Image – Unsplash: Ben White
Christians around the UK will come together in prayer against assisted suicide next week ahead of a crucial vote on MP Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.
The National Day of Prayer is set for Wednesday 11 June. Christian groups including the Christian Medical Fellowship, the Evangelical Alliance, and the Christian Institute have invited people to join them in praying against the mortal threat posed by assisted suicide.
MPs are set to debate Leadbeater’s Bill on 13 June, with a crucial vote expected to take place on 20 June.
In Scotland, MSP Liam McArthur’s assisted suicide bill recently passed Stage 1 and has moved on to Committee Stage.
“Join us on 11 June to pray for a revival of compassion in our society, that we would prioritise caring for the sick in their darkest moments, instead of seeking to help them to end their lives”, said Simon Calvert, the deputy director of the Christian Institute.
“We hope Christians across the UK will join us in prayer against dangerous attempts to legalise assisted suicide. No so-called safeguards can make these Bills ‘safe’.”
Last month, over 80 leaders of religious congregations gathered for the 2025 Conference of Religious England and Wales (CoR), where “attendees expressed their united opposition to the Assisted Dying Bill, standing together in support of life and dignity at every stage”.
The Catholic Church has also voiced vehement opposition to assisted suicide. Cardinal Vincent Nichols, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, recently warned that assisted suicide risks turning the NHS into a “national death service”.
Cardinal Nichols also urged Catholics to contact their MPs before it is too late: “Even if you have written before, please make contact now with your MP and ask them to vote against this Bill not only on grounds of principle but because of the failure of Parliament to approach this issue in an adequate and responsible manner.”
The UK Catholic Medical Association (CMA) is also “fundamentally opposed” to the Leadbeater Bill. In a position statement published in April, the CMA said: “For Christians and non-Christians alike, the ancient, fundamental principle of absolute respect for human life has always been officially upheld [by the Hippocratic Oath]…
“The true and ethical meaning of assisted dying is encompassed by palliative care medicine and nursing.”
Leadbeater’s Bill proposes to legalise assisted suicide in England and Wales for terminally ill adults given six months to live.
SPUC is urging all concerned citizens to lobby their MPs to warn against the mortal threat posed by assisted suicide before it is too late.
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