Brunini, Joseph B.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 36 | Number 4 Article 5November 1969The Catholic Doctor in the Renewed ChurchJoseph B. BruniniFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationBrunini, Joseph B. (1969) "The Catholic Doctor in the Renewed Church," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 36 : No. 4 , Article 5.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol36/iss4/5in the renwal of the ch, must rededicate and recorrnnit self to the . serious business of The Catholic Doctor 1n the Renewed Cl" .a rch* to become a saint. Thomas Merton in his book, Seeds Contemplation, makes the wise Joseph B. Brunini, J.C.D. Bishop of Natchez-Jackson THE 1969 GERALD KELLY LECTURE PRESENTED TO THE NATIONAL- FEDERATION OF CATHOLIC PHYSICIANS' GUILDS WALDORF-ASTORIA HOTEL NEW YORK, N.Y., SUNDAY, JULY 13, 1969. I have entitled the lecture this even-ing: "The Catholic Doctor in the Renewed Church:'. It may have been more accurate to say "The Catholic Doctor in the Renewing Church" for the simple reason that renewal in the Church is a never-ending process. The Second Vatican Council opened on October 11, 196:2. Nine days later the almost 2,500 Bishops of the Council issued a message to humanity in which they proclaimed to the world: "We as pastors devote all our energies and thoughts to the renewal of ourselves and the flocks committed to us so · that there may radiate before all :nen the lovable features of Jesus Christ who shines in our hearts 'that God's splendor may be revealed"'. Further on, the Bishops continue: "According-ly, while we hope that the light of faith will shine more clearly and more vigorously as a re mlt of this Council's efforts, we look forward to a spiritual renewal from which will also flow a happy impulse on behalf of human values such as scientific discoveries, 219 technological advances, and wider diffusion of knowledge." 1 Sixteen remarkable docume' ; were published by the Fathers of t l Coun-cil. One of these was the D,. ee on Ecumenism in which the BisL :Js tell us: "Christ summons the Ch -:h, as she goes her pilgrim way, · that continual reformation of wl. h she always has need, . insofar as ;, , is an institution of men here on e, :1." 2 In other words, the FatheL; ·)f the Council, in clear and um: . ,!vocal language, called for change an , enew-al in the Church. Thus, from e very beginning, the Fathers answ :~ ,d the tired objection that one still h;: . s with distressing frequency: "but I taught that the Church never d ' 1tged!" Those who voice this object · 1 need to recall the admonition of ·. Jrdinal Newman that to live is to ch~· · ge and to be perfect is to have change often. From the outset the Count: began the work of establishing a new ·ocabu-lary to express its insights an · ideas. The Church was referred to .,s "the People· of God". This means th _• t every ·christian is the Church and tlrt every Christian contributes to the re !:•~wal of tne Church by the reformation ;:;_nd con-version of his own life. For ea...:h of us, this is where the renewal f the Church must begin. This means that every one of us, if he wishes to Linacre QuarterlY that if a poet wishes to become saint he should begin by being a poet.. This is sound Catholic -~lo:soo~hv. According to this philo-we can say: "if a doctor wishes be a saint let him begin by beirig a d doctor". In its Pastoral Cons tit-on the Church in the Modern , the Council tells us: "There-' let there be no false opposition en professional and social activi-on the one part, and religious life the other . The Christian who s his temporal duties neglects duties toward his neighbor and God, and jeopardizes his eternal tion. Christians should rather oice that they can follow the exam-· of Christ , who worked as an . In the exercise of all their activities, they can there by their humane , domestic , pro-' social , and technical enter-into one vital synthesis with values , under whose supreme all things are harmonized God's glory." 