On August 5, the Medical Aid in Dying Act became law in New York State, allowing doctors to prescribe deadly medication to patients expected to die within six months.

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Physician-assisted suicide (PAS) is now, or soon will be, legal in 13 states and Washington, D.C., and is being considered this year in 16 others.

Mary Massoud, a leader of the IFA New York Prayer Group, wrote, “As a registered nurse, I have seen patients suffering from various diseases or traumas. My heart breaks, and I want to do whatever I can to stop them from that. Loved ones gather and cry, asking me what I can do to stop it?”

These experiences help her see why healthcare practitioners, patients, and families want PAS policies, but she wrote:

As a Christian woman, I know our God is the Ultimate Judge. He is the One who calls people home, where their suffering and pain end once and for all! When Jesus returns, there will be no more of these terrible stories. Alleluia! Till then, I will be an advocate for my patients and look to Our God for help.

Hospitals throughout New York have been informing their staff of their policies in light of the new law.

On July 31, Dr. Karen Hennessey sat in the meeting at Health and Hospitals Corporation, and as the specifics of the law and the hospital policies were explained, she wanted to speak against it. No one did, while plenty of supporters freely expressed their views.

Afterward, Dr. Hennessey did some research and drafted a memo to her colleagues. She intentionally left God out of it, but “came under conviction” before sending it out.

Here’s the final memo:

Greetings colleagues,

In a follow-up to last Friday’s medical meeting, I wish to thank the Palliative Care Department for the presentation on the New York Medical Aid in Dying Act (MAID Act). I also wish to thank them for the excellent work that they do in addressing the medical, physical, and spiritual needs of our dying patients. Such good care, in fact, that I do not think additional legislation such as the MAID Act is needed.

Health and Hospitals Corporation patients have access to a full array of palliative services to ease their suffering and to prepare them for death with dignity. According to a survey by the Oregon Health Authority, the chief reason that patients opted for physician-assisted suicide was not pain, but loss of autonomy and feeling like they were a burden to others (1).  To offer lethal doses of medication to dying patients supports the view that the patient is a burden to their loved ones and that their life is not worth living (2).

Doctor of Philosophy Daniel Sulmasy describes “The deeper meaning of dignity is the intrinsic meaning — the idea that every human being has intrinsic dignity — a worth or value based on nothing but the bare fact that they are human” (2,3).  As stated by philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein: “If suicide is allowed, everything is allowed” (2,4).

Of ongoing concern will be the slippery slope of eligibility, and I suggest that we be on guard for erosions in “safeguards.” In Canada, for example, the Medical Assistance in Dying Act does not require that the patient have a terminal illness. This broader eligibility has been the subject of substantial public debate. Critics have raised concerns about whether the safeguards are adequate for vulnerable individuals (5). In Oregon, anorexia nervosa and diabetes have been considered qualifying conditions (2,6,7). I find it equally concerning that dementia is included in the New York law that we discuss.

It is in the best interest of our patients and society that physicians maintain a basic, fundamental level of trust. This trust is well described in the Hippocratic Oath, which states: “I will neither give a deadly drug to anyone who asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect” (2,8). It should be noted that our largest professional medical organizations, such as the American Medical Association and the American College of Physicians, are opposed to such practices, and I argue that we should do the same.

Again, I thank the Palliative Care Department for the work they have done to put in place safeguards and policies for the newly passed laws that have been handed to us. As was mentioned in the meeting, no individual or organization is obligated to take part. Personally, I will not be among those participating, as in all good conscience, I believe this law hurts the heart of God, and I tremble at the thought of interfering with the natural process of death by which God prepares His people for eternity. Your comments are welcome.

Sincerely,

Karen Hennessey

Department of Infectious Disease

She urged her colleagues to read the articles she referenced (below), “chiefly the expert opinion by Daniel Sulmasy from the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University, from which many of the ideas and references for this discussion have been derived.”

Dr. Hennessey pointed out, “The law does say that no institution nor person is required to take part, but they expect you to refer. This is a sticking point.”

