I welcome the addition to the calendar of a ‘Jubilee for Entrepreneurs’ by the late Pope Francis. As the Holy Father noted in his encyclical letter on fraternity and social friendship, Fratelli Tutti, “In God’s plan, each individual is called to promote his or her own development, and this includes finding the best economic and technological means of multiplying goods and increasing wealth.”
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As we continue to pray for Pope Francis through the Novemdiales – the period of mourning after the death of a pope – we also celebrate his legacy. Pope Francis was committed to upholding the dignity of workers and, with modifications, the ‘Jubilee for Workers’ and the ‘Jubilee for Entrepreneurs’ are both going ahead at the start of May.
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In the coverage of the passing of Pope Francis to eternal life, surprisingly little has been said about an important aspect of Pope Francis’s social teaching – fraternity. This was the theme of his second social encyclical, Fratelli tutti. It is an important theme because it links the pastoral, spiritual, theological and social teaching of the late pope. The title of Fratelli tutti in English is “Brothers All”, and it is subtitled “On Fraternity and Social Friendship”.
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I have been giving talks about globalisation to Christian groups for some years. Over those years, it seemed to be a less and less interesting subject. It is disappointing that it has become topical again.
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Recent media coverage promoting assisted dying clearly demonstrates a significant problem with perceptions on the current proposals to change the law. To garner support for assisted dying, media stories and celebrity interviews already refer to situations that lie well beyond the scope of the proposed assisted dying legislation. As a result, we may be marching towards the inevitable expansion of assisted dying to include death on request, based on feelings of pity, and in situations not confined to the request of the patient.
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This document was published by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and Dicastery for Culture and Education on 14th January 2025. Below is a summary which follows the headings and structure of the original document.
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We have a new government which is just as fiscally constrained as the previous government. One reason it is fiscally constrained is because of the low birthrate. Perhaps we would do better in that respect if we had a tax system which did not discriminate against a parent staying at home (or working limited hours outside the home) whilst caring for the famiy’s children and elderly.
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Kim Leadbeater’s bill, designed to introduce assisted suicide, has passed its second reading. But the debate is not finished. Many MPs voted to support it because they believed that the bill could be improved. There is a danger that, as MPs debate specific amendments, they will forget the principle that crossing the threshold to allow assisted suicide sets us going on a process which is no longer entirely in the control of parliament. The experience of many countries shows this. But, in the spirit of taking on arguments at their strongest points, it is worth looking at how even the most tightly drafted bill will not stand the test of time. No amendment can make this bill safe.
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As the UK parliament moves closer to the momentous vote on assisted suicide on 29th November, it is worth taking stock of the arguments. The arguments in favour of the bill fall on each of the grounds of principle, practice and because of the inadequacies of the bill – and you do not have to be Catholic to accept the arguments against.
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With the announcement of a new debate in parliament on ‘assisted dying’ in the coming weeks, many people are anticipating the end of what they term a ‘cruel law’ that prevents medical practitioners from giving patients lethal drugs so that patients can end their own life. As Esther Rantzen has said, ‘all I’m asking for is that we be given the dignity of choice.’ Those like Dame Esther in favour of a change in law argue that evidence from other legislatures shows that with proper safeguards there is no abuse, no coercion, no slippery slope. As the advocate of several attempts to change the law, Lord Falconer has said, 300 million people around the world already have access to ‘safe, tried and tested assisted dying’.
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