3 By his pro-skill, his selflessness in his professional work, by his respect the dignity of the human person, his unerring integrity and his de-to the sick and unfortunate, the doctor tells everyone with he comes into contact that he s in God and that he is a dis-of God's healing providence. and women who exercise the profession today, either as practitioners or as members the staff of medical institutions, are d upon to make an increasing ------~~· of judgments as to the moral-· ity . or immorality of certain pro-cedures. I will mention only some of the more obvious types of cases: birth control, family planning services, tubal ligations, prolongation of life, trans-plantation of organs, experimentation with human life, artificial insemina-tion, extra-uterine production of life, abortion, euthanasia. A whole new series of considerations are also beginning to present themselves in terms of the possibility of controlling the human personality by the manipu-lation of genes. In the May issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association a scientist summed up the problem in these words: "Current technical advance in biochemical endeavor, such as organ transplantation and fertility control, has brought a bewildering shift in our understanding of moral prolr lems associated with medical practice. No longer are there solid and immutable abso-lutes for our comfort. We are increasingly facing the necessity of making wise judg-ments promptly on the spot, on the basis of as many of the factors in the immediate situation as we can recognize and with as full an understanding as possible of the consequences of our conduct." 4 In the light of some of the points and problems-without-precedent that have been mentioned here this even-ing, and we know that there are others, it is not surprising that ethical directives for Catholic doctors and the Catholic code of ethics which is used in Catholic hospitals, stand in need of careful rethinking and reformulation. It is to this delicate question th~t I wish to address myself in the time that remains. Twenty -nine percent of the volun-tary (non-governmental) hospital beds in this country are in Catholic hospi-tals. Twenty-five percent of the nurses graduated last year were trained in Catholic schools of nursing. Still, there are those who,' when they consider the 220 -/ ·' ' ; ;· . ·~ ..... .. ·1 , I. 't' • . ·. ·. . . ... . , : . ~ l l I' ...... . . present and foreseeable problems deriving from medical ethics, feel that the time is near when it will be necessary for the Church regretfully to withdraw ·entirely from the hospital apostolate. I do not agree. In the 25th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew Jesus gives a description of the final judgment. Starting with verse 34 we read : "Then the King will :;ay to those at His right hand, 'Come, 0 blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for t was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sic:k and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty . and, give the·~ to drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and dothe thee? And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethern, you did it to me' ".5 One concludes from this that the corporal works of mercy authenticate the followers of Christ. The Church should not relinquish the apostolate of healing which st.e exercises in the hospitals unless it becomes a matter of absolute necessity. Through the exer-cise of the apostolate of healing, the individual Christian and the Christian community are a sign of Christ, present in the world. Thus the Church promotes the new creation which will be completely accomplished when Christ comes a; ~ain in glory. To promote the new creation stands at the heart of the m tssion of the Church. As we approach the difficult re-sponsibility of rec. ssessing our code of medical ethics, we draw our motiva-tion from the Gospel. Thank God, in America, in many instances, we can 221 . draw our inspiration from them~. lical profession itself. The President L · the .American Medical Association ' rote recently: "Our profession must continue and ir: :ease that leadership in helping other profe ·ions and society itself to develop ethical .. inci-ples, or if you will, to develop a cons1. ~nee, regarding new challenges, many of rhich cannot be met alone by the medic~ pro-fession. "Consider, for example, the possibh .y of the creation of life. Consider the g1 wing · likelihood of personality control with deoxyribonucleic acid used ... to de' lop a specific type of personality ... Th< are problems that will have to be llved cooperatively , not only by physiciar. , but also by clergymen, attorneys, goven :lent, sociologists, educators, anthropologisl , and others. "It may be that one day we shill lo back on the heart transplant not so muc as a truly great achievement in surge ;r or medicine, but as the genesis of intem ional consideration of medical and ;ocial ethics."6 One can search the Scripture ~ 'rom Genesis through Apocalypse an one will find few answers to sr 'cific questions in modern medical t- hies. According to the principles and methods of Aristotle and St. Th mas, traditionally, Catholic moralish have reasoned deductively from at .tract concepts of man and his facultif ·. and have thus constructed our m ·dical ethics. Since these concepts were abstract, they were necessarily