SW News: Responding to the US state of Oregon’s move to remove the residency requirement for assisted suicide, the Archbishop Alexander K. Sample of Portland expressed the Church’s solidarity with the suffering and the dying.

Oregon was the first American state to permit assisted suicide in 1997 and ruled that only residents of Oregon would be eligible for lethal prescriptions.
However, the Oregon Medical Board, the Multnomah County District Attorney, and the Oregon Health Authority have now agreed to do away with this requirement and make assisted suicide easily accessible to anyone anywhere.

In a statement published on April 1, Archbishop Sample agreed that the diagnosis of a terminal illness was a “heavy burden” for those who receive it. Exploring the meaning of earthly existence and the Christian response in the face of death, he wrote: “Assisted suicide sows confusion about the purpose of life and death. It suggests a life can lose its purpose and death has no meaning. Cutting life short is not the answer to death.”

The Archbishop encouraged everyone to embrace the “precious moments” at the end of life as it is precisely at this time that we come to the realization of what is “the most important in life”. He said that these final moments can also lead to healing and reconciliation between family members and bring about “deep compassion” from caregivers. “Our final days help us to prepare for our ultimate destiny,” he reminded everyone.

Archbishop Sample stated, “…death is not the final word” and that “eternal life awaits all those who entrust themselves to God.” He encouraged the suffering and the dying: “Don’t give up hope! We are with you. As friends, families, and neighbors we pledge to surround you with our love and compassion until the sacred moment when God calls you home.”