Speaking before Ireland’s general election on Friday, 29 November, the bishops said in a statement: “Over recent years, we have witnessed a diminution in the respect for human life in our political discourse.”
“The value of people’s lives seems to be calculated as if it were simply part of a cost-benefit analysis. Where is the hope in this?” they challenged.
They suggested that as well as questioning candidates about their stance on assisted suicide, voters should also question them about their position on abortion.
Since the introduction of what they termed “a very liberal abortion law” in 2018, 40,000 abortions have been carried out in Ireland.
The bishops noted that some politicians want to liberalise the abortion law, while efforts are made to make legislative provision for assisted dying.
“We totally reject that recommendation because a fundamental principle of civilised society is that no person can lawfully take the life of another,” they said.
Bishop William Crean of Coyne Diocese forecast, while expressing solidarity with families struggling to meet nursing care costs, increased pressure on the elderly and frail in the push for assisted suicide.
“How we care for the weakest and most vulnerable goes to the core of our moral fibre and integrity as a society,” he said.
Crean described the culture of palliative care across Ireland as an “extraordinary witness to compassionate care for all approaching life’s end”.
But he warned that “enormous” pressure would be brought to bear on frail, elderly and others diagnosed with terminal illness to succumb to a potentially “new culture of death”.
Referring to the Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) law introduced in Canada in 2016, Bishop Crean quoted from a recent letter from The Times written by an Anglican Canadian priest who wrote: “It’s undeniable that what was proposed as enlightened and overdue has taken on a frightening form of its own, with even mental health now proposed as a qualification for assisted dying. Clichés aside, some slopes are grimly slippery.”
Crean’s concerns were echoed by Bishop Kevin Doran of Elphin and Achonry, who described the silence around the issue of assisted dying before the election as “disconcerting.”
On 23 October, the Dáil voted to accept the report from the Oireachtas (Ireland’s bi-cameral parliament) committee on assisted suicide. Doran noted, referring to the vote, that the majority of representatives backed the provision of a framework for assisted suicide in certain circumstances.
While the vote had no immediate effect, he said it gave some idea of the number of politicians prepared to consider legalising Euthanasia and assisted suicide.
“If this had been about passing legislation, there were enough ‘yes’ votes nationally to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia, with all the same promises about it being safe and rare,” Doran observed.
Elsewhere in their election statement, the bishops strongly criticised homeless figures as “a scandal” and described the level of child homelessness in the state as “totally unacceptable”. The inability of so many people to acquire a home of their own affects social cohesion they stressed.
Calling on political leaders to alleviate the “key shortcomings in our economy and social fabric” they said this was necessary so that there is a welcome for those who come to Ireland to create a better life.
They also warned that the Church-State structured dialogue is not functioning and needs to be reviewed.
Calling on the Government to “engage purposefully” with all sectors of society, including the community and voluntary sector as well as with the Churches and faith communities, they underlined how “In a fracturing society, real and meaningful social dialogue is needed so that people actually feel their voice is being heard and that they have a contribution to make.”