tatic. In this traditional approach to t hical problems, there were variations 2 ·nong Catholic moralists, but, in ge 1eral, they used the same basic co ncep · s ·and proceeded in more or less the same . way. This has been radically changed in recent years. A new emph2:-~is in moral theology has arisen which may be called "contextualism". Context-ualism is cautious, if not suspicic us, of abstractions and generalizations. It places greater emphasis upon the intention of the person who performs Linacre QuarterlY given act. It places greater emphasis consequences. It places great stress the person rather than things and inter-personal relationships. In , it stresses the need to take into sideration the total context of the act in making its moral evalua-At times the conclusions d can differ dramatically from conclusions of traditional moral •teolo~~v. No approval has been given the magisterium of the Church to textualism - nevertheless, it must recognized as a system to which nscientious Christian theologians scribe in increasing numbers. It questions for individual Catholic ctors and for Catholic hospitals . In a recent issue of Chicago Studies Norbert J. Rigali , S.J. , has this say about contextualism: new moral theology will discern that its t ask is not to present a •• )mlple·te set of recipes for decisions and •• •uuJ.I:s in all possible cases; and the new will be aware that his science is not which can paternalistically tell Christ-what to do and not to do in every life-situation, but rather is a through which the individual learns to decide for himself in mature Christ-fashion what to do and not to do." 7 Most Catholic doctors and admini-tors of Catholic hospitals will agree a new formulation of our code of al ethics is absolutely imperative . problem is particularly acute in hospitals for several reasons: may be asked whether a which serves a pluralistic ..... u.uJu .. uu.ty and is st affed by doctors nurses of many faiths has the right impose a system of ethics which is clearly revea1ed b y God and with many God-fearing professional do not agree. This is especially on points to which the magister-of the Church has not addressed . 2) The funds ' supporting almost every hospital , and which are essential to the hospital's existence, derive increasingly from . public and commun-ity sources which are not subject to the authority of the Catholic Church. 3) Many Catholic hospitals are part of a larger medical complex which is completely pluralistic in its religious · composition. I wish, at this point, to make several tentative suggestions.: 1) In the formulation of a new code of ethics, several of the best scholars re presenting both the traditional approach and those who place empha-sis on contextualism should work together. 2) The new code of ethics should not be the work of theologians aldne: doctors, lawyers , hospital administra-tors, and nurses should all participate actively in discussing and formulating the code and guidelines. 3) Moral theologians and doctors of re ligious convictions other than Roman Catholic should be included in the dialogue. In the Decree on Ecumenism we read: "And if in moral matters there are many Christians who do not always understand the gospel in the same way as Catholics, and do not admit the same solutions for the more difficult problems of modern society , nevertheless they share our desire to cling to Christ's word as the source of Christian virtue and to obey the apostolic command: 'Whatever you do in word or in work , do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him' (Col. 3: 1 7). Hence, the ecumenical dialogue could start with discussions concerning the application of the gospel to moral questions. " 8 222 . ~, .. , .. - .·:· >. ,. ... ' · •' 't' • . :· ·. I ~ '•' ~ ... ' \ ... . , ,'); I ·. "/'i '• . . . .. .~ .... ' . . .. ; . ... ,l . , . .... · ' . . '• .. ... 4) The code of ethics should be brief. It should be as positive as possible. It should state clearly that no one may be required to do anything which is against his or her conscience. I Once more I quote Dr. Wilbur: "When our Judicial Council and the House of Delegates (of the American Medical Association) condensed the nearly fifty detailed elements of our code of ethics into ten short principles . and a preamble , th'ey created an um-brella of ethical guidance under which every physician can find protection for his patient, himself and his colleagues". 