Weekly Thoughts

Last Friday the House Commons gave a third reading to the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. This means that the Bill has completed its journey through the House of Commons and will now go the House of Lords for similar treatment. After that the Bill will go back to the Commons to consider the Lords’ amendments (if the Lords were to reject a Bill which had already been passed by the Commons it would provoke a constitutional crisis). After which the Bill will receive the Royal Assent and thus become law. It will then be possible for a person whose doctors think they have less than six months to live to seek permission to end their life. Their request has to be approved by a panel of experts after which patient concerned would be given a lethal drink which they would have administer themselves.

I know some people find these proposals distressing, even though they are already available in several other countries. They are of course totally different from the procedure when we take a beloved but seriously ill pet to the vets to be “put to sleep”. Although analogies have been drawn – we do not allow animals to suffer so why should we let human beings.

The important differences are that human beings can understand suffering and that the initiative for assisted suicide must in all cases come from the patient themselves. It would probably be considered improper to anyone else to raise the prospect of assisted suicide with a patient. Indeed, it is important that the patient is not put under any sort of pressure either by well-meaning relatives (don’t you think you’ve suffered enough dear) or less well-meanings ones who might be looking for a share in the estate or doctors or other health and social care professionals. It also includes another source of pressure: where patient might feel that the support given to carers or to themselves is insufficient. Support might take the form of health or social care, housing or social security benefits, one way or another these are all the responsibility of the Government so this puts an important new item on the Government’s agenda particularly when we are told that there will be no budget for assisted suicide and there are proposals to tighten the eligibility criteria for some benefits.

Life is a gift from God and we are each of us stewards of that gift. But a time may come when we can no longer exercise that stewardship, when and if that time comes should we not be able to resign our stewardship and hand the gift back to the One who gave it to us.

READINGS AND PRAYERS

29 JUNE – PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES (SECOND SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY) – Matthew 16.13-19 – the confession of St Peter – all being ordained at this time

30 JUNE – Monday – Matthew 8.18-22 – let me go and bury my father – for urgency in following Christ

1 JULY – Tuesday – Genesis 19.15-29 – the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah – Lord, have mercy upon us

2 JULY – Wednesday – Matthew 8.28 – end – the healing of Gadarene demoniac – for all mentally disturbed people

3 JULY – THOMAS, THE APOSTLE – John 20.24-29 – Thomas doubts the resurrection – all who struggle with their faith

4 JULY- Friday – Genesis,23 1-4, 19, 24.1-8, 62 -end - all preparing for marriage

5 JULY – Saturday – Matthew 9.14- 17 - new wine in new wineskins – that the Holy Spirit may lead us into all truth