In its 2015 decision in Carter v. Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada found the Criminal Code provision that prohibited physician-assisted suicide to be unconstitutional. The Liberal government’s Bill C-14, which received Royal assent in June 2016, decriminalized the practice and set out a regime to regulate who could obtain “medical assistance in dying.”
In response to the new law, the Catholic bishops of Alberta
and the Northwest Territories issued a document entitled “Guidelines
for the Celebration of the Sacraments with Persons & Families
Considering or Opting for Death by Assisted Suicide or Euthanasia” in
which they instructed priests under their jurisdiction to deny the
Sacraments of Confession (Penance) and Extreme Unction (Anointing of the
Sick) and a Catholic funeral, in certain circumstances, to an
individual who helped someone die or who died themselves by assisted
suicide.
Cardinal Gerald Lacroix of Quebec City and Archbishop
Christian Lepine of Montreal both reacted differently to the new law,
declaring that they would not give specific guidelines to their priests
about refusing the funeral services to the people who requested assisted
suicide.
“The Catholic Church accompanies people in every step of their
life,” Cardinal Lacroix said. “We do that in dialogue with every person
and every family that wishes to be accompanied.”
Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, the bishop of Hamilton and
president of the Conference of the Catholic Bishops of Canada (“CCBC”),
strongly criticized Bill C-14, stating on behalf of the CCCB:
“Physician-assisted suicide is an affront to what is most noble, most
precious in the human endeavour and a grave injustice and violation of
the dignity of every human person whose natural and inherent inclination
is indeed the preservation of life.”
Despite those strong words, Bishop
Crosby indicated that he did not “foresee that the CCCB will be putting
out guidelines” setting out a uniform response from the Catholic Church
in Canada to the new law.
How is it possible that the bishops of Canada disagree on
fundamental issues such as whether individuals involved in assisted
suicide can receive certain Sacraments and a Catholic funeral?
The answer to that question can be traced back to 1968 when
the Canadian Bishops published the infamous “Winnipeg Statement” in
which they willingly distanced themselves from the teaching of Pope Paul
VI’s Encyclical Letter Humanae Vitae that condemned artificial
contraception.
While the Winnipeg Statement did not officially reject
the teaching of Pope Paul VI, it rendered it practically void by leaving
the ultimate decision on contraception to the dictates of the private
consciences of the couple, instead of the objective moral law.
The Winnipeg Statement deeply weakened the Canadian
Bishops, who are now found often divided and powerless to oppose the
agenda of the culture of death.
As secularism spreads more deeply throughout our society,
we need strong leaders who will clearly reaffirm the Law of God without
compromise.
Let us pray that the good Lord will grant us courageous
shepherds who will not be afraid of the wolves, but rather will bear
witness to the Faith they received a mandate to uphold on the day of
their consecration!