The Catholic Church in England and Wales has reaffirmed its opposition to assisted suicide and urged believers to hope for members of the House of Lords, currently debating the controversial proposal.
The Terminally Ill (Adults) End of Life Bill passed the House of Commons last 12 months, but has not been approved by the Lords. As things stand, the bill is predicted to fail after the federal government said it could not permit any more parliamentary time to be dedicated to the Private Members Bill.
Last week, Right to Life CEO, Alisdair Hungerford-Morgan, said the bill was effectively “dead” after scrutiny found the bill to be neither “protected or workable”.
Now the Catholic Archbishop of Liverpool, the Most Reverend John Sherrington, who speaks for the Church on “life issues” has spoken of the risks presented by the bill, raising particular concerns in regards to the implications for Christian end-of-life care providers.
“This bill is flawed in principle as assisted suicide is the direct taking of life. In practice, the bill is a threat to really compassionate care at the top of life,” he said.
“In its current form, it could require Christian hospices and care homes to co-operate with the act of assisted suicide.
“The conscience clauses are also woefully inadequate. Moreover, as many voices have articulated in the controversy, and as has been seen in other countries, assisted suicide will put the lives of the vulnerable in danger.”
It has previously been suggested that ought to Christian care homes be required by law to supply assisted suicide, many would simply close down moderately than comply, exacerbating the already poor state of end-of-life care in Britain.
Bishop Sherrington also urged prayer for those suffering at the top of their lives and for those deliberating on the problem of assisted suicide in Parliament.
“We are facing the specter of a profound change in our culture which might occur if assisted suicide were to be legalised. I urge you to hope for parliamentarians who proceed to think about this matter,” he said.
The Catholic Church might be holding a “Holy Hour for the dignity of life” on 19 April at 4:30pm, with the aim being to “unite and pray for the promotion of a culture of life”.
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