Is it appropriate to give Catholic Bibles to non-Catholics?

[alpetry]

I am a Labor and Delivery nurse. I also serve as the Perinatal Bereavement Coordinator for my hospital. In that role, I counsel bereaved families who have lost a baby, create memory boxes for them, care for the babies who have died, etc. One of the things I use in my Memory Boxes for Christian patients is a Baby Book of Psalms or a Baby Bible. I put an inked set of their baby’s footprints on the inside cover. I feel like to be true to my faith, I should only use Catholic Bibles, but fear that may be inappropriate for my non-Catholic Christian patients. Can you offer any guidance in this matter?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

While I understand your concern, you must respect the consciences of your patients. You should not give them anything you know might violate their religious convictions—especially when they are already grieving the loss of a child. If you can find Protestant versions of the Bibles you already distribute, then use those for non-Catholic Christian parents. If not, then don’t include a Bible.

My own mother was a nurse who worked in both Labor and Delivery and in postpartum care. As a non-Catholic Christian, she did not believe in baptizing infants. But whenever a Catholic couple whose child was in distress or just died asked her to baptize their baby, she did. Because it was her job to offer them what comfort and support that she could, and not to proselytize them with her own beliefs.