The Catechism of the Catholic Church:

Euthanasia

2276 Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible.

2277 Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.

Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator. The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.

2278 Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of “over-zealous” treatment. Here one does not will to cause death; one’s inability to impede it is merely accepted. The decisions should be made by the patient if he is competent and able or, if not, by those legally entitled to act for the patient, whose reasonable will and legitimate interests must always be respected.

2279 Even if death is thought imminent, the ordinary care owed to a sick person cannot be legitimately interrupted. The use of painkillers to alleviate the sufferings of the dying, even at the risk of shortening their days, can be morally in conformity with human dignity if death is not willed as either an end or a means, but only foreseen and tolerated as inevitable Palliative care is a special form of disinterested charity. As such it should be encouraged.

Mayor Giuliani’s position:

The [Schiavo] family was in dispute. That’s what we have courts for. And the better place to decide that in a much more, I think in a much fairer and even in a deeper way, is in front of a court.”

Even though he previously stated the exact opposite while campaigning in the home county of Terri Schiavo:

“[The 2005 congressional intervention] was appropriate to make every effort to give her a chance to stay alive . . . . My general view is, you should do everything you can to keep somebody alive unless they have expressed a strong interest in not having very, very special things done, extraordinary things done.”

When confronted by the media on these contradictory statements, Mayor Giuliani gave the following explanation:

“I believe I did [answer the question]. I don’t, I, it’s a while ago and I think I said that I thought every effort should be made to keep her alive. I don’t know that I supported the, the whole thing to the very end, but I am not sure now . . . . I thought it was appropriate to make every effort to give her a chance to stay alive.”

But this is how Giuliani’s campaign spokesperson explained the Mayor’s contradictory statements:

“Mayor Giuliani said that ideally these types of difficult issues are best left up to families and when there are disputes, it is a matter for the courts to decide. As he said in Florida in April, there are sometimes extraordinary circumstances where the intentions of the person in question are not clear. The Schiavo case was one of those very special circumstances.”

We’ll leave it up to CAR readers to determine for themselves whether Mayor Giuliani’s position on euthanasia is consistent with the Church’s teaching.