Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
The Brothers of Charity are clear: no euthanasia is possible in our hospitals

The Brothers of Charity are clear: no euthanasia is possible in our hospitals

Last updated on: September 17, 2017 at 12:01 pm by CNA Daily News

The Brothers of Charity are clear: no euthanasia is possible in our hospitals 2017-09-17T12:01:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Brussels, Belgium, Sep 17, 2017 / 06:01 am (Church Pop).- Br. René Stockman says it clearly: the path to euthanasia is not viable for a Catholic hospital.

After a board of trustees decision to allow euthanasia in Belgian hospitals sponsored by the Brothers of Charity, the community’s general superior spoke with CNA about the issues at stake, and the possibility that the Brothers of Charity might discontinue sponsoring hospitals if things do not change.

The Congregation of the Brothers of Charity is a religious community of brothers founded in Belgium in 1807, with the mission to care for the poor, elderly and those affected by psychiatric diseases.

“It was immediately clear to our founder, Fr. Pierre Joseph Triest, that there was the need to combine the contemplative life of religious orders with a professional work on charity. But we are not social workers, though we work in professional ways. Mostly, through our social activity we help people to see how God shine in their lives.”

Pioneers in the field of psychiatric care, the Brothers of Charity are active in many part of the world. In Belgium, they sponsor 15 hospitals and care for about 5,000 patients.

The hospitals are managed by a civil corporation named after the Brothers of Charity, though the board of trustees includes only 3 Brothers of Charity out of 15 members.

This board made the decision to allow Catholic hospitals to permit acts of euthanasia, in certain limited circumstances. The Brothers of Charity protested this decision, appealed to the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, and the Vatican responded by requesting that the corporation stop allowing euthanasia in their hospitals.

The board of trustees defied the Vatican request, and published a long statement in which they reiterated their view.

Br. Stockman explained to CNA that “the next step is a meeting with the authorities of the Vatican during the week of Sep. 25. We will then make our decisions in accordance with the vision of the Vatican.”

Asked if the Brothers of Charity could withdraw their sponsorship from the hospital, Br. Stockam said that “if there no change in the policies, it is a possibility.” If the 3 members of the organization leave the board of the hospital, it will no longer be considered a Catholic hospital.

In their statement, the hospital board of trustees lamented the lack of dialogue and stressed they will “continue with the request of establishing a dialogue,” though they do not want in any way change their decision.

Br. Stockman commented that “there is only a request to dialogue on the way to implement euthanasia, and not on the fact of euthanasia as such. I asked very clearly many times to first dialogue on euthanasia and the vision as such, in the hope coming to a consensus, but they refused to change their initial vision”.

The civil board has claimed that their decision is “consistent” with the doctrine of the Church, since “the text has come about starting from the Christian frame of thought as we apply it within the organization. In this, we always take into account the shifts and evolutions within society. We have considered the following elements: recognition of the exceptional, proportional view of ethics, deontological view and ideologization, and choice of conscience".

This view is completely rejected by Br. Stockman. “This is totally wrong and against the doctrine of the Church,” he underscored.

He then explained: “The whole issue starts with the refusal to see the respect of life still as absolute. For them, it became fundamental, on the same level as the autonomy of the patient and the relation in the care. Therefore we cannot accept their statement. They take distance of the doctrine of the Church.”

Hermann van Rompuy, a former Belgian prime minister who is a part of the board of trustees, said that “the times when the Pope had the last word are far away.”

Brother Stockman explained to CNA that the Brothers of Charity appealed to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith because the civil board of trustees “refused both our request and also the one of the Belgian bishops” to change their policies, and so “we had to appeal to the Holy See.”

The Holy See, Br. Stockman recounted, “asked the hospitals to conform themselves with the doctrine of the Church about the absolute respect for life and not doing euthanasia to psychiatric patients. After our request as general superior and council and after the statement of the Belgian Bishops, the civil corporation governing our hospitals in Belgium refused to adapt their vision.”

Br. Stockman affirmed that the Brothers of Charity would remain faithful to the Church’s teaching, despite serious civil pressure to the contrary.

“I am sure,” he said, “that the great majority of the brothers, also in Belgium, are against euthanasia, but the pressure on them is very high. We have clear guidelines against euthanasia, that we developed already before this case.”

Europe

Previous Post

September 16, 2017

How do we fund sacred art in the Church? This priest has an idea

Next Post

September 17, 2017 Pope Francis: God’s love is shown in his forgiveness of our sins

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who was David's great-grandmother?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Tamar Bathsheba Rahab Ruth