A bishop was reportedly upset when a state in the British Isles legalized euthanasia and assisted suicide last week.
The Catholic Herald reported that the prelate of Portsmouth, Bishop Philip Egan, was "devastated" when the state of Jersey, which is 14 miles from the French Coast, legalized euthanasia and assisted suicide. Egan expressed in social media last Thursday on how disappointed he was that the legislators passed the law. However, he stressed that the fight for life doesn't end there.
"Very disappointing news from Jersey. But the fight is not over. Let's redouble our prayers and our efforts to stand up for the dignity and value of human life, to support our doctors and to improve palliative care." Egan tweeted on November 25.
Prior to that, Egan had already asked the faithful for prayers that the law would not be passed. He highlighted that such an effort contradicts the value of life.
"The State legislature in Jersey begins debating this week the legalization of assisted suicide and also euthanasia. Let us in turn earnestly pray to the Lord that the inestimable value of human life will be upheld, together with quality palliative care," Egan posted on November 22.
Media Pigeon explained that the legislators passed the law "in principle" last Thursday, which Egan pointed out as the legislators' lack of regard for human life that would negatively impact the role of doctors.
"I was shocked and saddened by the results of yesterday's vote on euthanasia and assisted suicide in Jersey. It demonstrates a woeful lack of interest in protecting the most vulnerable people in our society. If passed, it would also change fundamentally the role of doctors and medical staff. However, this is only the first step in the process of legalizing 'assisted suicide'; as such, we will continue to scrutinize and challenge any proposed legislation in the months ahead," Egan said in a statement.
Egan elaborated the Catholic Church's stand on euthanasia and assisted suicide as against the 5th Commandment, "Thou shall not kill." He stressed that human life needs to be valued and protected from beginning to end. He also pointed out that the solution is investment in medical treatments that relieve pain for serious illnesses.
"The Catholic Church is clear that we can never assist in taking the life of another, even if they request it. Killing people and committing suicide is against God's law. All human life is a gift to be safeguarded from conception until natural death, and we reiterate our call for continuing investment in high quality palliative care, in order to preserve the dignity of some of our most vulnerable, at such difficult moments in their lives.
BBC reported that the Catholic Church is not the only one against the Jersey legislator's move to legalize euthanasia and assisted suicide. A group of medics or 65 health professionals have actually written the health minister of Jersey to prevent euthanasia and assisted suicide from becoming legal. The professionals threatened non-participation once euthanasia and assisted suicide becomes a law.
"We are concerned about the most vulnerable members of our society who may feel coerced into a decision they would not make if the law did not permit it. It is very hard for clinicians to diagnose unbearable suffering or to predict time to death accurately for many conditions. We will not participate should this be passed," the medics said in the letter.
