With the state’s “Aid in Dying” law days away from taking effect, the Bishop for the Metuchen Diocese has warned Catholics the practice “can never be morally justified,” and represents the “utter failure of government and society.”

The controversial law taking effect Thursday applies to adult residents of the state who have received a terminal diagnosis, defined as an incurable, irreversible and medically confirmed disease that will end the person’s life within six months. Supporters say the law will enable patients to regain control of their lives and avoid the finals weeks and days of pain and incapacitation.

New Jersey’s Catholic bishops led the fight for nearly eight years to block the legislation, arguing it devalued the lives of senior citizens and people with debilitating illness and disabilities. Opponents had a friend in Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, who vowed to veto the bill if it was ever sent to him.

Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who took office in January 2018, signed the law in April.

“With the passage of this law by the legislature and the signing by our governor, we are facing dark times,” The Most Rev. James F. Checchio wrote in a July 29 letter that was shared on social media and will appear in an upcoming edition of the diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Spirit, spokeswoman Tara Smith said.

“Assisted suicide is a grievous affront to the dignity of human life and can never be morally justified,” according to Checchio’s letter addressed to the Metuchen Diocese’s roughly 650,000 members in Middlesex, Somerset, Hunterdon and Warren counties. “The legal permission now granted to this practice does not change the moral law.”

Patients will have to ask their doctor twice over the span of 15 days and submit a request in writing stating they had been “fully informed” of palliative care, pain control and other alternatives, the law says. A second physician would need to verify the diagnosis. The written declaration would need to be witnessed by two people who attest the person is acting voluntarily.

The legislation specifically states disabilities are not considered terminal illnesses, addressing a worry that physically or mentally challenged people would be vulnerable to coercion.

Anyone who coerces a patient into requesting or taking the medication would face up to three to five years in prison, a $15,000 fine or both, according to the law.

“With this law, the elderly could feel undue pressure to view this as an option to prevent being a burden to others and young people will begin to think that people can and should be disposable. Indeed, with this law there will be a further desensitization of the value of human life,” Checcio wrote.

The one Catholic hospital in the diocese, Saint Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick, will not participate in the law, Checcio’s letter said. Participation by doctors, hospitals and nursing homes is voluntary.

“Let us comfort those facing terminal illness or chronic conditions through our genuine presence, human love and medical assistance. Let us, as a society and as individuals, choose to walk with them, in their suffering, not contribute to eliminating the gift of life,” Checchio’s letter said.

Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, released a statement Monday night urging believers to provide dying patient with “loving care, psychological and spiritual support, and appropriate remedies for pain and other symptoms so they can live with dignity until the time of natural death.”

“Human compassion fills our hearts with sadness when we hear about an individual who wishes to end his or her life to escape the pain and suffering of illness, disability, or disease,” wrote Tobin, head of New Jersey’s largest Catholic diocese. "The fear associated with such devastating human conditions is real and legitimate.

"However, as Pope Francis has noted, we must be careful not to yield to a false sense of compassion. Our Holy Father reminds us that we must never take a human life—even, or especially, our own, since ‘this is a sin against God, the creator,’ " according to the cardinal’s statement.

The Diocese of Trenton is expected to issue statements to their pastoral community later in the week, spokeswomen confirmed Monday.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio.