This weekend, the colour magazine of The Weekend Australian carries a front page feature ‘Final Wish’ which deals with the assisted dying laws which are sweeping the country.  The author Kathy Marks has sensitively interviewed a number of people who have availed themselves of these new laws.  She also interviewed loved ones and well known long time advocates for euthanasia like Dr Philip Nitschke and Rodney Syme.  Unsurprisingly they think the limits put on the new laws are too restrictive and would like to see state assistance with voluntary death made available to all persons confronting existential suffering wanting to put an end to things.   

Kathy Marks also interviewed me at some length.  She accurately and pithily summarised my arguments thus:

‘Frank Brennan, the Jesuit priest and law professor, fears the right of conscientious objection – which also applies to healthcare institutions – will be watered down over time. He is concerned, too, that “euthanasia could become a shortcut” in remote areas with poor palliative care. “For centuries, ‘Do not harm and do not kill’ was a clear line, and people knew what it meant,” he says. “As a society we’ve now departed from that, and there’s no other line with equal clarity or depth.”’

Homily 16.5.21

We thank God for the idler with pinked spicy hands, at ease with us, with wide mouth that has practised the name of each of us whether telling us not to cling or inviting us to place our hand in his side.  On this Sunday of Divine Mercy, we recall Pope Francis’ reflection: ‘The peace of Jesus made the disciples pass from remorse to mission. The peace of Jesus awakens mission.  It entails not ease and comfort, but the challenge to break out of ourselves. The peace of Jesus frees from the self-absorption that paralyzes; it shatters the bonds that keep the heart imprisoned.’   Let’s walk free in this Easter season.  Let’s embrace the new possibilities for us as Church emerging from the pandemic and preparing for the next phase of our Plenary Council.  Let’s be free enough to follow the prohibition not to cling and the injunction to walk free.

Homily 24.4.22

Happy Christmas.  On Thursday one of my nieces gave birth to her first born.  Both are well and thriving.  What better Christmas present could there be.  What better pointer to the real meaning of Christmas.  I was a grand uncle for the 28th time.  My niece texted me on the morning of the birth: ‘Thank you for all the prayers.  They were much needed and appreciated.  Can’t wait to introduce you.’  Like the shepherds, I felt I should set out as soon as possible to meet the newborn.  We will meet in Queensland early in the new year.

Christmas Homily 2023

Today is Social Justice Sunday.  Our bishops have issued a statement entitled To Live Life to the Full: Mental Health in Australia Today.  They urge each of us to take three practical steps:

1.	Reject stigmatisation of those with mental illness
2.	Work for the transformation of social determinants of mental ill-health
3.	Call for policies and service provision that meet the needs of the poorest, most marginalised and recognise in them the face of Christ Jesus.

At a loss how to put flesh on these bones, I consulted an experienced psychiatrist.  I asked, ‘What can a lay person like me do to support people with mental illness?’  Answer: ‘Once someone is mentally ill, there’s not much you will be able to do.  The emphasis must be on prevention first up.’  On one level, it’s very simple.  Your mental well-being is more likely to be assured if you have a roof over your head, if you’re warm enough, if you have food in your belly, if you have someone to talk to, and if you are spared domestic violence or abuse.  Better still if you’ve got gainful employment and good education.  In a time of pandemic, your physical and mental well-being will be enhanced if you have a regular routine, regular exercise, healthy food, hobbies, and mindfulness exercises or meditation.  And don’t keep looking at the 24/7 COVID news reports which are sure to make you lose perspective.  The determinants of mental illness are biological, psychological, social, and cultural.

Homily 16.5.21

Frank Brennan 6

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