"We need a cultural shift. Oregon is just a start."

I heard this from a person I chat with periodically on Twitter. It's true, Oregon is just the start.

Oregon's law's been tested at every level:

Bill Nerin was a Catholic Priest for 24 years and a Family Therapist and is currently an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Oklahoma in the Human Relations Department. As a Washington resident, he volunteered to help put the state's Death with Dignity Act on the ballot which the voters approved in 2008.

In his book published last year, A Couple Faces Death: My Life After Anne, Bill shares how, together, they faced Anne's certain death due to melanoma, and his life since her death. Below, you'll find sections from the chapter "What To Do About Death."

Journal April 10, 2006—about six months after Anne's death.
We all thank God when a child is born, or when we recover from an illness based on the assumption that God has something to do with birth and recovery. But we don't seem to thank God for death even though it is assumed that God has something to do with that too.

Receiving a terminal diagnosis often moves people to reflect more on their spirituality. Some revisit the religious traditions they grew up with. Others discover a different faith resonates more with their current life. Another group becomes grounded in the life and love that surrounds them.

The possibilities are endless, but one thing's for certain: reflection of one's spirituality is typically part of facing life's end. People from all over joined us on Twitter to chat about religion and spirituality's role during the dying process and how people of different faiths view Death with Dignity Acts.

This TweetChat is part of a series of monthly conversations about different aspects of dying and Death with Dignity laws. Through TweetChats, Twitter allows an open and candid discussion about a particular subject indicated by a hashtag. (Learn more about hashtags here.) In our case, since we'll chat about Death with Dignity, we'll use #DWDchat as our hashtag. By participating in our TweetChats and tweeting publicly about Death with Dignity you:

Receiving a terminal diagnosis often moves people to reflect more on their spirituality. Some revisit the religious traditions they grew up with. Others discover a different faith resonates more with their current life. Another group becomes grounded in the life and love that surrounds them.

The possibilities are endless, but one thing's for certain: reflection of one's spirituality is typically part of facing life's end. This Thursday, please join us on Twitter to chat about religion and spirituality's role during the dying process and how people of different faiths view Death with Dignity Acts.

This TweetChat is part of a series of monthly conversations about different aspects of dying and Death with Dignity laws. Through TweetChats, Twitter allows an open and candid discussion about a particular subject indicated by a hashtag. (Learn more about hashtags here.) In our case, since we'll chat about Death with Dignity, we'll use #DWDchat as our hashtag. By participating in our TweetChats and tweeting publicly about Death with Dignity you:

The author writes under the pseudonym Jay D. Halsted because he works for a diocese part-time in the Southwest. Halsted is a retired journalist who volunteers in nursing homes.

No one gets out of this world alive. That's a fact. And fear of dying is death's side effect.

Many of us have watched loved ones suffer for years. My stepfather, for example, spent 10 years as an invalid with emphysema. He lost one leg from lack of circulation. He suffered a stroke that took away his ability to speak. Every breath was torture. Ten years of suffering! Did he want to die? You bet. When the doctor asked him if there was anything he wanted, he said, "My shotgun." He didn't get it.

Death with Dignity takes away the fear. It doesn't mean we're going to rush to the grave. It means we can face the future knowing we never have to be imprisoned by our bodies.

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops would have us remain the slaves of pain. On June 16, 2011, the bishops approved a statement condemning physician-assisted death. Their reasons: