Priests for Life Director on Court Decision:

June 26, 1997

Priests for Life, an international association of Catholic clergy specially dedicated to the protection of human life, welcomed the decision of the Supreme Court today declaring that states have the right to forbid physician-assisted suicide. The organization also recognized that the battle will continue, and spoke of long term solutions. The International Director of Priests for Life, Fr. Frank Pavone, stated, "We are happy that the Court acknowledged the State’s right to ban physician-assisted suicide. Today, as moral teachers, we go further than the Constitutional judgment that the state may ban such actions. We declare also the moral truth that the state must ban such actions, because the state exists to protect the lives of the vulnerable.

"We further affirm that the solution to the problem of assisted suicide lies beyond court decisions and laws. The solution lies in a new way of life in which we share one another’s burdens rather than casting off the burdensome....a new way of life in which we stand with those who suffer and recognize their dignity and value rather than pretending to give them dignity by helping them kill themselves. Priests for Life will continue to work with the whole Church to foster concrete, loving presence to the sick and suffering. Their rights, dignity, and value are equal to that of the most healthy and vigorous among us."