Anglican Church approves special liturgies for euthanasia deaths

Euthanasia. Photo: iStock

The Council of General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada has authorized the use of “experimental” liturgical texts for people who have decided to end their lives with the help of doctors. This was reported by LifeSiteNews.

The 66-page guide, titled “Pastoral Liturgies at the Time of Death in Context of Medical Assistance in Dying,” sets out rites for people who have chosen assisted suicide.

The proposed “rite” includes preparing the sick person for suicide: first, the final confession, absolution, and anointing with oil are performed, after which the believer receives the Eucharist. The culmination of the “liturgy” is a special prayer read immediately before the poison is administered. In its text, the place of killing is proclaimed a “sacred space” where “God meets” those present.

After the prayer, the synod prescribes a period of “quiet reflection,” during which the medical team prepares to carry out “its role” – administering the drug. The rite concludes with prayers for the departed, which state that the person who took his own life has been “freed from all cares,” while his death is presented as a “final gift” to loved ones.

The guide emphasizes that although many Anglicans oppose euthanasia, others have supposedly had a “profound experience of faith” while prayerfully accompanying a voluntary departure from life. Such actions effectively amount to a church sanction for death by injection. The leadership of the denomination describes euthanasia as an act of “love and compassion” for those who “want the pain to stop.”

As the UOJ reported, an Anglican bishopess repented for “persecuting” LGBT people.

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