Too quick a reading of "Samaritanus bonus," released yesterday by the CDF, will focus only on the guidelines for the pastoral care of the sick and dying outlined at the end of the letter. That's where the "juicy" parts of the text are found, after all.
But this facile reading misses the letter's core concern, which is to offer pastors and faithful a theological and spiritual lens through which to understand the mystery of death and dying.
Because a person's final illness represents the perfection of his entrance into the Paschal Mystery, all care given to the dying--by doctors, nurses, pastors, chaplains, family, friends, etc.--should aim at assisting him to enter fully into graced intimacy with Christ on Calvary.
This is why medical, spiritual, and pastoral practices that distract from or even offend this mystery do harm to the dying person, who remains in the image of God and a fellow pilgrim on the way to glory. To be sure, euthanasia and assisted suicide offend this mystery grevously.
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