She compared PAS to abortion:

Everybody takes a little step along the way. Somebody makes a referral, somebody pushes the stretcher, or somebody pushes the anesthesia. There are steps all along the way that are helping to make this happen. I think people feel like they don’t have a choice. This is bullying, and with a bully, sometimes all you have to do is stand up and say, “No.” It’s an enemy behind it. He just has to be opposed, and God will step in. That’s how communism fell. Some people took stands on small things with very big consequences.

Pray for the constitutionality of this law to be called into question in light of the First Amendment, which states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

Later, Dr. Hennessey mentioned other nations where the “safeguards” are coming down, including Belgium, Sweden, and Norway. She said, “They’ve done some horrible stuff. It’s part of the reason you don’t want to get started because it goes somewhere where you didn’t intend.”

In the Netherlands, there is no longer an age limit!

Pray!

Pray for those of every age who are encouraged by legalized suicide to end their own lives.

Our church has a team of intercessors who gather once a month for about five hours to pray over our church, our state, our nation, and our world. Since we’ve known that the MAID Act was a possibility, we’ve been praying the following:

• Pray against and bind Worship of Death and Idolatry of Self-Determination.

• Declare that God is the only One who is worthy and able to determine times and seasons of life.

• Pray that the enemy would be unable to change or alter God’s timing in all things, including when His children live and when they are called home.

• Pray for repentance and a turning away from death.

• Pray for life and a desire to seek the Lord in those who are tempted to employ this law to end their life. Pray against suicide. Pray for Hope.

• Pray that all medical doctors, nurses, aides, and all in this sphere would refuse and refrain from participating in this and thus bring Death.

• Pray that God’s people would rise up and agree that this is evil and from the enemy.

The End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act has been signed into law in Illinois, and it’s scheduled to roll out on September 12. Pray a lawsuit brings that law to a halt before it ends lives.

Add your prayers in the comments below…

Here are Dr. Hennessey’s resources:

1. Oregon Health Authority, Public Health Division, Center for Health Statistics. Oregon Death with Dignity Act, 2023 data summary; 2024 (internet). Available from:  https://www.oregon.gov/oha/ph/providerpartnerresources/evaluationresearch/deathwithdignityact/Documents/year26.pdf
2. Sulmasy DP. Assisted suicide and euthanasia: bad medicine, bad ethics, bad public policy. Minerva Anestesiol 2025; 91:343-9. DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18905-0.
3. Sulmasy DP. The varieties of human dignity: a logical and conceptual analysis. Med Health Care Philos 2013; 16:937-44.
4. Wittgenstein L. Notebooks, 1914-1916.j Chicago: University of Chicago Press; 1979. p 91.
5. Justice.gc.ca; Medical assistance in dying
6. Regnard C, Worthington A, Finlay I. Oregon Death with Dignity Act access:  25-year analysis. BMJ Support Palliat Care 2024;14:455-61
7. Richardson B. Diabetics considered eligible for physician-assisted suicide, in Oregon, state officials say. The Washington Times; 2018 [internet]. Available from https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jan/11/diabetics-eligible-physician-assisted-suicide-oreg/ [cited 2025, March 20].
8. Edelstein L. The Hippocratic oath: text, translation, and interpretation In: Ancient medicine: Selected papers of Ludwig Edelstein, ed. By O Temkin, CL Temkin. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1967:3-63.

How are you praying about assisted suicide? Share your prayers and scriptures below.

Rich Swingle has presented in 42 nations on six continents, mostly with his own one-man plays. Rich and his bride Joyce Swingle have 41 “screen children” from film, stage, and audio drama projects. At Rededicate America, Rich portrayed Rev. John Bacon, who said, “No,” to the unrighteous tea tax at Old South Meeting House, where they planned what would be known as The Boston Tea Party. The Swingles’ home mission is New York City. www.RichDrama.com. Photo Credit: Marcelo Leal on Unsplash.