On June 16, 2026, Canada marked a grim milestone: ten years since the legalization of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID), a euphemism for state-sanctioned euthanasia. In that decade, over 100,000 Canadians have been killed under this program, making it a leading cause of death in the country. The EWTN News article reports on this anniversary, citing pro-life advocates who condemn the program’s expansion and its devastating societal impact. While the article presents the Catholic Church’s opposition to MAID, it fails to articulate the full theological gravity of the situation, reducing a profound moral catastrophe to a matter of policy debate and “safeguards.” This omission is itself a symptom of the very modernist crisis that has crippled the post-conciliar Church’s ability to confront evil with the full force of Catholic truth.
The Abomination of Desolation: A Nation Embraces Murder
The scale of death in Canada is staggering. From a handful of cases in 2016, MAID has grown to claim 16,499 lives in 2024 alone, with a total exceeding 100,000 provisions. The government’s own data reveals that approximately 4.5% of victims did not meet the criteria of having a “reasonably foreseeable death,” a chilling admission of systemic failure and abuse. This is not merely a public health crisis; it is a national apostasy, a collective rejection of the divine law: “Thou shalt not kill” (Exodus 20:13). The Canadian state, by legalizing and promoting euthanasia, has positioned itself as an enemy of God, usurping His sole authority over life and death. As Pope Pius XI declared in Quas Primas, the reign of Christ the King extends over all nations, and states that “think they can do without God” and whose “religion is impiety and contempt for God” sow the seeds of their own destruction. Canada’s MAID program is the bitter fruit of a society that has expelled God from its laws and public life.
The article quotes David Cooke of the Campaign Life Coalition, who rightly calls MAID “medical homicide” and states that “Canada has the blood of over 100,000 victims on its hands — blood that cries out to God for justice.” This echoes the divine judgment pronounced against Cain: “The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth to me from the earth” (Genesis 4:10). Yet, the article’s focus on “safeguards” and “compliance issues” subtly frames the problem as one of administrative failure rather than intrinsic evil. The very structure of the program is murderous. No amount of regulation can make lawful what is inherently contrary to the natural law and the divine positive law. The push to expand MAID to those suffering solely from mental illness, as highlighted by the case of Claire Brosseau, reveals the logical endpoint of this utilitarian calculus: the elimination of those deemed “unproductive” or “unhappy.” Cooke’s comparison to the Nazi T4 program is not hyperbole; it is a historical parallel rooted in the same eugenic and materialist philosophy that denies the inherent dignity of every human person created in the image of God.
The Failure of the Conciliar Church: Silence, Compromise, and the Absence of Excommunication
The article mentions that the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops “urged the government to pass a measure prohibiting citizens from accessing MAID if their sole condition is a mental illness.” This statement is a profound scandal. Where is the thunderous anathema? Where is the clear, unequivocal declaration that any Catholic who participates in euthanasia—whether as a doctor, nurse, or family member consenting to the killing of a loved one—incurs automatic excommunication? The 1917 Code of Canon Law, Canon 2350 §1, explicitly states that those who “procure a completed abortion” incur excommunication, a penalty that applies with even greater force to the direct killing of an innocent person. The bishops’ timid “urging” for legislative reform, while failing to impose the Church’s own spiritual penalties, reveals a clergy more concerned with political relevance than with the salvation of souls.
This failure is a direct consequence of the post-conciliar revolution. The Syllabus of Errors of Pope Pius IX condemned the proposition that “the Church has not the power of using force, nor has she any temporal power, direct or indirect” (Proposition 24). Yet, the modernist “Church” has internalized this error, reducing its mission to one of “dialogue” and “influence” rather than the authoritative governance of souls. The article’s reference to “Catholic advocates” protesting is commendable, but it highlights the laity’s struggle in the absence of true pastoral leadership. The bishops, by their silence on the automatic excommunication for murder, become complicit in the spiritual ruin of their flock. They have abandoned their duty to “make known and attack” the “insidious contagion” of these “sects,” as Pius IX commanded, choosing instead to operate within the framework of a secular state that has already rejected Christ the King.
The Theological Bankruptcy of “Safeguards” and the Cult of Autonomy
The article discusses proposed “safeguards” in Alberta, such as forbidding doctors from proposing euthanasia and upholding the rights of medical professionals to refuse to kill. While these measures may slow the slaughter, they do not address the root cause: the idolatry of personal autonomy. The modern world, as condemned by St. Pius X in Lamentabili Sane Exitu, has embraced the error that “every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true” (Proposition 15). This principle, extended to morality, becomes the right to self-destruction. The idea that a human being can autonomously decide that their life lacks “meaning, purpose, or value” is a direct denial of the Catholic teaching that life is a gift from God, and its meaning is found in Him alone.
The article quotes Alex Schadenberg of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, who says, “The most important thing we can do is recognize the importance of caring for people, being with people.” While this is true, it is insufficient without the supernatural dimension. The ultimate answer to despair is not merely human companionship but the grace of God received through the sacraments. The article’s silence on the role of the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, Confession, and the Anointing of the Sick in combating spiritual despair is a glaring omission. It reflects the naturalistic mindset of the post-conciliar Church, which has reduced the faith to social activism and psychological support, abandoning the supernatural weapons of the true Church. As Our Lord said, “Without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The fight against euthanasia cannot be won by human effort alone; it requires a return to the fullness of Catholic faith, including the recognition of the reality of sin, the necessity of repentance, and the hope of eternal life.
The Global Contagion and the Witness of Canada
The article notes that Canada’s example has led to the defeat of assisted suicide bills in Scotland, the UK, and Slovenia. This is presented as a positive outcome, but it is a testament to the horror that Canada has unleashed upon the world. The fact that other nations recoil from Canada’s path is not a sign of progress but a confirmation of the depth of the abyss into which Canada has fallen. The article’s tone, while critical of MAID, remains within the bounds of secular discourse, failing to proclaim the ultimate truth: that nations which legalize murder place themselves under divine judgment. As the Prophet Isaiah warned, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness” (Isaiah 5:20).
The post-conciliar Church, by failing to condemn euthanasia with the full weight of its authority—including the excommunication of politicians who vote for it and doctors who perform it—has lost its prophetic voice. It has become another voice in the secular chorus, debating “safeguards” rather than proclaiming the immutable law of God. The 100,000 dead in Canada are not just victims of a flawed policy; they are victims of a civilization that has rejected Christ the King. Until the Church returns to its true mission—to teach, govern, and sanctify all nations in the name of Christ—the blood of the innocent will continue to cry out from the earth, and the abomination of desolation will spread.
The only true answer to the culture of death is the culture of life, which is the culture of the Cross. This requires not political lobbying but a complete conversion of society to the Social Kingship of Christ, as outlined by Pius XI. Anything less is a betrayal of the faith and a complicity in murder.
Source:
10 years, 100,000 deaths: How Canada became the euthanasia capital of the world (ewtnnews.com)
Date: 16.06.2026