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We would like to offer you information and
links regarding these hot topics. If you have
questions about the Catholic perspective on
these or any other subject, the best place to
start is a search through the
Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Also, the
National
Catholic Bioethics Center has made several
resources available through their website
www.ncbcenter.org
Defending Marriage
The institution of marriage is under severe
attack both in our nation and abroad.
There is a growing social acceptance of
non-marital unions (cohabiting couples,
"domestic partners", same-sex "marriages"), and
they are being given the same legal status as
marriage. This will undermine the
privileged place of marriage as the foundation
of society. It will also inevitably lead
to greater social instability and will harm both
adults and children.
For more information about these threats to
the family, check out the
statement by the United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops, and other information on their
website, including their recent statement
"Between Man and Woman".
You should also visit the website of the
Religious Coalition for Marriage, which is
sponsoring a petition in support of the Marriage
Protection Amendment; a number of Catholic
prelates have already signed the petition,
including Cardinal Egan. It would also be
worthwhile to review the
theological foundations for this issue, which
are set out in the document from the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,
"Family, Marriage and De Facto Unions".
For information about recent threats to the
family here in New York, please click
here.
See below for more information about
cohabitation.
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End of Life Issues
In the aftermath of the tragic Terri Schiavo
case, there has been a great deal of attention
paid to end of life issues, including “living wills”
and "extraordinary treatment". It is very
important that we clearly understand the basic
issues involved in this area, as well as the
relevant teachings of the Church.
Moral Principles
Decisions regarding the medical care of
gravely ill person have great moral
significance. They require us to face the
reality of suffering and death, in the light of
faith, confident in the redemptive power of our
suffering united to the Cross of Christ, with
the sure hope of the resurrection.
No matter how grave a patient's ailment or
incapacity, they always remain a person, made in
the image and likeness of God, and precious in
his sight. It is always wrong to deliberately
cause the death of an innocent person, either by
our direct actions or by failing to perform a
duty.
The fundamental distinction that should be borne
in mind is whether medical treatment is
"ordinary", which is morally obligatory, or
"extraordinary", which is morally optional and
can be declined.
What are “extraordinary” treatments? According
to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, they
are “medical procedures that are excessively
burdensome, dangerous, or disproportionate to
the expected outcome”. If you decline such
treatments, you are not causing death. Instead,
you are refusing "over-zealous" treatment and
acknowledging the inevitability of death.
(Catechism, no. 2278)
Even if death is imminent, we must always
provide the ordinary care owed to a sick person
-- nutrition, hydration, cleanliness, warmth,
etc. Death from an underlying cause, such as
cancer, must at some point be accepted, but a
person should never die from starvation or
dehydration.
On this subject, Pope John Paul II has said, “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. Its use, furthermore, should be
considered, in principle, ordinary and
proportionate, and as such morally obligatory…”
In 2007, the Congregation for the Doctrine of
the Faith said "The administration of food and
water even by artificial means is, in principle,
an ordinary and proportionate means of
preserving life. It is therefore obligatory to
the extent to which, and for as long as, it is
shown to accomplish its proper finality, which
is the hydration and nourishment of the patient.
In this way suffering and death by starvation
and dehydration are prevented." (See also
the Congregation's
Commentary on this declaration for a fuller
discussion of nutrition and hydration,
particularly in the case of persons in a
so-called "vegetative state")
Ordinary care would also include providing a
sick person with painkillers, even at the risk
of shortening their life. In this case, death is
not willed as either an end or a means.
(Catechism 2279)
“Living Wills”
Much is heard about “living wills” -- a
specific instruction on a particular course of
medical treatment, usually with regard to
life-sustaining treatment. They are also known
as “advance directives”.
There are many problems with “living wills”.
They are inflexible, and tie the hands of your
doctors and loved ones. Because it's impossible
to foresee your exact medical situation, they
are inherently vague and can be confusing to
doctors. Most “living will” forms that are
generally available are actually “refuse
treatment” forms that create a presumption in
favor of death.
For these reasons, we strongly recommend that
you avoid a so-called "living will". Instead, we
recommend that you appoint a Health Care Proxy.
Health Care Proxies
Under New York State law, a Health Care Proxy
allows you to choose someone you trust to make
medical decisions for you, if you can’t do it
for yourself. It only takes effect if you are
incapacitated and it lapses if you recover.
You should choose someone as your Proxy whom you
trust to act in your best interests, according
to your moral values. You should give your Proxy
specific instructions about your Catholic
values, especially about assisted nutrition and
hydration. You do not need a lawyer to appoint a
Health Care Proxy – all you need is to have two
witnesses to your signature.
A sample Health Care Proxy form, with
instructions, is available
here.
A Spanish version is available
here. For more information,
contact us or download this
information sheet.
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Homosexuality
We are all God’s children. And for those
people with same sex attraction, God has great
mercy and love. For many, it is a cross in which
they and their families carry with deep sorrow
and ambivalence. As Christians, we must seek and
uphold God’s truth, with love, for ourselves and
others, often in spite of the difficulty it
brings.
By practicing the virtue of chastity, persons
with same sex attraction have an opportunity to
find abundant graces in making Christ first in
their hearts. The universal call to holiness
involves chastity according to our state in
life. In general, chastity means the wholesome
integration of sexuality within a person’s
physical and spiritual being. But only when it
is lived out in the complete and lifelong gift
of self between a man and woman, does sexuality,
involving one’s body and its biological
functions, become personal and truly human. The
virtue of chastity for married people
encompasses the integrity of the person in a
total self-giving of themselves to their spouse.
