October is Respect Life Month: End of Life
We talk a lot about protecting the life of the unborn during October, and rightly so. However, respect for life involves the entire spectrum of life, from conception to natural death. This week we want to focus on the end of life.
What can we do to respect the End of Life?
We can educate ourselves about Catholic teaching on the end of life. California Catholic Conference of Bishops provides us with a document, Catholic End of Life Teachings, that answers some of our questions about the end of life and gives patients and their families’ principles for making decisions about initiating or continuing medical treatments.
We can provide for peace and comfort of our family members by planning for our own end of life. Our Catholic Cemeteries and Mortuaries can help, https://catholiccm.org/. Their website has information and resources for planning for our own or a loved one’s passing, including checklists, pre-planning information and options. Archbishop José H. Gomez writes in a letter,
“We know that loss is a normal part of our life on earth.
All of us – and all of our loved ones – must pass through death
in order to enjoy the fullness of God’s life in heaven….
At death, life is changed, not taken away.
Catholic Cemeteries and Mortuaries will help you prepare for those moments – offering you guidance, good counsel, and a variety of burial options according to Catholic teaching.
Their services now cover the entire burial process. Jesus Christ is with you in the Church. And so the Church wants to be with you during this process to help make it as easy as possible for you during what can be a difficult time.”
Caring for the Whole Person is a state-wide initiative of the California Bishops and Catholic healthcare systems that enable each parish to provide community support and meaningful resources to individuals and families. The objective of Caring for the Whole Person is to educate, equip and empower each person to make informed decisions for their health and well-being.
In promoting Caring for the Whole Person, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Life, Justice and Peace provides us with many resources to assist us with end-of-life care. https://lifejusticeandpeace.lacatholics.org/care
One such resource, Care & Prepare: Finding Loving Care at the End of Life, is a parish workshop put on by the Office of Life, Justice & Peace in parishes throughout the Archdiocese. Discussion topics include Church teaching on end-of-life ethics, accessing quality palliative care, hospice care and advance healthcare directives, and pastoral care at the end of life.
Caring for those with mental illness or suicidal thoughts is an essential part of the Church’s pastoral responsibility. The Church seeks to provide help, hope and healing in any stage of life.
Visit the LA Catholics Mental Health and Suicide page, to read the message about mental health from the California Bishops, utilize community support resources, find a Catholic mental health professional, and access resources for personal or parish education.
If those who are dying are embraced by their family and their community, they will not seek death, but will live their last days well, and then accept death when it comes.
“Dying is one of the most important moments in our lives.
Like all important moments, it deserves thoughtful preparation.”
-Father Lawrence Reilly, Ethicist and Theologian
St. Joseph, Defender of Life and Patron of the Dying, pray for us!
~St. Luke Life, Justice and Peace Ministry
