The science of palliative care, as it is called, has made remarkable progress. We commend and praise the work of all those who devote themselves to the care of the terminally ill. Euthanasia goes beyond not prolonging life. It is direct and intentional killing. We argue that this involves playing God and it places a most dangerous power in the hands of human beings.
Most doctors are opposed to euthanasia.
Their profession is one of saving life, not extinguishing it, and legalising euthanasia would place intolerable pressures on them. The fear of suffering should not so dominate our thinking as to prevent us from seeing the true and positive reality of death. Death is the supreme moment of life, when we enter most deeply into the mystery of the life that God has given us. There is no virtue in suffering for its own sake, but the experience of death is a profoundly Christian experience when we go to meet God at the moment when God chooses to call us.