In this age, this issue is particularly
challenging. Chastity is misunderstood and
ignored by numbers of Christians, including
single, engaged and married people. (see below
for information about
cohabitation and
contraception) Since many are not practicing
the virtue of chastity, their reverence for it
and their acknowledgement of violating it is
greatly diminished. But, the dire consequences
of separating sex and the sacrament of marriage
and an openness to life nevertheless remain and
do great damage to families and society. For all
of us, sins against chastity are serious
offenses against God.
We are informed by tradition and sacred
scripture that homosexual acts are at odds with
the dignity and integrity of the person, created
in the likeness and image of God, made male and
female. Such acts “ … are contrary to the
natural law. They close the sexual act to the
gift of life. They do not proceed from the
genuine affective and sexual complementarity.
Under no circumstances can they be approved.”
(CC 2357)
These may sound like harsh and uncompromising
words. The personal experience of affection that
one person feels for another in a homosexual relationship may in some aspects image
authentic love. But ultimately this
relationship is a only a counterfeit -- it can
never embody the true fullness of the authentic
chaste love between a man and woman in the
Sacrament of Marriage.
But there is great hope for those who struggle
with same sex attraction. The organization,
Courage, an
apostolate of the Roman Catholic Church,
ministers to those with same-sex attractions and
their loved ones. They have been endorsed by the
Pontifical Council for the Family. From their
website you will learn about homosexuality and
how by developing an interior life of chastity,
the universal call to all Christians, one can
move beyond the confines of the homosexual
identity to a more complete one in Christ.
For more information, check out
this document from the Vatican about the
pastoral concern of the Church for homosexual
persons.
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Pornography
Contrary to what many believe, pornography
is not harmless. Many people,
along with their families and children, are
seriously harmed by the twisted messages that
are contained in sexually explicit pictures,
books, magazines, movies and websites.
Pornographic images and writings distort the
beautiful gift of sexuality by separating its
expression from the covenant of marriage.
Pornography also teach us to treat ourselves and
others as mere objects to use for sexual
pleasure -- which is the very opposite of
authentic human love. The use of
pornography gives support and money to a corrupt
and profoundly unjust industry that is founded
on the degradation and exploitation of men,
women and children. There are many victims
of pornography.
For
many people, both men and women, pornography is not just a question of a
bad habit -- they have become burdened with a
virtual addiction to pornography and compulsive
sexual behavior, particularly due to the
Internet.
The good news is that there is help available
for those who are attracted to pornography or
who have sexual addictions. If someone you love
has this problem, we would recommend one of
these books and websites:
When Good Men Are Tempted, by Bill
Perkins (an excellent overall treatment of the
problem, although some of his advice is not in
keeping with Catholic beliefs on moral issues)
Out of the Shadows, by Patrick Carnes
(excellent review of sexual addictions,
including Internet problems)
CatholicTherapists.com -- a website that
offers referrals to counselors who are committed
to the teachings of the Church
Sexaholics Anonymous
-- this nation-wide organization conducts
support groups (12-Step type programs) in the
NYC area
www.porn-free.org -- a website full of good
info on porn addictions, with an emphasis on
spiritual strategies for healing
Esther
Ministries -- an Internet ministry
that offers help for wives whose husbands have
the problem.
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Cohabitation
Conventional wisdom tells young couples that
living together before marriage is a good idea
-- a way to test the relationship and to
determine if you're really ready for marriage.
As with so many other popular myths, this one is
absolutely wrong. Studies show very
clearly that living together does not “work”.
The divorce rate for couples who have lived
together is much higher than for other couples
(some studies report a 50% higher divorce rate);
in the case of men who have lived with a series
of women, the divorce rate is even higher; and
the longer the couple lives together, the higher
is the divorce rate. The conditional and
temporary nature of the cohabitation arrangement
typically leaves the couple with communication
and conflict resolution problems, and often
leads them to lack trust in each other.
They also frequently have serious reservations
about entering into the permanent bond of
marriage. In reality, living together
before marriage is not a good idea for a strong
relationship. The problem with cohabitation
goes much deeper than these pragmatic concerns.
The gift of sexuality has profound
meaning, written into our very nature by God.
Our sexuality is intended by God to lead us to
the life-long bond of marriage, in which we give
ourselves to our spouse freely, fully,
fruitfully, faithfully, and forever. When
spouses make love, they proclaim this covenant
with their bodies. Living together before
marriage, and the sexual activity that goes
along with it, fails to fulfill this beautiful purpose and
meaning of our sexuality. It is not the
full and unconditional giving of oneself for
life, since by its very nature it is conditional
and temporary.
In effect, living together is a mirage.
It resembles the real thing -- marriage -- but
it leads us astray and deprives us of the true and full gift of self God
wants for us. As a result, living
together before marriage -- and any sexual
activity outside of marriage -- undermines our
ability to love one another and gravely wounds
our relationship with God. What should you do
if you’re living together before marriage? You
should
speak honestly and openly to your priest about
the situation, and either separate or agree to
be chaste until marriage. Also, go to
Confession, and seek God’s forgiveness and
healing. You should also take a serious
look at your motivations and expectations about your relationship,
and ask yourselves if you are truly ready to
enter into a life-long marriage.
For more information, see this
interview with a nationally-respected expert
on successful marriages. Also, please check out the statement
by the Bishops of Pennsylvania, on
"Living Together", and the report
"Should We Live Together?",
published by the National Marriage Project of
Rutgers University.
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