Catholic Archbishop of Westminster damns assisted dying
The Times reports (Friday October 11) that the Archbishop of Westminster has urged people to write to their MP’s to oppose the legalization of assisted dying. A bill to legalise this will be introduced in Parliament on Wednesday October 16th.
In a letter that will be read in parishes in his diocese this weekend Cardinal Vincent Nichols writes that the medical profession could witness “a slow change from a duty to care to a duty to kill”.
He adds: “As this debate unfolds, I ask you to play your part in it. Write to your MP.Have discussions with family, friends and colleagues. And pray. Please remember: be careful what you wish for. The right to die can become a duty to die. Being forgetful of God belittles our humanity.”
“In this country, assurances will be given that the proposed safeguards are firm and reliable. Rarely has this been the case. This proposed change in the law may be a source of relief to some. But it will bring great fear and trepidation to many, especially those who have vulnerabilities and those living with disabilities. What is now proposed will not be the end of the story. It is a story better not begun. ”
Nicholls said that there would be pressure on the terminally ill to end their lives, warning: “Once assisted suicide is approved by the law, a key protection of human life falls away.”