Fr. Belgrave aims to remove fear of end of life

Our earthly lives will one day become everlasting. For Fr. Kevin Belgrave, there is more comfort than fear in understanding that. 

Still, far too much confusion and anxiety surround end-of-life decisions around medical treatment for ourselves and our loved ones. St. Augustine’s Seminary’s newest Spirit and Life offering looks to lessen those worries and inform Catholics that we live out such decisions faithfully, caring for this earthly life while not losing sight of the journey to eternal life. 

Belgrave, assistant dean for academic affairs and director of the institute of theology at St. Augustine's, will lead the morning lecture on Oct. 17, the next in the series’ attempts to explore a range of ethical, pastoral and theological themes pertinent to the faithful. 

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Belgrave spoke to the timing of this month’s talk and the urgency of revisiting Catholic teaching on end-of-life decisions, especially here in Canada where medical assistance in dying (MAiD) is so prevalent. 

“ I firmly believe there are multiple elements to a Catholic response to this desire for euthanasia and MAiD. Some of those elements involve how we accompany people as they grow old and are sick are suffering, but another element is a broader renewal of a culture that takes care of each other,” he said. 

“There is an element for Catholics to be renewed in their understanding of how we approach medical treatment decisions when we are seriously ill and dying because I think there is a lot of misunderstanding or confusion about how Catholics are to approach those decisions. That confusion only makes the reality of the end of life more stressful to people.” 

As an associate professor of moral theology at St. Augustine’s, Belgrave touched on the common implication that Catholics struggle to “do death well.” 

“ Death will always be a monumental, naturally fearful reality.  In our little part of the world, it is the culture that is deeply afraid of death and committed to the ideals of independence and autonomy,” he said. “It’s then incumbent on us as the Church to do all that we can to help form a counterculture; one that would live the realities of preparation for facing death ever more faithfully and with hope.” 

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Belgrave hopes to balance the fundamental tension every Catholic must navigate: the truth that life is a gift for which we are responsible, but also that earthly life is a preparation for passing into life out of death. Principles from the faith can help navigate areas like when to accept treatment, medications and surgeries in order to protect the gift of earthly life, but also when the time has come to refuse excessively burdensome treatment and simply prepare for death with faith alone. 

And while specific, Scripture-based instructions on health care are centuries old, developed long before modern technology such as ventilators, dialysis and chemotherapy, the lecture's  principles still arise from long theological reflection on the goodness of human life, the reality of eternal life, the value of suffering and the importance of accompanying people through suffering, all rooted in Revelation. 

Belgrave hopes that, even amidst discussions often nuanced and deeply introspective on the topic of end-of-life decisions, those attending can come away with something far simpler. 

“ My hope is that people leave with less fear and apprehension about the complexities of the medical system, powers of attorney and all the things doctors and health-care professionals might be saying. To understand that, with some simple guiding principles and hopefully some good accompaniment, you can go through these moments, live them with fidelity without them needing to be fearful and overwhelming in every case,” he said. 

That reduction in fear rests on the Church’s guidance in recognizing when the time has come to entrust a life to God.

“The moment will come to say, ‘Lord, it seems like this is the moment where You are saying it's time simply to prepare for my death or for the death of this family member,' ” he said.

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“And that's OK, because we see how that fits with the Church's guidance. We know that we will die and we have great hope of passing through death into life.” 

Learn more and register at staugustines.on.ca/events-listing/spirit-life-a-catholic-guide-to-medical-treatment-decisions-at-the-end-of-life.