Can we still reason together?

Preliminary thoughts on the latest Anglican Church of Canada MAiD publication

On October 3, 2023, Faith, Worship and Ministry, an office of the Anglican Church of Canada, released the first draft of a new publication on MAiD, or medical assistance in dying, entitled Faith Seeking Understanding: Medical Assistance in Dying - Reflections by Canadian Anglicans. This is the first document put out by Faith, Worship, and Ministry since 2016’s In Sure and Certain Hope on the topic of MAiD, although between the two documents the Primate has made some public statements and a resolution was proposed (but not actually considered) at last summer’s General Synod.

As the subtitle suggests, the goal of this volume was not to articulate or advocate for the adoption of a single position on MAiD, but rather to bring together a variety of reflections on the topic from Canadian Anglicans (and several ecumenical partners) as “an attempt to lay the groundwork for further conversation and theologically focused exploration,” as the Rev. Dr. Eileen Scully, Director of Faith, Worship and Ministry, puts it in the introduction. The volume brings together some twenty-three essays — I was very honored to contribute one of them — from people across the ACC, including parish clergy, seminary professors, chaplains, and laypeople.

You can read the volume here. At this point, it is a first draft; the ACC has invited comment on the existing essays as well as the submission of additional reflections up until November 17, at which point a final copy will be produced.

Once the final copy is produced, I am planning on writing at greater length on the essays in the volume and what they say about the Anglican Church and MAiD. But for now, for paid subscribers, I want to offer some preliminary reflections on the essays.