Letter to Society Clergy about the Assisted Dying Bill

Dear Friends,

We are writing to you to make clear our opposition to the Assisted Dying Bill which was introduced to the House of Commons last week and which will be debated later this autumn.

Our resistance to these proposals is grounded both in what our faith teaches us about the dignity and value of every human life, and our conviction that this legislation will not serve the common good in our nation.

We know that the subject we are writing about is a very sensitive one. Like most of you, we have walked with families into the valley of the shadow of death and we are fully aware how, for many people, that can be a time of immense pain. Allowing medical professionals to end the lives of those who are suffering seems to many to be a sensitive response. But the unintended consequences of such legislation are deeply alarming.

The parishes we serve and the clergy who minister in them seek to pay attention to the powerless and give a voice to the most vulnerable in our society. Here we are led to find very real danger in this legislation. If assisted suicide becomes a legal possibility, it will inevitably follow that some who are dependent, aged, or dying, will feel under pressure to end their lives. Equally inevitably, those who will feel that pressure most acutely will be those who are income deprived and who fear becoming a financial burden on their loved ones.

Campaigners suggest that safeguards will be in place to protect people from such pressure, but the mere fact that such legislation exists will in itself impose intolerable burdens on people to opt for assisted suicide. What appears to offer choice to one set of people will take away choice from countless others.

Moreover, the example from every other nation is that, once a precedent has been set for a medical professional intentionally to end the life of one their patients, the relaxation of safeguards and an exponential increase in the number of people dying in this way follows. This is why so many medical professionals and disability rights campaigners, notably the Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson, have expressed such profound concerns about this Bill.

We are aware of the acute social care crisis in this country. Many tens of thousands of people who are close to death are unable to access proper palliative care. However, the solution to these problems is not to allow doctors to kill their patients, a decision that would change for ever the character of the medical profession. What is required is the political courage to invest responsibly in social and end-of-life care.

Life is God’s gift, not ours to possess. God is incarnate in the person of Jesus. Because God has united Himself with human life, so all human life is sacred, and every human person infinitely loved by God. The debate around this Bill is one that takes us to the very heart of the purpose and dignity of human life and, as Christians, staying silent is not an option. We would urge all who look to us for episcopal care to consider the following steps:

Write to your MP. Such letters have a demonstrable impact. It is best to keep letters short but personal, ideally drawing on your own experiences.

Talk about the issue. It is important to raise public awareness about this debate and it is a proper subject for preaching and teaching. The Christian life is about our preparation for death, so conversations about a good Christian death within a Church family are healthy ones.

Pray. Pray for those MPs who will soon have to decide how to vote. And pray for the dying, especially those whose death is a painful one.

It is a joy and a privilege to serve you as your Bishops. Please be assured of our constant prayer and our love for you all.