News

The Russian Church protests against the Strasbourg decision to withdraw life support from the seriously ill British boy

Moscow, July 3, Interfax - The Russian Orthodox Church protests against the decision taken by the European courts to withdraw the life support systems from a 10-months old British boy Charlie Guard, who suffer from a rare genetic disease.

"Monstrous decision of the European Human Rights court demonstrates the deepest crisis of the notion of human rights protection. Today the right to life gives way to the right to death," head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate Metropolitan Hilarion said in his statement.

According to the hierarch, the situation is especially dramatic as the parents cannot take a decision independently. The metropolitan wonders "why in the 21st century in a free democratic state a family is locked in one clinic because of the court decision and cannot turn to another clinic."

The Russian church official calls this situation "a violation against parents' conscience, mockery at them, sadism painted in humanistic tones."

He stressed that in Charlie's case there were doctors in the USA who were ready to treat him and finances for it. Despite it, the court took the decision that "in best interests" of the child to withdraw him from life support systems, provide palliative care to him and let him die with dignity.

Metropolitan Hilarion is perplexed why it is always proclaimed that a human life is an absolute value in the West, but murder of seriously ill people including children become "legalized reality."

He hopes that Charlie's parents will have a chance to give their child a treatment, which they consider necessary. "I pray that they could go through the terrible trials they have to face. I hope that merciful God will not deprive little Charlie of His love and turn his sufferings to the promise of eternal life," the Russian church official said in his statement.

Print this page

Home

News

.	Customize latest news

• Putin, Erdogan didn't discuss conflict between Russian Orthodox Church, Constantinople – Peskov 18 September 2018, 12:23
• Constantinople exarch in Kiev collects works of Ukrainian nationalists 18 September 2018, 10:20
• Constantinople's exarch says willing to cooperate with "Kiev Patriarchate" 17 September 2018, 19:01
• Metropolitan Hilarion calls Constantinople policy mean 17 September 2018, 17:44
• Metropolitan Hilarion recommends Constantinople to form "one local Church in America" 17 September 2018, 17:44
• Metropolitan Hilarion accuses U.S. of deliberately destroying Russian Orthodox Church 17 September 2018, 11:32
• Russian Orthodox Church says Patriarchate of Constantinople status might be reviewed 14 September 2018, 21:55
• Patriarch Kirill's spokesman likens state of Moscow-Constantinople relations with yellow traffic light 14 September 2018, 21:53
• Moscow Patriarchate suspends mentioning of Patriarch Bartholomew in prayers at church services 14 September 2018, 21:48
• Constantinople Patriarchate has no right to interfere in Ukrainian church affairs - Metropolitan Onufry 14 September 2018, 15:29
• Constantinople has 'tradition' of encouraging schisms in Russian Orthodox Church - Patriarch Kirill 14 September 2018, 15:14
• Moldovan president proposes outlawing gay prides 14 September 2018, 14:31
• Kremlin following current session of Holy Synod of Russian Orthodox Church - Peskov 14 September 2018, 14:23
• UOC official believes most of its parishioners won't leave for Constantinople's "autocephaly" 14 September 2018, 09:43
• Russian Orthodox Church Holy Synod to hold extraordinary meeting on Sept 14 13 September 2018, 20:55
• Situation surrounding Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Kiev is state's brutal interference in Church affairs - Russian Foreign Ministry 13 September 2018, 17:15
• Metropolitan Hilarion meets with apostolic nuncio to Russia 13 September 2018, 14:07
• Greece's visa denial to Metropolitan Varsonofy scandalous - Moscow Patriarchate 13 September 2018, 13:06
• Constantinople's actions can result in a schism in Orthodoxy, exceeding the Great Schism of 1054, Russian church official says 13 September 2018, 13:03
• The Russian Orthodox Church urges UOC believers to unite around Metropolitan Onufry 13 September 2018, 11:53
• Constantinople legates arrive in Ukraine - sources 12 September 2018, 19:31
• Metropolitan Onufry calls on flock to stay faithful to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church 12 September 2018, 17:08
• Tajik authorities see no need for religious party in country 12 September 2018, 16:26
• Washington stands behind Constantinople's actions in Ukraine - historian 12 September 2018, 11:28
• New church schism in Ukraine will be more dangerous than NATO expansion - expert 12 September 2018, 10:31
• Washington pledges support for Kiev in struggle for right to have united autocephalous Orthodox church 12 September 2018, 09:53
• Patriarch Bartholomew's position on Ukrainian Church motivated by politics rather than religion - Russian Imperial Family head 11 September 2018, 17:05
• Jerusalem patriarch expresses solidarity with the head of the canonical UOC 11 September 2018, 14:20
• Putin urges to follow the example of the chief rabbi of Russia - father of 14 children 11 September 2018, 13:05
• Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia opposes appointment of exarchs to Ukraine 11 September 2018, 10:52

Other news