Open Pandora’s Box on assisted dying and it will be hard to shut - Michael Nazir Ali
This week the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was introduced in the House of Commons. Attempts to do this in the past have been widely opposed by those involved in palliative care, those with disabilities and people of different faiths.
Parliament has also previously rejected such attempts……
Behind these campaigns, there is the false notion of autonomy: my life is my own and I can end it when and how I want to. In fact, life is not just our own. The Judaeo-Christian tradition, based on the Bible, has long taught that life is a gift from God in whose image every human being has been made. Thus we are related to the very source of our being. We develop as persons, furthermore, because of our relationships with our parents, siblings, spouses, relatives, friends and colleagues who also have varying degrees of claims on us. The inalienable dignity of every person derives from being made in God’s image and is the basis for the prohibition on taking human life, except in tightly defined circumstances.
Our spouses, children and the wider family may wish to care for us with time and money rather than letting us take the “quick fix” solution of assisted dying. The role of the medical profession, similarly, for thousands of years, has been to save, support and enhance human life, not to use its expertise to intentionally bring it to an end. Even on the grounds of autonomy, suicide is not now a crime but assisted dying involves another party, whether that is a medical practitioner or a family member recruited, however reluctantly, to administer the lethal drug. …..the proposed bill will require those who wish for an assisted death to be of sound mind. That is to say, responsible for their action before God, who gave them life, and those of their near and dear ones who wished to care for them.
…those with life-threatening illness may be fearful of the suffering they will have to undergo and how long this may last. It is entirely right to recognise such fears and to provide assistance and comfort to those experiencing them.
The Christian-inspired hospice movement, though shamefully underfunded, has provided just this reassurance of managing pain and providing an environment where those towards the end of their lives have an opportunity for reflection, the restoration of relationships and the putting of their affairs in order. I understand that pain can nearly always be relieved and that sometimes this can prolong life although, at other times, the use of painkillers may shorten or even bring life to an end. The question here is very much of intention. Is the intention to relieve pain or to kill?………..
One of the dangers in this proposed legislation is that the elderly or the seriously ill may feel they have a “duty to die” to relieve their loved ones of the burden of care. ………This should never be allowed to happen.
…..in whichever jurisdiction assisted dying has been legalised, its remit has become progressively widened to include……those with painful illnesses that are not terminal and then those who may be mentally ill or depressed or just tired of life. This is the logical result of the radical autonomy argument: “it is my life and I can end it when and how I want to”.
It is my sincere hope that this bill will not succeed but if, God forbid, it does then we must make sure that adequate provision is made for the exercise of conscience……….what about nurses, paramedics and others who will be expected to co-operate in the delivery of this dreadful programme? Many Christian and other faith organisations are involved in the provision of care homes for the elderly. Will they be expected to service a request for assisted dying or will they be exempt? ……..
We must oppose this well-intentioned but, ultimately dangerous legislation before a Pandora’s box is opened that will be impossible to shut.
Michael Nazir-Ali is a former Bishop of Rochester and now Prelate to the Holy See.
Credo. The Times (£) Saturday 19 October here