MAiD in Canada

Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) was legalized in Canada in 2016, allowing eligible adults to request a physician- or nurse-administered death under strict conditions. Originally limited to those whose natural death was “reasonably foreseeable,” the law was expanded in 2021 (Bill C-7) to include people with serious and incurable illnesses, even if death is not imminent. A further expansion to include mental illness alone as a qualifying condition is expected in 2027.

Why Christian’s Oppose It:

All mainstream Christian Groups in Canada oppose MAiD on theological, ethical, and pastoral grounds. Because of the following reasons:

• Sanctity of life: Life is a gift from God, and intentionally ending it undermines human dignity.
• Risk to the vulnerable: Expansion normalizes assisted death and pressures the elderly, disabled, and mentally ill toward it instead of adequate care and support.
• Erosion of palliative care: Resources may shift away from life-affirming care.
• Moral witness: The practice conflicts with Christian teaching on suffering, hope, and God’s sovereignty over life and death.

  To find out more about MAiD: https://files.evangelicalfellowship.ca/si/Euthanasia/MAID-in-Canada-Faithful-Response-Guretzki-2023.pdf

  A PAOC’s response to MAiD: https://paoc.org/docs/default-source/default-document-library/garry-engler-–medical-assistance-in-dying-–whould-should-we-do—202089658b8ee8226697bbfcff0000e57273.pdf?sfvrsn=9647ed6a_0

Petition to Stop Bill C-218: MAiD for mental illness

A law allowing euthanasia for mental illness alone has already passed and will take effect in March 2027 unless a bill is passed to stop it.

MP Tamara Jansen introduced Bill C-218 in the House of Commons on June 20, 2025. This bill would remove the provisions that will allow MAiD for mental illness alone in 2027.

Bill C-218 would exclude a mental disorder from being considered a “grievous and irremediable medical condition” for the purposes of Medical Assistance in Dying. This would mean that no one would be eligible for MAID on the basis of mental illness alone.