Workshop to probe suicide

"All right," says Clint Eastwood's character in the pivotal scene of the 2004 movie "Million Dollar Baby," addressing a paralyzed boxer played by Hilary Swank. "I'm gonna' disconnect your air machine; then you're gonna' go to sleep. Then I'll give you a shot, and you'll...stay asleep."

A workshop sponsored by the Albany diocesan Consultation Center will explore assisted suicide in a presentation titled "Did Clint Eastwood Do Right?"

The March 15 workshop will be led by Rev. John Malecki, staff psychologist at the Center and chaplain for Teresian House Nursing Home in Albany.

"In the movie, there was no effort to deal with [the boxer's] depression," he observed. "She's experiencing a loss of her community, a loss of connectedness. She felt separated from her very self."

There was no effort by the other characters to help her find meaning and purpose after she became quadriplegic, he said.

In his workshop, Father Malecki plans to contrast that attitude with the real-life case of the late actor Christopher Reeve, whose wife, Dana, pointed out -- after he became quadriplegic -- that she and his children loved him, and that he could be an advocate for scientific research because of his condition.

"No priest could have done it better," Father Malecki remarked.

The workshop will also address pain management, stressing the fact that the goal shouldn't simply be ending pain, but also understanding the suffering person's struggle with loss of composure, societal roles and even a connection with God.

"Realigning" one's relationship with God, Father Malecki noted, will itself help with pain management. He plans to explore the Christian perspective on suffering, quoting from the Book of Job and author C.S. Lewis.

While his workshop will be geared toward the general public, Father Malecki hopes that family members of people who are suffering will attend -- and that they will leave feeling better able to understand what their loved ones are experiencing.

"I hope, when they relate to their own family, they will do what Christopher Reeve's wife did -- not trying to talk [the person in pain] out of it, saying, 'Buck up,' or 'Things are going to be alright,' or 'It's God's will.' I hope they will [say,] 'This person is experiencing alienation from his community, his social role.'"

["Assisted Suicide: Did Clint Eastwood Do Right?" will be held March 15, 7-8:30 p.m., at the Pastoral Center in Albany. Fee: $10 ($12 after March 8). Call 489-4431 to register.]

(3/2/06) [[In-content Ad]]