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January 17, 2006
Statement of Archbishop John G. Vlazny on the Gonzales v. Oregon Decision
Today’s opinion by the U.S. Supreme Court in Gonzales v. Oregon is truly disappointing.
The failure of our governmental structures to prevent doctors from violating medicine’s historic ethical prohibition, “Do no harm,” is a tragic error of immense proportion and significance. The ethical directive to doctors to protect their patients predates Christianity, has served humanity well and has attempted to maintain the ethical integrity of the medical profession.
This decision most tragically continues to distance our national judicial precedents from respect for life. Society’s continuing disregard for the dignity and sanctity of human life from conception until natural death does not bode well for protection of the unborn, the terminally ill, the elderly and the disabled in our nation.
Through the health care ministry of our hospitals and nursing homes, the Catholic Church will continue to support, care for and relieve the pain of those who are sick and dying. Terminally ill patients should have their pain controlled and be comforted, not be assisted to commit suicide by their doctors.
The Oregon Catholic Conference will continue to explore avenues within the medical profession, through Catholic health care and the public policy arena to protect those who are dying from harm and to restore society’s respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life.
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