Symposium at Notre Dame: “Human Life is sacred, precious and inviolable”

JERUSALEM – The 3rd day of preparation to the World Day of the Sick which took place in Nazareth on 11 February, was held at Notre Dame Center where a symposium gathered some hundred persons around the problems facing the end of life and acceptance of disabled people.

The day was opened by a Mass at the Holy Sepulchre celebrated by Bishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto, Apostolic Nuncio in Israel, Apostolic Delegate for Jerusalem & Palestine, at the Franciscan Chapel.

Around noontime, a meeting took place between representatives of Pastoral of Sick in the different churches of the Holy Land. It was an occasion for Mgr Zygmunt Zimowski, Head of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral of Health Services, to talk about the broad lines of the Pastoral of the Sick within the Catholic Church.

The symposium

Practically the whole afternoon was devoted to a symposium on the theme “Human Life is sacred, precious and inviolable – Problems facing the end of life and acceptance of disabled people”, coordinated by Dr Etienne Lepicard and animated by Dr Youssef Zaknoun.

His Beatitude Msgr Fouad Twal, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, sent to all a message of welcome, thanking the Holy Father for having chosen the Holy Land to welcome the Day of the Sick in this Year of Mercy. He encouraged the participants to meditate on the Gospel and on the attitude of Jesus towards the sick : “Christ shows us how strongly we are called to respect life, how strongly each human being has an infinite dignity and is loved by God”. He then referred to the Middle East, and to the Holy Land in particular, as a “sick” land, calling on leaders to open up their eyes, to work for the common good. He thanked “all the institutions of the Holy Land that are taking care of the sick and that are working for the healing of our wounded society”.

Then, His Excellency Bishop Zygmunt Zimowki spoke on behalf of the Pontifical Delegation present for the occasion. He gave an overview of the teaching of the last three Popes on matters of end of life, acceptance of disabled people and   dignity of human being. He insisted on the fact that the Church cannot evolve on these matters, stating that a human being cannot ever be considered as an artifact, no matter the stage of his life.

1st part : Problems of end of life

The first part was devoted to the problems of end of life. Dr Etienne Lepicard who presented his research on matters relating to biomedical studies gave the theoretical outline. While analyzing the Israeli legislation on the end of life, he sought to assess the place of Christianity and of Christians under this law, and to show that the basic positions of the Church were there. He also explained how the Israeli Law tried to find “a balance between respect of patient’s autonomy and sainthood of life” (The law indeed forbids euthanasia, suicide assistance and interruption of medical care).

This subject was explained by three witnesses: Dr. Dalia Mor, a Jewish general practitioner, related the last moments in her father’s life, hospitalized at St Louis French Hospital under palliative care. This place which for her has become “the heart in the heart of the heart of the Holy Land”, “it is the human being which is more important”. Then it was Adel Hussein, a Muslim nurse who had worked at this same hospital for over 30 years, who underlined the importance to secure for persons at the end of their life not only medical care, but also affection and comfort, so that their dignity would be respected as human beings. Later, Sr Monika Düllmann, Director of the Hospital, spoke on her mission and underlined how people at the end their life could impart peace upon us in the midst of all sufferings on this earth. St Louis Hospital is indeed a true place of reconciliation, as Jews, Christians and Muslims work in there and are being taken care of without distinction.

Testimony of Bishop Yohanna Boutros Moshe, Syrian Catholic Bishop of Mossul

This first part ended by the testimony given by Bishop Yohanna Boutros Moshe, Syrian Catholic Bishop of Mossul, invited by the Pontifical Council. After having read a hymn for the dead according to Syrian liturgy, referring to the 1st chapter of Genesis, about the central place of human dignity in Christian anthropology, he came back on the flight of Iraqi Christians following the invasion of their villages by the Islamic State (ISIS). “ISIS does not recognize any dignity to human being: for them its value is null, similar to the one of a cow or a pack of cigarettes”. He gave several examples, showing how Christians of Iraq, in their distress, practice nevertheless acts of mercy, supporting one another in their misfortune. He ended his intervention addressing Pope Francis, entreating the Church to extend compassion to the Christians of Iraq who had “lost everything, except faith and moral”. “We are in serious danger, our diocese is heading towards its end, and with it the whole Syrian church, one of the most ancient Churches of Christianity, he said”.

2nd part : Acceptance of disabled people

The 2nd part of the symposium was devoted to the acceptance of disabled people. Fr Faysal Hijazin spoke first about all kinds of disability, later tackling the situation in Jordan and in Palestine, saying that the percentage of disabled was one of the highest in the whole world. He referred to various initiatives meant to foster them, namely the Center Our Lady of Peace in Amman, as well as many congregations and NGOs. Fr Hijazin reflected on the word of God as well as on the teaching of the Church, reminding us that respecting the dignity of the person is an obligation to each and every human being, and he underlined how much it is necessary to come closer to persons in suffering.

Nihay Jubran, doctor at the French Hospital, Rweida Jubran of the Italian Hospital, Hanan Marjiyeh of the French Hospital, all three coming from Nazareth, brought in their testimony.

Later, Fr David Neuhaus, SJ, spoke about his experience of visiting prisoners, opening thus a reflection on another act of mercy.

As a conclusion, His Beatitude Fouad Twal announced the setup of four committees of Christian ethics in the Holy Land.

Bishop Marcuzzo, Episcopal Coordinator for World Day of the Sick – Nazareth 2016, did not fail to thank Jiries Abdo, of the French Hospital, Isaura, Sisters of Charity, Franck Kantor, of the Presbyterian Church, Violette Khoury of the French Hospital, Zaher Armali, Suzanne Srujy, David Neuhaus, who had organized this event. He also thanked the translators, all the participants, and the Legionaries of Christ and the Regnum Christi which had welcomed the symposium at Notre Dame Center. He invited all participants to proceed to Nazareth for the World Day of the Sick on 11 February, on the feastday of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Calixte des Lauriers

http://en.lpj.org/2016/02/12/symposium-at-notre-dame-human-life-is-sacred-precious-and-inviolable/