Life is a gift from God and only God has the right to decide when it is over, said Fr Kevin Doran, secretary to the Irish Bishops' committee for bioethics, yesterday. Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent, reports.
Fr Doran said that the church would want to be "very sympathetic to the position of people faced with suffering at the end of life - which sometimes could take weeks, even years."
However, even where oneself was concerned "you do not own your life to do with as you wish. You are responsible for what you do with your life, but not for the ultimate decision on disposing of it," he said. Fr Doran was commenting on the report in The Irish Times that a chronically disabled man was brought by his family from Dublin to Switzerland last year for an assisted suicide.
He instanced the Pope as "a witness to living through the declining years and one's own suffering with faith".
Fr Doran pointed out that, on the other hand, unreasonable efforts to prolong life were not required and that indeed such efforts might be disrespectful to the dignity of the person concerned.
In its 2002 End of Life Care - Ethical and Pastoral Issues document, the bishops' committee for bioethics said two extremes were to be avoided: "Trying to keep people alive at all costs, even when it is clear that death is imminent, and deciding to end the life of a person on the basis that his or her life is no longer worth living."
Dick Spicer of the Irish Humanists Association said it held that euthanasia and assisted suicide were morally acceptable where certain conditions were met.
For instance, that the person concerned was of right mind when he/she decided to end his/her life; that the situation was incurable; that at least two doctors were present.
He believed it was dangerous to allow other jurisdictions to set the rules where the issue was concerned and that a safer regime might operate if proper legislation was introduced domestically.
Dr Ruth Cullen of the Pro-Life Campaign said it was deeply regrettable that any human being should have his/her life ended in such a manner.
"Assisted suicide violates the value and dignity of every human life and is morally wrong. The consequences of such killing cannot be ignored, nor indeed, its effect on people with similar disabilities, regarding the value and purpose of their lives," she said.
"For all of us, this case is a chilling reminder of the need to reaffirm the dignity and worth of each and every human life."
She called for "a full investigation by the appropriate authorities" to establish the facts behind the case.