This week has seen huge opposition arise against Lord Joffe’s proposals for euthanasia. Leading bishops and religious leaders have applied such united pressure against the private member’s bill for ‘physician-assisted suicide’ that the euthanasia campaigner has been forced to water down his plans.
This week’s debate took place in the House of Lords, and Lord Joffe unveiled his plans for doctors to legally prescribe lethal drugs to end the lives of terminally ill patients. However, his proposals will not allow doctors to actually administer the drugs themselves.
Bishops from across the country from St Albans, Oxford and London joined former Archbishops, Lord Carey and Lord Habgood in expressing their absolute opposition to the Bill in the House of Lords.
Their presence was backed by a major campaign in the days running up to the Bill’s hearing by religious leaders. Nine religious leaders from six different religions appealed to the Parliament to block assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia, stating that the very core of human life was at risk, and pointed to rapid advances in palliative care as an alternative.
Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh and Hindu religious heads signed up to the letter opposing the Bill. Although the Lord’s debate had no vote, the unity among the religions projected a clear sign that there was widespread opposition across all beliefs.
Repeated claims have been made that religious leaders were imposing their beliefs, and to this the Bishop of Oxford said that although there were religious arguments, the views put forwards were entirely rational views, reported the Church of England newspaper. The Bishop said, “A loss of autonomy does not signify any loss of meaning or value from our lives.”
Joining the debate, the Bishop of London, Revd Richard Chartres insisted that allowing assisted suicide to even a few people could erode society’s familiarity with the worth of human life.
