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February 6, 2018 | The Valley Catholic
COMMUNITY
Living Well, Dying Well
By Father Gerald D. Coleman, P.S.S.
Adjunct professor,
Graduate Department of Pastoral
Ministries, Santa Clara University
Contentious viewpoints become quite vociferous
when a person’s “living well” amounts to living poorly
due to illness and intractable pain, usually accompa-
nied by emotional, physical, and spiritual loss. The
question morphs into, “What can I do to die well?” I
will explore this question and the Catholic tradition on
care at the end of life at my talk “Living Well, Leaving
Well” on February 22, 9:30 am, at Saint Lucy Parish in
Campbell. All are welcome.
In Spy of the First Person (2017), Pulitzer Prize win-
ning writer Sam Shepard presents a striking portrait
of a man undergoing medical tests and treatments
for a condition that is rendering him more and more
dependent on those caring for him. The man “knows
something is wrong” as he sits in a rocking chair in a
screened porch and “just rocks all day mumbling to
himself.” The “more helpless he becomes, the more
remote he becomes.”
Another disturbing narrative is recorded in “The
Last Days of Jil Finnegan” (www.mercurynews.
com/2017/10/01/right-to-die-in-california-the-last-
days-of-jil-finnegan), a 55-year-old Oakland resident
who decided to take advantage of California’s “End
More than 100 guests attended Father Coleman’s Living Well,
Leaving Well presentation in 2017.
of Life Option.” She suffered from incessant pain
from cancerous tumors that lodged against her vocal
cords and spread to her neck, back, and stomach. The
methadone and oxycodone she took three times a day
were only sending her into a stupor, forcing her to sleep
most of the time. She always wanted to be in control
and decided that she would die on the 14th anniver-
sary of her marriage to Goeff. Her Stanford oncologist
prescribed the lethal drug.
A dozen invited friends came to say goodbye on her
death-day. One acknowledged that cancer had ravaged
Jil and God did not want her to suffer. Another felt that
being present at her self-induced death was “almost
like an execution.”
Her manner of death greatly impacted her brother
Tim who was suffering from terminal lung cancer.
Would he follow the same path?
These vignettes describe how many people are liv-
ing and dying in America. In his new book On Hope
(2017), Pope Francis writes, “In these times that appear
dark, in which we sometimes feel disoriented by the
evil and violence that surround us, by the distress of
so many of our brothers and sisters, we need hope.”
The Catholic moral tradition proclaims this hope by
insisting that all human life is sacred, and the dignity
of every person is the foundation of a moral vision of
society. We have a strong responsibility to walk with
all persons on their journey of life, dying, and death.
Our moral tradition has at its disposal numerous tools
to help people in life’s voyage, for example, proper
care, and reasonable treatment that is not or does not
become burdensome. The Church supports the proper
use of pain medications, e.g., morphine, and presents
balanced views on its use. This tradition offers great
assistance to people when medical treatments become
non-beneficial and the time has arrived when it is per-
missible to allow oneself to die and enter eternal life.
Living well and dying well are spectrums in the
passages of life. Understanding and assessing them
accurately enforces that both living and dying well is
a goal worth the effort.
To explore this topic further, join me Febru-
ary 22 at 9:30 a.m., at Saint Lucy Parish in Camp-
bell. RSVP at (408) 325-5288. Learn more at
www.CatholicCharitiesSCC.org/Decisions.
Readings at Mass Offer God’s ‘Real-Time’ Help, Pope Says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Listening to
the Scripture readings at Mass is hear-
ing God speak directly to his people,
offering spiritual sustenance and needed
guidance for life’s difficult journey, Pope
Francis said.
For that reason, the prescribed texts
should never be skipped or substituted
during the Mass, lectors should read
clearly and people should always listen
with an open heart so that the words may
eventually bear fruit in good deeds, the
pope said at his weekly general audience
January 31.
Continuing his series of audience
talks on the Mass, Pope Francis spoke
about the Liturgy of the Word and the
importance of listening to the Bible read-
ings at Mass.
“In the Liturgy of the Word, in fact,
the pages of the Bible stop being some-
thing written and become the living
word, delivered by God himself,” the
pope said.
As the readings are proclaimed, peo-
ple in the pews should be silent and re-
ceptive, opening their hearts and minds
to what is being said, not looking around
or making small talk and criticizing what
other people are wearing, he said.
“We have to listen, open our hearts,
because it is God himself who is speak-
ing to us. So don’t think about other
things or talk about something else.
Understood?” he asked the thousands of
people gathered in Saint Peter’s Square.
Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County invites you to a special presentation:
LIVING WELL,
LEAVING WELL
Fr. Gerald Coleman, P.S.S.
Learn the specifics of the Catholic tradition on care at the end of life.
Families, longevity and taxes are changing. How will these changes impact you and your family?
A panel of professionals will answer your quesions about planning for today’s families.
Thursday, February 22, 2018
9:30 – 11:15 a.m. Presentation • 11:30 – 12:30 p.m. Discussion
St. Lucy Parish, Campbell
Call: Alison Poetsch 408-325-5288 or
Visit: www.CatholicCharitiesSCC.org/Decisions