“And he said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’” – Job 1:21
Months ago, grievous news came out of the New York State Assembly as both chambers of the legislature narrowly passed the “Medical Aid in Dying Act.” This legislative measure will allow an individual with “an incurable and irreversible illness, with six months or less to live” to obtain the help of a physician to commit suicide.
There is a no residency requirement in the bill, which is another extremely concerning provision of this legislative measure. Due to this specific provision, any American citizen, from any of the fifty states, will be able to access physician-assisted suicide in the Empire State.
This is an attempt to turn New York State into a sanctuary state for Americans to kill themselves with the aid of a physician providing them with a lethal cocktail of drugs. This bill could end up being the gateway for the expansion of state-sanctioned deaths in the U.S.
All one needs to do to see how legalized suicide plays out in a culture is look at what is currently happening in Canada. In 2016, Canada passed an act legalizing suicide, and as of 2023, 60,300 Canadians have committed “legal” suicide. Legalized suicide now accounts for around one in twenty deaths in Canada, which is more than Alzheimer’s and diabetes combined.
Some time between now and the end of the year, the state-sanctioned suicide bill will be forwarded to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, where she can either sign it into law or veto it. To date, the New York Governor has not publicly revealed where she stands on the bill. She has stating, “There are strong views on both sides of the spectrum, intense views on this, and I’m conscious of that, and it’s going to be a very weighty decision on me between now and the end of the year.”
For the sake of New York State and our nation, hopefully, Governor Hochul will use her authority and veto this bill to legalize state-sanctioned suicide. Life is worth living, and every life should be protected until natural death when God, who alone has the authority to give life and take it away, determines when one’s earthly life is over.
LET US PRAY…
Father, please empower Governor Hochul to veto this horrendous state law that will permit suicide in our nation. Lord, may our nation honor human life from the point of conception to natural death, as life is a blessing from You. Father, may legislators reject the spread of legal suicide in the United States. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.