The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

17th March 2026

17 March 2026

Scotland Rejects Assisted Dying and Affirms Human Dignity

MSPs can be confident that they have taken the correct and responsible course of action. Their vote serves to protect some of Scotland’s most vulnerable individuals from the risk of being pressured into a premature death.

Every human life possesses inherent value. Genuine compassion is not expressed through ending a life, but through accompanying those who suffer and ensuring they receive the medical, emotional, and spiritual support that recognises their dignity. No life is without worth.

As a society, our responsibility is not to address suffering by eliminating the sufferer, but to surround each person with care, respect, and dignity until their natural end. Today’s decision moves Scotland further in that direction, and MSPs should be commended for this.

However, we must continue to make progress. Our next priority must be to strengthen palliative care by ensuring that it is properly funded and accessible to all who require it.

I would like to express my gratitude to all MSPs for their serious engagement with this issue and for the thoughtful and considered attention they have given to the bill. I am especially grateful to those who upheld the principle of human dignity and advocated on behalf of the vulnerable. Your principled commitment has not gone unnoticed.

Bishop John Keenan

President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland

Contact:

Media Office

Bishops’ Conference of Scotland
64 Aitken Street, ML6 6LT
Tel: 01236 764061
Email: [email protected]

The Roman Catholic Bishops in Scotland work together to undertake nationwide initiatives through their Commissions and Agencies.

The members of the Bishops' Conference are the Bishops of the eight Scottish Dioceses. Where appropriate the Bishops Emeriti (retired) provide a much welcomed contribution to the work of the conference. The Bishops' Conference of Scotland is a permanently constituted assembly which meets regularly throughout the year to address relevant business matters.

Members of The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

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Archive by tag: Bishops' Conference of ScotlandReturn

May 2025

11May

Pope at Mass: Listen without judging - Vatican News

11 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-05/pope-leo-xiv-celebrates-mass-at-the-tomb-of-saint-peter.html

Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass at the tomb of Saint Peter and prays by the niche of the Pallia.

11May

Pope Leo XIV's coat of arms offers a clear reflection of his Augustinian roots and the values he seeks to promote during his pon...

11 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

Pope Leo XIV's coat of arms offers a clear reflection of his Augustinian roots and the values he seeks to promote during his pontificate, particularly unity and communion within the Church.

The shield is divided diagonally into two sections. The upper half features a blue background with a white lily.

The lower half of the shield has a light background and displays an image that recalls the Order of Saint Augustine: a closed book with a heart pierced by an arrow. This is a direct reference to the conversion experience of Saint Augustine himself, who described his personal encounter with God’s Word using the phrase: “Vulnerasti cor meum verbo tuo” - “You have pierced my heart with your Word.”

Pope Leo XIV has also chosen a motto that reflects this Augustinian tradition: In Illo uno unum, which means “In the One, we are one.” The phrase is taken from Saint Augustine’s Exposition on Psalm 127, where he explains that “although we Christians are many, in the one Christ we are one.”

More: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-05/pope-leo-xiv-s-motto-and-coat-of-arms.html

10May

A post from Bishops' Conference of Scotland

10 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

10May

Here is the official record confirming that Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost accepted the election canonically making him Supreme...

10 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

Here is the official record confirming that Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost accepted the election canonically making him Supreme Pontiff and the name he has chosen.

The document was drawn up by the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, Monsignor Diego Giovanni Ravelli, acting as notary. Written in Latin, the name Leo XIV appears in red.

10May

A post from Bishops' Conference of Scotland

10 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

09May

A post from Bishops' Conference of Scotland

09 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

09May

The Bishops’ Conference of Scotland welcomes the election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, Cardinal Prefect of the Dicastery ...

09 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

The Bishops’ Conference of Scotland welcomes the election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, Cardinal Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, as Pope Leo XIV. It asks all Catholics in Scotland to pray for the new Pope as he begins his ministry. During his short address to the faithful from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, Pope Leo highlighted that his pontificate would be a service of peace. His opening words were the greeting of the risen Christ to his disciples, “Peace be with you”; a greeting given by our Lord to those who were afraid and doubting. Pope Leo prayed that peace would enter the hearts of all men and women, of all families and nations and that evil would be overcome.
Echoing the words of Pope Francis and thanking our late Holy Father, the new Pope asked for dialogue and building bridges, for walking together on a synodal path as missionaries in our world. Pope Leo reminded the crowds that he is a son of St Augustine, the great saint and doctor of the Church, who brought light and understanding to a world that was falling apart in the 4th century. We pray that our new Holy Father will bring that same spirit of peace, light and understanding to all men and women in Scotland and throughout the world, that the Church will embrace those who are afraid and doubting.
God bless our Pope

Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo”

09May

A post from Bishops' Conference of Scotland

09 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

08May

From Chicago to Peru to pontiff: the journey of the new pope

08 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

https://youtu.be/k7q2XNb9MFM?si=CmdZEiGU9Vt7zZje
So much better than other news outlets in this country

Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1955. Prevost earned his bachelor’s in mathematics from Villanova University in Pennsylvan...

08May

No news ! Nothing on Newsnight about the election of Pope Leo XIV

08 May, 2025 | Bishops' Conference of Scotland | BCoS Facebook |

No news ! Nothing on Newsnight about the election of Pope Leo XIV
Honestly what world does the BBC live in ???