Bishop Martin Hayes “If assisted dying is legalised then the elderly, the sick and people with disabilities are vulnerable to cultural coercion, i.e., to messages of ‘you’re no longer useful or wanted, ….you are a burden on society’ Bishop Martin Hayes has warned. A member of the Irish Episcopal Conference’s Council for Life, he was responding to the Dáil vote to approve the Majority Report on Assisted Dying.
He added: “The final weeks of life are important and can be provided for with appropriate palliative care with the patient at the centre. It is critical that people who are ill have confidence in the medical profession; whom they trust to ensure and preserve life.
The Majority Report (MjR) relies on the autonomy of the individual which is not absolute as it does not take account of the common good.”
Bishop Hayes also told The Irish Catholic that “the Majority Report fails to provide adequate safeguards for the vulnerable, the elderly, the sick, those with disabilities. It could enable funding being prioritised for assisted dying above that for palliative care thus leading to a devaluation of palliative care.
“The dignity of the person is paramount, each of us is created in the image and likeness of God for a particular purpose which is being fulfilled until death comes. This central belief is illustrated by the video entitled ‘Through the Valley’ released in conjunction with the Pastoral Letter ‘Freedom to live fully, until death comes’, he said.