Not long ago, I was in line to renew my Ontario driver’s license and overheard two women behind me discussing organ donations. 

“I don’t want to forget to register to be an organ donor,” one said. 

Being a general busybody and buttinsky, I couldn’t restrain myself. I calmly turned around and said in a low voice: “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help overhearing. Did you know that they have to remove your organs while you’re still alive—and you’ll feel it?” 

Advertisement

To my utter shock, the woman in question almost cut me off mid-sentence. She immediately responded with: “Yes, I know. But it will be over quickly and I will have saved multiple lives.” 

Now, I’m not easily flummoxed, but flummoxed I was. I slowly pivoted forward with nothing more to say. This lady was the first person I have ever personally met who is aware of how organ harvesting is now done, and not only was she okay with it, she was signing up!

I used to be all in for organ donations. Hey, you’re dead anyway, right? Wrong. 

Back in the day, organ donations were taken from the deceased, but then the medical establishment realized how quickly living tissue dies and is therefore much less effective for transplantation. Thus began the harvesting from living bodies…right before death, with a convenient diagnosis of so-called “brain death.” 

The process was ugly because the unconscious, comatose or sedated patient would fight back. In the early 2000’s, a Rolling Stone Magazine reporter wanted to know what all the growing pushback over how organ donations were performed was about, and was allowed to observe a harvesting procedure. She came away shaken. She observed the subject flailing about while operating room personnel did their best to restrain them. 

Advertisement

The protocol was eventually changed to prevent this commotion. The “donors” were given a paralyzing agent to keep them still. Not a painkiller, mind you, because that would be an admission that the patient was feeling everything. One early whistleblower of this horror was Dr. Paul A. Byrne, MD, a renowned pioneer in neonatal care. Dr. Byrne is a leader in challenging the fairly new definition of “brain death” for human beings, along with its cavalier and utilitarian use. In actuality, we know so little about the brain and don’t even have the instruments to measure all levels of human brain activity.

I will never forget speaking with a Catholic veterinarian at a conference some years ago. We were talking about (human) euthanasia and “brain death.” He whispered in conspiratorial tones to me: “Sister, when we’re doing operations or life-saving procedures on dogs, we don’t even bother to measure their brain waves because there’s not much going on up there anyway. We only monitor the heart, and only declare an animal dead when their heart stops beating…like we used to do for humans.” 

He added: “You would not believe the amount of money people spend to sustain the lives of their pets. I do surgeries that are denied to human beings.”

Sadly, as Canada continues to lead the world in the practice of euthanasia, the organ harvesting connection is becoming more and more obvious. The Journal of Hepatology published a study in October of this year, celebrating the Canadian government’s assisted suicide program for boosting the organ harvesting industry, labeling MAiD a “success.” 

Euthanasia is now the sixth leading cause of death in Canada, but Statistics Canada does not classify euthanasia itself as a cause of death, only the “illnesses” that led to it. Health Canada reported 13,241 Canadian deaths by euthanasia in 2022, a 31.2% increase from 2021, and 4.1% of deaths that year. The province of Quebec has the highest euthanasia rate in the world, accounting for 7.4% of all its deaths.

In theory, the idea of organ donations is laudable. In current practice, it is condemnable. The demand for organs is insatiable and highly profitable. Injured or ailing individuals and families are pressured mercilessly to not allow themselves or their loved ones the time or resources to heal, but to instantly give up and “be a hero” by choosing to donate their organs. 

Advertisement

Until this odious, death-dealing, death-hastening system changes, I am not participating. My nuns have in my file, in my own handwriting: “NO organs: incoming or outgoing. I will donate and accept only that which can be done while letting the donor (myself or another) continue to live: blood, a kidney, bone marrow, platelets, plasma, etc.”

Sr. Helena Raphael Burns, fsp, is a Daughter of St. Paul. She holds a Masters in Media Literacy Education and studied screenwriting at UCLA. HellBurns.com  X/Twitter: @srhelenaburns  #medianuns MediaApostle.com  Instagram: @medianunscanada