Posted on 08/28/2003 5:20:42 AM PDT by Ragtime Cowgirl
Brothers cite Florida’s Schiavo case
as euthanasia’s ‘Roe v. Wade’
October 7, 2004
By Julie Carroll
The Catholic Spirit
http://www.thecatholicspirit.com/archives.php?article=2899
After 12 years of caring for the late founder of their St. Paul community after an illness left him severely brain damaged, the Franciscan Brothers of Peace now have turned their attention to Terri Schindler Schiavo, a 40-year-old Clearwater, Fla., woman whose case they say is the “Roe v. Wade of the euthanasia movement in the United States.”
Schiavo, who has had limited brain function since collapsing in her home for unknown reasons in 1990, lives in a Clearwater nursing home. She can breathe on her own but requires nutrition and hydration through a feeding tube.
On Sept. 23, the Florida Supreme Court overturned an October 2003 ruling that mandated reinsertion of her feeding tube six days after her husband and legal guardian, Michael Schiavo, had the tube removed by court order so she could die.
A spokesman for Flordia Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday that the governor will ask the Florida Supreme Court to reconsider its 7-0 ruling against a law designed to keep Schiavo alive.
Michael Schiavo, who now has two children by another woman, says Terri would want the feeding tube removed. Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, say that she would want to live, in part because of her Catholic beliefs.
Medical experts have disputed Schiavo’s hope for recovery.
While speaking at the National Right to Life Convention in July, the Franciscan Brothers of Peace met Terri’s brother, Bobby Schindler, who is fighting for guardianship of Terri.
“We visited at the convention with Bobby and said we wanted to support the family and pray for them,” said Brother Paul O’Donnell, the community’s leader. “After caring for Brother Michael, . . . all of us were just profoundly convicted that we had to do something.”
Since the convention, several of the brothers have traveled to Florida to visit with the Schindlers. They’re planning to return to Florida on Oct. 13.
The brothers’ latest newsletter is devoted entirely to Terri Schiavo. They also have raised funds for the Schindlers’ legal defense.
“We felt compelled to share our resources as a living memorial for Brother Michael,” Brother Paul said.
The brothers say there is never a situation where it would be ethical to deny nutrition and hydration to someone in what some medical professionals call a “persistent vegetative state.”
“At a hospice home, there are times when a person can’t eat and they don’t feel like eating and they’re dying,” Brother Paul said. “But Terri’s not dying, and that’s the difference. We’re not talking about someone that’s terminally ill. We’re talking about someone that can live another 20, 30, 40 years.”
“Mercy killing” is wrong, Brother Paul added, because it creates a false sense of compassion. “It’s leaving one’s own personal suffering one can’t bear. But you have to realize that quality of life is not a Christian value. It’s a secular value. . . . God’s divine purpose is being carried out no matter what happens.”
The brothers believe Schiavo’s case could set a precedent for future euthanasia cases in the United States.
In a talk earlier this year at the Vatican to more than 350 physicians and medical ethicists from 42 countries, Pope John Paul II said: “The administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act. Its use, furthermore, should be considered, in principle, ordinary and proportionate, and as such morally obligatory, insofar as and until it is seen to have attained its proper finality.”
Brother Conrad Richardson, who traveled to Florida with Brother Paul, said it is important to respect all people because they are made in God’s image.
“In spite of the difficulty [of caring for a disabled person], one of the greatest gifts is that it challenges us as caregivers, friends and loved ones in a position to care for them to have pity and mercy and to reach out to them in love,” Brother Conrad said. “In my six years of caring for Brother Michael, that was the greatest lesson — to love someone who isn’t able to express appreciation for your help. It saddens me greatly that there are some that don’t see that same gift in Terri.”
Good morning, amdgmary -- thanks for posting that. It is heartening to know that Terri and her family are getting attention and encouragement from those with first hand experience. Hugs, and prayers always.
Bump
Glenn Beck has promised to discuss Terri's case today.
Thank you! I'll check the archives later.
Glen Beck/Listen Live Every Weekday 9AM-Noon Eastern
http://www.glennbeck.com/audio/
^ for remembrance ^
.
I think we owe Terri Schiavo at least a thousand posts. Freep friends, please ping your lists. Thanks FV
763 posted on 09/02/2003 1:49:44 PM EDT by floriduh voter (TO JOIN TERRI PING LIST CONTACT kimmie7)
She deserved her life but at least now we know the evil exists in our own land in no uncertain terms.
Your post 10 rings true four years later...
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