Oct. 14, 2020 — Annapolis, MD
Health Care Decision Making for End of
Life
What happens if you get sick and have to go to the hospital
unexpectedly or to a long-term care residence? How do you broach the
topic with your loved ones? Do they and your doctor know what you
wishes are?
COVID has prompted many of us to ask these questions. It’s crucial
to prayerfully reflect and plan how you wish your health care to be
handled before there is a crisis, and to make sure your
wishes are known by your loved ones and medical providers.
The Maryland Catholic Conference has updated and simplified our
health care decision making resources to help you. This
simple document outlines the essentials of our Catholic faith and end
of life, and includes an advanced care directive (en español) that you can fill out and use in
Maryland.
Please share this document with parishioners, Knights of Columbus,
your DRE, ministries to the sick, men’s or women’s groups, elderly
neighbors, friends, chaplains, and especially with your family.
Additional resources for parishioners and parishes are available
online at www.mdcatholic.org/endoflife, in English and
Spanish.
In Joyful Hope
Webinar on November 11
Join
the Maryland Catholic Conference webinar on end of life planning, In
Joyful Hope: Planning Your Healthcare, on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 7 p.m.
Hear from our panel of experts, including Rev. Michael DeAscanis, STL;
Shannon Hammond, Esq.; and Joan Panke, NP.
These wonderful presenters will share about Church teaching on end
of life care, how to fill out an advance health care directive, and
the options for excellent care including palliative and hospice
care.
The webinar is free but you must register in advance.
Get More out of Respect Life
Month
Visit our website at www.mdcatholic.org for our Respect Life and End of
Life resource pages, with bulletin announcements on pregnancy help,
healing after abortion, health care, Mass intercessions and more that
you can use this month or at any time during the year.
Need more ideas?
Pregnancy and Infant Loss
Awareness
This month we also remember those families who are grieving the
loss of a child to miscarriage, pregnancy or infant loss. These little
lives touch our hearts deeply, no matter how brief their time on
earth. One great support in Maryland is the Holy Innocents Ministry of the Archdiocese of
Baltimore, which offers pastoral care, spiritual and emotional
support, and burial services for families who have lost a child to
miscarriage.
Holy Innocents will host a Vespers Service on Sunday, Nov. 1, 4-6
p.m., at Our Lady of Victory, 4414 Wilkens Ave., Arbutus, MD 21229, to
pray with these families and remember their little ones.
Learn more about how this program helps families experiencing loss
here, and please hold these families in
prayer.
Domestic
Violence Awareness
With reports of domestic violence increasing during COVID, and with
one in four women and one in seven men having experienced domestic
violence, this impacts all of us. We have compiled resources to share
with parishioners, including bulletin/Flocknote/email announcements,
Mass intercessions, Maryland-based resources, a hotline, and more at
mdcatholic.org/domesticviolence.
Nationwide News You Can
Use
Pro Life Action Alert: Bill to Protect from Chemical
Abortions at Home
In recent years, the number of chemical abortions has gone up.
COVID has increased these numbers even more. Regulations now allow
women to take the chemical abortion pill at home, which ends the life
of the child while also being very dangerous to the mother’s health.
Urge your Member of Congress and your Senators to pass the SAVE Moms
and Babies Act (H.R.
4399 / S.
3072) which would protect mothers and babies from chemical
abortion. Take
action now.
COVID-19 Vaccine Update: Several Ethical Vaccines in
Production
Five of the major companies undertaking clinical trials for a COVID
vaccine have used ethical production methods and have received a
combined $6.5 billion in federal federal funding. However, two
companies in the clinical trial phase are pursuing unethical research
utilizing fetal cell lines in production, and have received $1.6
billion in federal funding. The Charlotte Lozier Institute created a
brief
fact sheet comparing the ethics of these vaccines and produced
a longer report showing all vaccines in production. We will
continue to keep you apprised of the ethics related to COVID
vaccines.
JOIN THE
CATHOLIC ADVOCACY NETWORK
The Catholic Advocacy Network gives you a voice on important issues
in Maryland. Learn more and join our network.
STAY CONNECTED WITH US!
  
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