MAY I INTRODUCE A VERY IMPORTANT TOPIC: The Right of terminally ill People, or people in extreme Pain and Suffering, to Die With the Help of An Assistant.

The following comment, which I quote, appeared in a letter in the recent edition of the United Church Observer, Canada:

To which I responded: Sheila, you write, "Should we/will we be allowed to have a physician assisted death when the suffering is great and when there is no hope for recovery? I hope so. The alternative is not to have a fulfilling life, but rather to have prolonged suffering. There is some suffering that only death can end."
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Good comments, Sheila, thanks. I hope the following true story--and there are others like it I could tell--helps. It contains information, written from the point of view of an octogenarian, which I believe could help us all have the kind of "fulfilling life" you mention. I happen to believe that, like birth, a fulfilling death is part of the whole process we call life.

The following happened several years ago, in the fall of the year, while I was the minister at Willowdale United Church.

The phone rang. "Rev. King, my name is ... I am not a member of your church, but mother is. May I come and see you at your office this evening." the young man said in a voice filled with distress. He went on, " It is about my mother. In her late seventies, she is in hospital, seriously ill and in great pain and distress about what is ahead of her. She asked if I would speak to you."

Later, in my office, the young man gave me the details of her condition. He said, "You may recall that mother is a diabetic. Awhile back she lost one of her legs. Just this week, her surgeon told her that he will have to amputate the other leg. On hearing this she said to me just this afternoon: 'Why doesn't God take me? I do not want to have to go through another winter like the one I just suffered. I hate to bother him with this medical problem, but would you call the Rev. King' for me?"

"Rev. King" he said, "I live a distance from here and am not active in any church, but through mother I have heard that, based on a program you call pneumatology, you have preached about and given many lectures on the power of what you call pneumatherapy--something to do with a special kind of hypnosis-based prayer. I realize you take a rational, non-magical approach to healing. So do you think this could help mother deal with the pain, suffering and distress she is now experiencing?"

I agreed to visit his mother as soon as I could.

Soon after talking to the son I spoke to the mother at the hospital. about about what her son had told me. Then I engaged her in a very frank, open and even pleasant conversation about how she felt about her life and the choices we make--physically, mentally and spiritually. We talked about her family, about death, dying, and her thoughts about life eternal.

With her permission I said let me refresh your memory about the kind of hypnosis-based guided and meditative prayer I taught in the classes on holism. This being done I said: Now let's do it and I will give you the opportunity to add your thoughts as we go along. The process I call pneumatherapy took about twenty five minutes.

To those who ask questions about pneumatherapy and the healing arts I always make it clear: Yes, I often consult with the few medical doctors who show an interest. Some, including nature paths, chiropractors and the like, have even taken the program. Some are on a special board set up by the church board.

Two days later, I got the following call from the son: "Rev. King, I cannot thank you enough. This morning I got a call. The doctor's nurse called me. She said: 'Early this morning your mother died, peacefully, in her sleep.' "

Three days later, at the funeral, he and I shared with all present what had happened.

Yes, I agree: Family, friends and all, including good practitioners of the healing arts, have a role to play in how we live in and exit this physical life. But let us never forget the specific role that, by the power of the Holy Spirit (Pneuma) those who say we are servants--lay and clergy--of the Great Physician can play.

For more information you can check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumatology
http://www.lindsayking.ca


G~O~D--Now & ForeverIS:Nature, Nurture & PNEUMA-ture, Thanks to Warren Farr&ME AT www.unitheist.org