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Pray for Brittany, Her Death Is Scheduled for November 1st

Pray for Brittany, Her Death Is Scheduled for November 1st

Last updated on: October 9, 2014 at 3:31 pm by Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble

Pray for Brittany, Her Death Is Scheduled for November 1st 2014-10-09T15:31:14-04:00 Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble

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When I first read about Brittany Maynard on People.com I gasped. Brittany’s smile is beautiful and her life circumstance so tragic.

At 29-years old Brittany has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and given months to live. She has moved to Oregon where assisted suicide is legal so she can end her life as she says “on her own terms.”

The article about her story has already been shared almost 100,000 times.

After reading the piece, my mouse hovered over the comments section as I wondered if I should make the plunge. I usually don’t read comments online; they are so often too ugly, too inhuman but I clicked, wondering what the pulse of the nation was on this issue.

Comments were mostly along these lines of argument:

“We all have a right to choose to die if we have a terrible disease.”

“If we allow our pets to die without suffering, why can’t we allow humans to die without suffering?”

“Who are we to judge someone else’s choice to die?”

I was glad to see that most people were compassionate and promised prayers for Brittany but I was dismayed to see that very few people questioned her decision to die on November 1st, the day after her husband’s birthday.

One comment that did question Brittany brought tears to my eyes. The woman said that she did not judge Brittany but she did want to say that she visited a woman once who was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She was going to sing for her funeral. The woman was in bed preparing for her death. The funeral never came. The tumor disappeared and the woman went back to her normal life.

Another comment came from a woman who was diagnosed with the same disease as Brittany and given a year to live. She was writing the comment six years later.

I have already written a blog post detailing some of the rational arguments against legalizing assisted suicide. Diagnoses can be wrong, patients are often depressed and are not thinking clearly. Most doctors are against assisted suicide and disability groups overwhelmingly oppose it. States that have legalized assisted suicide have suicide rates that are going up, etc, etc. I wrote the post in response to the “Death with Dignity Act” that was barely defeated recently in Massachusetts, thanks mostly in part to efforts by the Boston Archdiocese.

But the organization behind the movement to legalize physician assisted suicide is still on the move. The group that used to go by the name The Hemlock Society has become more shrewd with slick web sites, heart-string tugging campaigns, and its now much more palatable name of “Compassion and Choices.” The group is at work at this moment campaigning to legalize assisted suicide in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey.

So, the point of this blog post?

Pray!

Please pray for Brittany. Pray that she chooses to live the rest of her life rather than cut it short. If she chooses to go ahead with her suicide, please pray for the repose of her soul.

Pray for the effect Brittany’s decision will have on others. Pray for those who do not see anything wrong in ending life prematurely. Pray that in this age of relativism, laws for assisted suicide will not continue to pass. Pray for a change of minds and hearts.

Pray also for those affected by these laws or who will be affected by them in the states that have legalized assisted suicide; pray especially for the poor and vulnerable, all those who are considered a burden.

If you are interested in learning more about this issue or possibly donating to organizations that fight assisted suicide, check out:

Committee Against Physician Assisted Suicide
The Wrong Approach to End-of-Life Issues at the USCCB
Not Dead Yet: Disability activists against assisted suicide
Californians Against Assisted Suicide: They have a nifty section where you can contact legislature if you are a resident.
And an interesting link – Religious Groups Views on End of Life Issues

United in prayer.

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