Assisted dying: Puppinck and ECLJ are already preparing the appeal to Strasbourg

Context

We had detailed the dual referral to the Constitutional Council by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu (#1130) and the mobilization of the bishops of France (#1180). On July 25, 2026, Le Salon Beige reports a strategic shift: the appeal to the European Court of Human Rights is already being prepared, under the leadership of Grégor Puppinck, director of the European Center for Law and Justice (ECLJ).

The Facts

The ECLJ has submitted a "voluntary contribution" to the Constitutional Council in defense of the rights of religious organizations. Thirty-five signatories are listed, including four former judges of the European Court of Human Rights and former European commissioners. When asked, Grégor Puppinck confirms: "we are already ready to go before the European Court of Human Rights" if the French wise men do not guarantee the freedom of Catholic institutions to refuse to organize euthanasia and assisted suicide. A separate memorandum from the ECLJ also details the risks of implementing the law.

Doctrinal Analysis

The institutional freedom of Catholic works does not fall under tolerance or granted privilege: it is a matter of right. Dignitatis humanae n° 4 (Vatican II, 1965) recognizes that "religious communities have the right not to be prevented" by civil law in the communal exercise of their faith. Evangelium vitae n° 74 (John Paul II, 1995) establishes the conscientious objection of health personnel and institutions in the face of laws authorizing abortion or euthanasia: these acts, intrinsically evil, can never become a moral obligation, neither for the person nor for the community that employs them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church n° 2277 is categorical: "direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the life of disabled, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable."

Stakes for the Church and the Faithful

Forcing Catholic clinics to become instruments of an act that the magisterium qualifies without ambiguity as homicide is, in practice, revoking their very identity. The battle waged by the ECLJ raises the broader question of the autonomy of religious communities in Europe, regularly defended by Strasbourg under Article 9 of the Convention.

Critical Reading and Blind Spots

French case law traditionally privileges the individual conscience clause of the caregiver over institutional conscience, a fragile principle in the face of application protocols. Strasbourg, on the other hand, could rely on its doctrine of autonomy of religious communities (Sindicatul Păstorul cel Bun c. Romania judgment, July 9, 2013). However, the European procedure is long: the decrees will not wait.

To Reflect and Act

The fight for life does not stop with the promulgation. The European judge remains the ultimate bulwark. It is up to the faithful to concretely support the works that will refuse to bend.