England and Wales: Day for Life on 20 June. Bishops, “care for the sick and dying”

The annual Day for Life that the Catholic Church in England and Wales will celebrate next Sunday, 20 June, will be dedicated to “care for the sick and dying” and to promoting “respect” for life and its vulnerability. The pandemic has shown us even more clearly how fragile life is: over 126,000 people have died from Covid-19 in the UK, in circumstances that have exacerbated “the suffering” of this separation and the “precious gift” of a loved one’s “last moments of life”, says the website, which also provides resources and reflections. Although the nation has witnessed “acts of heroic love” by medical staff and the loving care of everyone in an attempt to stop the pandemic, discussion is now focussed on the legalisation of assisted suicide: the bill is all the more alarming following “a year of pandemic which has caused the untimely deaths of millions around the world”. The alternative is a “true compassion” which “finds expression in treating the dying person with love, with dignity and the appropriate palliative care”. The website hosts a fundraising initiative to support the work of those engaged in the protection of life and recommends external resources on the subject of “good death”, such as artofdyingwell.org, which offers advice to the terminally ill and their caregivers; livinganddyingwell.org.uk which advances the debate on end-of-life issues; and righttolife.org.uk which brings together those engaged in the protection of life.
Sarah Numico