge you resolutely to develop structures for palliative care and research. At the same time, I urge you to accompany the sick with the tenderness that we see here in Lourdes, where doctors, nurses, stretcher-bearers, chaplains, pastoral teams serving the sick, and so many others live out their vocation in the service of the dignity of the human person, so that the world may have life. In caring for bodies, you also bind up wounded souls. To you, dear members of the hospitality groups, and to the healthcare workers who devote yourselves to serving your brothers and sisters, I express my deepest gratitude.

He completes his talk by stating that the sick are not a burden.

Dear brothers and sisters who are sick, I want to tell you that you are not a burden. You are the beating heart of our humanity and a precious treasure for the Church. I carry in my prayers the trials you are going through. My thoughts are also with all those who cannot be here and who, from their homes or hospital rooms, are united with us in this gathering. I entrust all of you to the maternal love of the Mother of the Lord, asking her to obtain for you the consolations of her Son Jesus. May God bless and protect you.

Thank you Pope Leo. Killing is never caring.