This essay was originally published on October 2, 2026 at Stepping Out of the Boat, Ed Mechmann’s Public Policy Blog. It is re-posted with permission of the author.

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Last week, we were favored to witness a great event in the life of the Church here in America — the beatification of one of our own, Fulton Sheen. The spectacle was wonderful enough, but to me the event was another example of how God presents us with a startling juxtaposition of events in order to convey deep truths. The contrast between the two events could not be more striking — the beatification of a man whose fundamental message was “Life is Worth Living” versus the legalization of assisted suicide.

The Utilitarian Lie of Assisted Suicide

Assisted suicide is based on a fundamental lie about the nature of human life. It rests solidly on the bogus philosophy of utilitarianism, under which the test of moral good is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain.

According to this school of thought, which is so influential in modern times, human life only has value if there is more pleasure than pain, more happiness than unhappiness. The highest moral value is thus to be independent, self-reliant, and productive. And, most relevant to the question of assisted suicide, it is morally wrong to be a burden on anyone — that would impose on them (and yourself) more pain than pleasure.

To take utilitarianism to its logical conclusion, anything is permissible, if it leads to the result of maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. In other words, the ends can justify any means.

This is contrary to God’s will and is fundamentally false and dangerous. Christians have always believed unequivocally that every human life is sacred, regardless of one’s condition or ability. Every individual has inherent dignity as a person made in the image and likeness of God. We are always connected and dependent on others, from the moment of conception, just as others are always dependent on us. There is nothing undignified or wrong about that — it’s the nature of human life.

We also believe that there are some acts that are never permissible. They are, in the language of the Church, “intrinsically evil” — always wrong, regardless of the circumstances, the intentions of the actor, or the outcome. This includes intentionally taking the life of an innocent person, including both murder and suicide. They can never be morally justified.

The lie of utilitarianism, and its partner consequentialism, is at the heart of the acceptance of assisted suicide. It tells people with illnesses and disabilities that their lives have no value and that they are better off eliminating their pain by terminating their life.

We see this in the reasons that are given for asking for assisted suicide. Studies from Canada, where both assisted suicide and euthanasia are legal, show that the vast majority of people ask for death because of burdens and loss of pleasure. 95% cite the loss of ability to engage in “meaningful activities”, 85% say it is the loss of ability to perform activities of daily living (i.e., basic self-care tasks, such as eating, drinking, dressing, moving around and maintaining personal hygiene), 75% say it’s loss of independence, 63% cite a loss of dignity, and 50% say it is because they are a burden on their family.

This is why disabled people see through the lie and are adamantly opposed to assisted suicide — they get the perverse message and see the danger. Utilitarianism in its purest form is deadly to anyone less than perfect.

Fulton Sheen’s Answer

The fundamental answer to assisted suicide is to affirm the message that Fulton Sheen made his trademark — “your life is worth living”.

In his indefatigable preaching and teaching, Archbishop Sheen constantly addressed the question of suffering, from a myriad of causes. In one of his books, he said, “The vast majority of people today are suffering from what might be called an existential neurosis, the anxiety and the problem of living.” He saw this suffering as a result of the loss of a sense of purpose and meaning in life.

As a devout man of God, Archbishop Sheen’s ultimate answer to the loss of purpose and meaning was faith in Christ who suffered with and for us. But even for those who lacked the gift of supernatural faith, his message that life is always worth living is vital. It is a message that the families and loved ones must convey unequivocally and repeatedly to people who are suffering or near death.

Allow me a personal example. This month marks the anniversaries of the passing of my mother and my father-in-law. My mom suffered from cancer for many years, and had exhausted the benefits of chemotherapy when she finally decided to accept the inevitable. My father-in-law lived well into his 90’s and his main ailment was just old age and the decline that went along with it, as well as his grief over the death of his beloved wife.

In objective terms, the lives of both my mom and my father-in-law were a “burden” to them and to their families who cared for them. It wasn’t easy for them or us. Both were totally dependent on us for the basic necessities of life — feeding, bathing, toileting. Both lamented that they were being such a “burden”.

But all of us consistently reassured them that it was actually a blessing to take care of them. After all, they had done it for us when we were young and dependent on them, and it was now their turn. We told them that it was a great opportunity for grace for all of us.

We never explicitly said it, but we were paraphrasing Fulton Sheen: “Your life is worth living, even with an illness or disability.” And even more on point, “You are not a burden; this gives us a chance to show how much we love you and how much God loves you”.

The person who is contemplating assisted suicide is caught in a trap, in which they see greater value in death than in a life with burdens. The way out of that trap is for us to take those burdens as our own and accompany our loved ones into eternity.

As Fulton Sheen said in a different context (a difficult marriage), “If we are Christians we take on the burden as something coming from the hand of God, Himself. As St. Paul said, Bear the burden of one another’s failings; then you will be fulfilling the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2).

For more, on Archbishop Fulton Sheen, see our special web feature:

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen and Malcolm Muggeridge:
A Conversation May 1979