How Catholics can oppose Delaware bill that would legalize physician-assisted suicide

CV NEWS FEED // There are several upcoming opportunities for Catholics in Delaware to oppose a proposed bill that would legalize assisted suicide in the state. 

This weekend, all churches in the statewide Diocese of Wilmington will offer postcards Catholics can fill out to express their opposition to the bill, according to diocesan publication The Dialog. The diocese will deliver the postcards to legislators.

>>Delaware Catholic Diocese criticizes assisted suicide legislation<<

House Bill 140 was introduced Dec. 19, 2024, and the House Health & Human Development Committee advanced it Jan. 29. 

The same bill had failed in September 2024 because then-Gov. John Carney, a Catholic, vetoed it. However, Carney’s term as governor has since come to an end, and the new governor, Matt Meyer, has said he would sign a pro-assisted suicide bill into law if one made it to his desk, according to the Dialog.

Delaware legislators are set to reconvene March 11 at the state capitol for another legislative session. Bishop William E. Koenig will pray the rosary and celebrate Mass the same day at a church in Dover, less than a mile from the state capitol, according to the Dialog. Priests and laity are encouraged to join. The pro-life group Patients Rights Action Fund is set to lobby against assisted suicide that day too, and the faithful are encouraged to meet with their representatives to express opposition to the bill. 

According to the Dialog, Bishop Koenig said that the Catholic leaders in the neighboring Maryland and Washington, D.C., area have set good precedents for how to engage legislators. 

In 2024, a Maryland bill to legalize assisted suicide bill failed to pass the state’s General Assembly by one vote, according to NPR. CatholicVote reported earlier this month that there are concerns the bill will be once again introduced in the legislature. On Jan. 30 pro-life and disability advocates proactively lobbied state legislators to reject the bill if it arises again. 

In Illinois, Catholic dioceses are fighting a similar pro-assisted suicide bill. The Diocese of Rockford encouraged Catholics to pray the St. John Paul II Novena for Life that the legislation would be defeated. 

>> Delaware governor vetos assisted suicide bill, cites being ‘morally opposed to’ laws enabling people ‘to take their own life’ <<