By CatholicVote | Created at 2024-11-21 18:01:24 | Updated at 2024-11-21 23:01:38
5 hours ago
CV NEWS FEED // As the United Kingdom Parliament prepares to soon debate a bill on legalizing assisted suicide, the UK Catholic Bishops are providing educational resources on hospices, which provide the palliative care they assert is “the right and best way to care for people towards the end of life.”
The resources include a podcast where the host, James Abbott, visits East London-based St. Joseph’s Hospice, where Catholic Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, is a supportive sponsor. Abbott speaks on the “Art of Dying Well” podcast.
The blurb on the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW) webpage describing the podcast explains that the content addresses stereotypes associated with a hospice and provides an informative look into what actually goes on there.
“The content in this section will enable you to find out how hospices work and demonstrate why they are the jewel in the crown when it comes to palliative and end of life care,” the webpage states.
The CBCEW webpage also offers information to learn more about the patients, staff, and others involved at the St. Joseph’s Hospice.
The Catholic bishops’ resources on palliative and hospice care bolster their life-affirming stance in the assisted suicide debate going on in the UK. Members of Parliament (MPs) are set to debate the bill on legalizing assisted suicide at the end of this month.
The bishops have repeatedly spoken out against the bill. Last week, with the bishops of Wales and Scotland, they issued a statement calling on UK citizens to contact their MPs and urge them to reject the bill.
In the statement, they also said that palliative care is the right approach to caring for those nearing the end of their lives.
“Life is a gift to be protected, especially when threatened by sickness and death,” the bishops stated. “Palliative care, with expert pain relief, and good human, spiritual, and pastoral support, is the right and best way to care for people towards the end of life.”
