By Thomas Cardinal Collins, February 10, 2015 “For my life is spent with sorrow, and my years with sighing; my strength fails because of my misery, and my bones waste away.” Psalm 31 In our days, as in the days of the psalmist, so many years ago, people can suffer grievously during their journey through ...read more

It’s always difficult to say something about a subject that has not affected you in a particularly personal way. Nevertheless, death is a subject that is before us these days as a community of faith and as a society as a whole, and therefore warrants some reflection. I’d like to comment on two recent events ...read more

We’ve spent the last month looking at what it means to have euthanasia and/or assisted suicide legal in our country (see part 4, part 3, part 2 and part 1). Let me conclude by giving you some definitions to help you have this conversation with your family and friends. Passive Euthanasia: Some will claim that ...read more

May 6 this year will go down as one of the saddest days in the history of the province of Quebec. On that day, members of the Quebec national assembly voted in favour of Bill 52, the “Act of Respecting End-of-life.” Supporters call it “medical aid in dying”. I call it what it is: Euthanasia. ...read more

Two weeks ago there was a huge victory for opponents of euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada in a case that determined that doctors must obtain consent before removing life-support from a patient. The case was that of Hassan Rasouli who apparently was misdiagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state since October 2010. According ...read more

The world was shocked by the news out of Belgium that 45-year-old deaf twins chose to be euthanized after learning that they were losing their vision. The case epitomized the “slippery slope” that euthanasia opponents have been warning about. Euthanasia is usually advocated using the example of terminally-ill patients in unbearable pain who give full ...read more

The ‘Right to Die with Dignity’ issue regarding euthanasia and assisted suicide has created much debate and division in Canada. The province of Quebec began its public hearings earlier in September. The Bishops of Quebec presented their opinions today to the Special Commission on the issue of dying with dignity. They submitted a ten page ...read more