By Andy Drozdziak

London, England, November 14, 2024 / 12:40 p.m.

The bishops of England and Wales continue to urge Catholics to “raise their voices” against a proposed law on assisted suicide, the text of which was published earlier this week.

Late on November 11, English Labor MP Kim Leadbeater published her Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill before MPs vote on this issue on November 29. This means MPs have less than three weeks to prepare to vote on a controversial issue.

The Archbishop of Southwark, John Wilson, said: “As followers of the Lord Jesus, we must be bold in our efforts to support, respect and protect every human life from conception to natural death, for if we let’s not stand up and value the dignity of human life, who will?

“The Catholic Church is clear: every life has value, regardless of a person’s physical or mental state,” he continued.

The archbishop’s words come as the content of Leadbeater’s controversial bill shows terminally ill adults expected to die within six months could legally seek help to commit suicide provided they receive approval from two doctors and a judge.

However, Wilson fears the new bill will send the message that the elderly and vulnerable are “nothing more than a burden on society”.

“People are presented as a problem,” he said. “Like a burden.” A statistic. Something we can deal with by ending their lives. Where is the dignity in that? Where is the love in that?

Reacting to those who say “life has no value”, he said: “We must raise our voices to say that this is not true. We are stewards, not owners, of the life we ​​have been given. Life does not belong to us.

Leadbeater insisted his bill contained “robust” safeguards, saying coercion would result in 14 years in prison, but Wilson believes pressure on sick and vulnerable people to opt for assisted suicide would “immeasurable”.

“The pressure this would put on people with illnesses or disabilities is immeasurable. This demeans humanity and deprives people of their right to life. This right is given by God and it is up to God alone to exercise it.

The Archbishop challenged British Catholics to contact their Members of Parliament and pray for the rejection of the Bill, in obedience to their vocation as followers of Christ.

Warning that the new bill represents “a very real prospect of seeing assisted suicide become law in the UK”, he said that “as followers of Christ we must do all we can to support and protect the most vulnerable in our society.”

Appealing to Catholics to act, he said: “Together, let us show that we will not stand idly by while the elderly and those with illnesses or disabilities are treated as if they were just a burden on society or on their family. Let’s be clear: they are created in the image and likeness of God.

Wilson emphasized that, under the new bill, “assisted suicide…will radically change the way our health care professionals care for us.”

British Catholic doctor Dermot Kearney said that “most (doctors) still believe that the principle of doing no harm to patients is essential to the provision of genuine health care.” Rather than introducing the bill, Kearney told CNA that a better way to address end-of-life care would be to “improve and expand the palliative care and palliative care services that exist already but have been seriously underfunded for so long.”

Bishop Patrick McKinney of Nottingham supported Archbishop Wilson’s comments, emphasizing the social context of the bill’s introduction.

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Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who confirmed his own opposition to the bill, admitted that the UK’s National Health Service was “broken”.

Palliative care services are also in crisis, while many older people have seen the government scrap their winter fuel payments.

Following the publication of the bill, McKinney raised concerns, stating: “Catholics can never support assisted suicide, but our societal context makes this even more alarming: an NHS at (its) breaking point , inadequate social care provision, access to palliative care. care is uneven and underfunded, (and) winter fuel payments withdrawn from many.

The Archbishop of Southwark has urged British Catholics to use the Right to Life UK website to contact their MPs and voice their opposition to assisted suicide.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, has called on Catholics in England and Wales to join him and his fellow bishops for a Holy Hour on November 13. to pray for the dignity of human life” in light of the upcoming vote on Leadbeater’s bill.

“We pray passionately that we will not take a step into legislation that promotes a so-called ‘right to die,’” Nichols said.

“It will most likely become a duty to die and put pressure on doctors and medical staff to help take life rather than care, protect and cure,” he said.

Andy Drozdziak is based in Barnard Castle, North East England, UK. He currently edits www.charisuk.com, the website of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in England and Wales, and has been published in various media outlets including The Tablet, The Irish Catholic and Premier Christianity magazine.