Ethicists, doctors, and governments across the West continue to roll out physician-assisted suicide as a medical option — causing heated debate about human dignity, the nature of human life, and what Pope Francis has consistently called “throwaway culture.”
As part of this conversation, the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life issued a new text, titled “Little Lexicon on the End-of-Life,” with a view to offering clarity on terminology and concepts in a morally fraught subject amid an increasingly “secular” context.
Prepared by a study group from within the academy, published last month and circulated to all members of the Italian bishops’ conference, the text addresses some of the most controversial end-of-life subjects, including euthanasia and the moral norms around providing — and possibly withdrawing — food and water in some cases.
According to the academy’s president, Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, the text is not meant to offer new teaching, but instead aims to cut through confusion over key terms and offer clarity for those navigating the most complicated and sensitive situations.
Yet on the issue of basic care for unresponsive patients, the 88-page booklet seems instead to raise real questions about its understanding of and alignment with previous Church teaching documents, and the mandate of the Church, as articulated by Vatican Council II, to read and respond to the signs of the times.
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