British parliamentarians on Sept. 11 soundly rejected a right-to-die bill that would have allowed people with less than six months to live to end their lives legally. Only 118 members of Parliament voted in favor of the bill; 330 voted against it. The bill had faced strong opposition from various religious leaders in the United Kingdom. A letter written by Justin Welby, archbishop of Canterbury, and signed by leading representatives of the Roman Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Sikh faiths said the proposed bill crossed “a legal and ethical Rubicon” and would turn suicide into a social norm. Meanwhile, across the pond in the United States, a measure that would allow physicians to prescribe life-ending drugs to the terminally ill passed the California statehouse and was on its way to Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk on Sept. 11.
Right-to-Die Bill Rejected in U.K.
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
“His presence brings prestige to our nation and to the entire Group of 7. It is the first time that a pope will participate in the work of the G7,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said.
“Many conflicting, divergent and often contradictory views of the human person have found wide acceptance … they have led to holders of traditional theories being cancelled or even losing their jobs,” the bishops said.
Robots can give you facts. But they can’t give you faith.
“Irena’s Vow” is true story of a Catholic nurse who used her position to shelter a dozen Jews in World War II-era Poland.