Gradually the church is shifting from her stand: Former Archbishop of Canterbury has now come out in favour of right to die

Gradually, the Church is shifting from her stand in regards to moral, and the old teachings of the bible. 

As a young boy, i was meant to understand that no man has the right to take his or other people's life.

This is what former Archbishop of Canterbury had to say about the right to die

Report

Former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey has tonight sensationally come out in favour of the right to die.

The ex-head of the Church of England revealed that he had dropped his long-standing opposition to the legalisation of assisted dying – and declared that it would not be ‘anti-Christian’ to change the law.

Lord Carey warned that by opposing reform, the Church he led risks 'promoting anguish and pain, the very opposite of a Christian message of hope.’

His intervention will send shockwaves through the religious establishment and is a significant boost for the latest attempt to legalise the right to die.

In an article for the Daily Mail, the former Archbishop reveals that he is to back legislation tabled by Labour peer Lord Falconer that will seek to legalise assisted dying for the terminally ill in England and Wales.

Under the bill, to be discussed in the House of Lords next week, mentally-capable adults with less than six months to live would be able to request help to end their lives.

Any change in the law has always been implacably opposed by Church of England bishops sitting in the Lords, who have argued it threatens the sanctity of life.

The British Medical Association has also rejected calls for it to soften its opposition to assisted dying.

Opponents warn that changing the law could put vulnerable people under pressure to end their lives so as 'not to be a burden' and say numbers of assisted deaths have risen alarmingly in countries where it has been legalised.

Under the new legislation, a patient would have to prove they have the mental capacity to make a 'settled' choice to end their lives and were not being unduly influenced by others.

Before going ahead, their condition would have to be assessed by at least two doctors.  

They would also have to be informed about alternative 'end-of-life' care options.

It would not legalise assisted suicide, which is much wider and would give the right to die to those who were not terminally ill.

Members of both houses of Parliament are being given a free vote on the issue and several members of the Government, including care minister Norman Lamb, are expected to vote in favour.

A series of opinion polls have shown increasing levels of public support for a change in the law in principle.

Lord Carey says he changed his mind after witnessing the suffering of campaigners like Tony Nicklinson, who suffered for years from locked-in syndrome. The father of two campaigned in vain to be allowed the right to die until he passed away two years ago.

He said it was clear that assisted deaths were already happening 'in the shadows', where doctors, friends or relatives privately carry out mercy killings.

In a reference to the controversial Dignitas clinic in Switzerland, where dozens of terminally ill Britons have travelled to end their lives, he added: 'Personally, I find it a shameful blot on our country’s great reputation for caring for others that we have not come up with a better alternative than the Zurich clinic.'

Culled from dailymail uk