French bishops wrote to the heads of Catholic-inspired health care institutions in their country on Sunday, telling them that they must prepare to use their legal right to refuse to participate in assisted suicide and euthanasia. Source: Crux.
In July this year, France’s parliament legalised an “aid in dying” law that is set to come into force in January 2027.
The French bishops said Catholic health care providers must be prepared for this.
The bishops highlighted that in August, the Constitutional Council offered an interpretation of the new law that “allows health establishments not to implement ‘assisted dying’ within them, if it is contrary to their statutes or their project.”
The letter referenced Pope Leo XIV’s recent visit to France during which he reiterated the Church’s opposition to assisted suicide and called it “false compassion”.
In light of this, the bishops encouraged the institutions to “remain faithful to the Holy Father’s call by reaffirming the Church’s clear disapproval of the morally illicit acts of euthanasia and assisted suicide”.
“To this end, it is important to prepare your institutional and legal framework to benefit from the provision issued by the Constitutional Council, which will allow you to refuse assisted dying in your facilities,” the letter said.
“It is therefore urgent that your legal and administrative framework be updated (charters, statutes, internal regulations, etc.),” the bishops continued.
“In Belgium, a type of establishment clause provided for by the 2002 law was repealed in 2020. One of the arguments was the poor management of this clause. This point must therefore be addressed with rigour and expertise,” they added.
The bishops said that a number of institutions had approached the bishops conference for advice, and on the back of that a “comprehensive doctrinal and pastoral document for health care facility managers, caregivers, chaplains, and pastoral workers will be published in 2027”.
“Until then, we will promptly answer any questions received, bearing in mind that we cannot replace the individual discernment that each person must undertake, and that certain questions depend on the direction of the implementing decrees and forthcoming policy guidelines,” they stated.
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French bishops tell Catholic health care institutions to prepare to refuse assisted suicide (By Fionn Shiner, Crux)
