The Precious Gift of Life: Rejecting the Evil of Assisted Death while Reclaiming Hope and Suffering

I'm spending another Easter here in Manila, away from home. Transportation to church here is not easy, so I usually stay home in deep reflection. I often question what my cross is. Much like the crowd who condemned Him to suffer and die, western culture has been socially conditioned to believe that people with special needs are a greater burden on society than they are a worthy part of the human race, and do not deserve to fulfill God's plan for them, or for to participate in the Devine gifts of faith, hope, and love. . There are some very strong forces of evil actively conditioning our society that people with physical, intellectual, and emotional challenges are too expensive to and too time consuming to live out our purpose that God intended for us, and as soon as we start suffering, we must be executed (with our consent and the agreement of our trusted loved ones cheering for our expedited demise at the first hint of a normal human experience - suffering.

As someone with a physical disability, life can often be painful and tedious - especially considering that I spend about five times more time sitting on the toilet than the average person. But yet, every morning I wake up I'm grateful for the gift of life - despite there being a constant multitude of evil forces trying to make me believe otherwise through despair, shame, and fear. Western culture is being groomed at an extremely rapid pace - causing us to accept things that we normally wouldn't.

MAID, or Medical Assistance in Dying, is Canada's government-funded assisted suicide program, presented as "compassionate healthcare" where doctors provide lethal drugs or injections to end a patient's life. It started with terminal illnesses but has expanded to include disabilities, mental illness, and even proposals for minors and infants. The dangers are stark: it devalues life, erodes hope by treating suffering as eternal, and coerces the vulnerable through denied alternatives like palliative care or equipment, making death seem like the only option.

In the U.S., it's rapidly advancing—legal in 10 states and D.C., with groups like Compassion & Choices pushing for 50% national coverage by 2028, and bills like Tennessee's HB 1931 (2023-2024) introducing "aid in dying" for the terminally ill, risking the same slippery expansion. MAID's normalization in Western culture stems from years of subtle grooming—euphemisms like "dignity" and "choice" mask killing, while media, ads, and advocacy (e.g., Dying With Dignity's Meta campaigns and trainings in healthcare facilities, community centers, and yes - places of worship) condition society to see assisted death as merciful relief. This mirrors Nazi Germany's T4 program (1939-1941), which euthanized over 200,000 disabled, elderly, and mentally ill as "unworthy burdens" under "mercy" pretexts, starting with propaganda that dehumanized them as costly drains—much like today's rhetoric that frames special needs as too expensive, paving the way for broader evil.

The most heartbreaking exploitation happens when MAID programs hijack a patient's love for family, amplifying guilt over being a "burden." Coercion often involves subtle messages like "Think of the financial strain on your loved ones" or "Don't be selfish by lingering," twisting empathy into self-sacrifice. This convinces patients that dying is the "kind" choice, even as alternatives are withheld—purely diabolical manipulation that ignores God's call to carry each other's crosses through faith, hope, and love, turning suffering into a weapon instead of an opportunity for hope, deeper connection, and divine purpose - even while utilizing pain medication.

To safeguard against manipulation into consenting to assisted suicide, stay vigilant: recognize red flags like rushed "relief" offers amid denied care, guilt-based appeals about family burdens, or assessments ignoring options where you are seen as a precious child of God. Build a support network of trusted, life-affirming advocates; document all medical talks and demand second opinions focused on hope; seek community or church resources for cross-bearing help; and advocate politically for funded life supports like caregivers and therapy. Remember, God loves you infinitely—no matter how forgotten you feel—and we're here to alleviate suffering through love, not end lives.

I have suffered most of my life and even wanted to end my life, but yet I'm still here and feeling great and grateful for every breath—thanks to faith, hope, and love. As I'll share in a forthcoming book tentatively titled *Out of the Shadows*, after my mom died, I fell into a "dark place" where I felt invisible and trapped, believing the world would be better without me—like a worthless leaf withering away. I nearly chose death, but faith in God's purpose, hope from my grandmother Baba's Holocaust survival, and love from nurturing connections pulled me back. While there's life, there's hope—one of God's greatest gifts—and we're called to carry each other's crosses, turning suffering into bonds of love, not despair.

Every single one of us was born with a calling and unique gift to carry out that calling - even if we're merely breathing - we are still contributing to the human race - and still have the capacity to help someone else carry their cross in their time of need. One smile - or even one heartbeat can instantly brighten someone's day - which just might be all they need to go on and improve the lives of millions of people. All it takes sometimes is feeling a simple connection with a fellow human being - no matter how insignificant our brains or "the system try to convince us it is.