On August 11, 2026, the Thomas More Society, a Chicago non-profit law firm, issued a press release announcing a formal lawsuit against the State of Illinois on behalf of Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, the Lutheran Care Center, and four Illinois physicians.
The lawsuit is formally asking a federal court to block the Physician-Assisted Suicide Law, which goes into effect on September 12th, due to the fact that it would legally require “doctors to tout the ‘benefits’ of killing oneself, refer patients to die, and falsify death certificates.”
As Christians, this horrific law must be opposed, and for physicians, this law should be unthinkable.
For centuries, the profession of being a doctor has been to save life, not to kill it. In fact, the Hippocratic Oath, which most (not all) doctors are required to take, expressly lists “Do no harm” as its first key principle.
Peter Breen, Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation at the Thomas More Society, commented,
“Illinois is forcing faith-based hospitals, nuns, and doctors into supporting the state’s assisted suicide regime…
The law commands Catholic hospitals, religious nursing homes, and faithful doctors to promote suicide’s alleged ‘benefits,’ refer patients to suicide drug prescribers, and then lie on death certificates to cover it up. This immoral scheme flagrantly violates religious liberty and free speech rights, and we intend to stop it.”
Bishop Paprocki, who is being represented by the Thomas More Society, also gave his comments on the devastating reality of Physician-Assisted Suicide.”
“At the heart of the Catholic Church’s healthcare ministry is the healing work of Christ—to stand with the suffering, to comfort the dying, and to affirm the God-given dignity of every human life…
Illinois’s assisted suicide law undermines that mission by forcing Catholic hospitals and those who serve in them to push death onto their most vulnerable patients. We must be free to serve the sick and the dying according to our faith, not according to the state’s mandate.”
Dr. Mary Keen, a psychiatrist in DuPage County, is also pushing back against Physician-Assisted Suicide – noting that it is completely antithetical to her profession as a doctor:
“The State’s demand that physicians begin helping patients accomplish assisted suicide violates everything I know as a health care professional, as well as my deeply held Catholic convictions on the dignity of every human life…
As a doctor, I have a responsibility to meet my patients’ existential pain with loving accompaniment, not with abandonment.”
For any physician who has an inch of integrity, this horrific law must be opposed.
And as Christians, we have even more cause to oppose Physician-Assisted Suicide.
With this bill, whether knowingly or unknowingly, Illinois lawmakers will destroy those which God created in His image, loves dearly and died to save. (Gen. 1:28, John 3:16, 1 Peter 3:18) Only God has authority over life and death.
Life is so precious to our God that He left glory and became man. He willingly took our punishment, suffered and died. Then He miraculously rose again to eternal life. And He offers that same eternal life to all who repent and put their trust in Him.
God went to great lengths to give us life – not take it away. Lawmakers would be wise to acknowledge that and pass laws that align with God’s.
“The Lord brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up.” (1 Sam. 2:6)
“See now that I myself am he! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand.” (Deut. 32:39)
“Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” (Lk 12:7)
“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him.” (Deut. 30:19-20)