9 Dr. Wilbur's use of the word "umbrella" prompts me to make a final tentative suggestion for the con-sideration, dialogue and criticism of the theologians. Would it be possible for a code of ethics, for use in Catholic hospitals, to contain a general intro-ductory section which would be a statement of positive values to which the hospital subscribes and , after this "umbrella statement" ' because of the pluralistic composition of the communities served by the Catholic hospitals of this country , would it be possible to have several distinct and differing statements of medical ethics? For example , one in terms of the traditional Catholic moral theology, one in terms of contextualism, and one or more expressing the medical ethical principles of non-Catholic groups in the pluralistic community? I make these suggestions and ask these questions in a purely tentative way realizing that many difficult details and applications would have to 223 be worked out. I make them i1 the · humble , prayerful desire of takinf. 0art in a dialogue which I think is ess<' 1tial now if the concerned, religio sly-oriented community is to prod :e a formulation of medical ethics th will suit the complex needs of our d · . At the same time, everyone of us sl JUld be conscious of the fact that a .. ate-ment of medical ethics means li1 l_e if persons in the medical professic do not have a proper, basic life-orientation - for God arid peoJ e as His children. RHYTHM I. Periodic Abstinence Herbert Ratner, M.D. FOOTNOTES 1 "Message to Humanity, Issued :; th~ · Beginning of the Second Vatican C· .mcil by its Fathers, with the Endorsem. 1t of the Supreme Pontiff", The Docu :ents of Vatican II, Walter M. Abbott, ' · J., General Editor, Herder & Herder N.Y. 1966 p. 4. Council Documents \· 11 be quot~d from this edition. 2. Decree on Ecumenism, n. 6, p. 35 3 Pastoral Constitution on the Chu ·h in · the Modern World, N. 43, p. 244. 4 "Theories of Ethics and 'f dical · Practice" Chauncey D. Leake, Ph. ! ., Sc. D. lAMA, May 5, 1969, vol. 208, .o. 5, p.842 5. Matthew 25: 34-40, Revised St ;. 1dard Version, Catholic edition 6 "The Heritage of Hippocrates" I Night · L. Wilbur, M.D., Journal of the A~ ·rican Medical Association, May 5, 196 ~ , vol. 208,no.5 , p.841 members of the National IIP.lm_mtiSSI·on on Human Life, Repro-and Rhythm, the publisher of and Family, are a group of •• ,,~H-. 1· ::~ 1ns who originally came to-beacuse of their common, deep, inte rest in periodic coital nee as a means of fertility trol- a method commonly known rhythm. In their experience, they that rhythm, based on the , physiologic, ovulatory cycle the woman , contributed to marital ty, and was highly effective in conception. In addition, found rhythm enhanced the of the conjugal act, was free medical hazards and had wide appli-y. 7. "Moral Theology: Old and ;re~", 1.,....._ _______ _____ _ Norbert J. Rigali, S.J ., Chicago Sr-tdzes, Spring1969,vol. 8,no. 1 ,PP· 5 0-5 ~ Herbert Rainer is Editor of 8. Decree on Ecumenism, n. 23 , p. 36 ' AND FAMILY and Secretary-9_ "The Heritage of Hippocrates" ~w~ght IIR~surrer of the National Commission L. Wilbur, M.D., Journal of the Am~ncan Human Life Reproduction and Medical Association, May 5, 1969, vol. 'thm. This article first appeared in 208, no. 5, p. 841. ]969 fall issue of CHILD AND Linacre QuarterlY Y, and is reprinted with their The article serves as an •• rvattction to the firs t of three in-•• rtmenrs of Rabbi Lamm 's book, A EOFROSES. Naturally , they were distre ssed ,with the poor reputation of the rhythm method in lay and professional circles. On the part of the general public , they attributed rhythm's poor accept-ance to perpetuated misinformation and error : to misleading and deroga-tory comparisons of rhythm effective-ness with other forms of birth control in articles published in widely dis-tributed brochures and in women's magazines ; articles often generated by sales-oriented drug companies and written , not by scientific investigators of the rhythm method, but by hired journalists , science writers , and other 'instant experts' . Ignorance of scien-tific rhythm, unfortunately, is wide-spr ea d. Scient i fic rhythm-sympto-thermic or basal body temp-erature rhythm introduces a precision to rhythm., _which more accu-rately determines ovulation and which , when necessary , by limiting inter-course to the post-ovulatory period, can promise the patient a certitude that matches the effectiveness of the original! 0 mg. birth control pill. On the part of the physician , the members of the NCHLRR attributed rhythm's lack of popularity to physi-224 , :· .. : . ~, ... .. . . ~. ,, ,. . I ',1!,;··. ,# ' • • ·' ·. •' ·,~: ·. ·. .. :··.:; ;. •.· : .-·-! "".• . ' •. fl' ' ~ I ••I ~ . ' • . .. ' ~ . . '••, .. ' 

The Catholic Doctor in the Renewed Church

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The Catholic Doctor in the Renewed Church

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