Assisted dying: Bishop Aillet reminds Catholic deputies of the closed door to the Eucharist

Mgr Marc Aillet (Bayonne) hardens the French position: voting for the law exposes one to no longer being able to receive communion. The sacramental discipline aligns with moral doctrine.

The Fact

We reported on the National Assembly's vote on end-of-life assistance. Mgr Marc Aillet, Bishop of Bayonne, Lescar and Oloron, has taken a further step. In a public statement relayed on July 14, 2026, he warns Catholic deputies that a vote in favor of the law would put them in a state of being unable to receive communion. The sanction is no longer merely moral; it affects access to the sacraments.

Our Reading (in the light of the magisterium)

This statement aligns with Canon 915 of the Code of Canon Law, which prohibits admitting to holy communion those who persist obstinately in a grave manifest sin. Evangelium Vitae (John Paul II, 1995, n° 73) qualifies euthanasia as a grave offense against the Law of God and reminds us that no civil law can legitimize it. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (n° 2277) is straightforward: regardless of the motives and means, direct euthanasia is morally unacceptable. The Bishop of Bayonne is therefore merely applying, with charity and firmness, an existing discipline. He reminds the elected officials that communion is not a social entitlement. It is the sacrament of unity in faith and moral life.

Food for Thought

A Catholic deputy who would vote for this law could no longer, in conscience, approach the Lord's Table without committing a sacrilege. This is the inner question that every baptized parliamentarian must now carry with them to the voting booth.