The Sin of Suicide

Last month the Cape Cod Times ran an editorial titled "Shed Light Upon Suicide." It encouraged more open discussion of the problem. Among other things it said, "Perhaps the biggest tragedy associated with suicide is that it is preventable." I agree that more open discussion might help, but the subject is very delicate.

The proper emphasis on one aspect or another of a mystery we cannot fully comprehend depends upon time and circumstance. To those grieving the loss of a loved one to suicide, charity demands that we emphasize the love and mercy of God. But at other times, we may be obliged to warn those being tempted toward suicide about their peril. No one can give assurance that suicide will bring the dreamless sleep the materialists expect. A sleep of sorts, yes, "but in that sleep of death what dreams may come"? Ay, there's the rub. The "dread of something after death . . . puzzles the will and makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to other we know not of". Or at least it should.

"Most suicides are of men hopelessly steeped in vice." This opinion, expressed in a book published in 1955, is certainly a sobering counterweight to the prevalent modern opinion that mental illness, not moral fault, accounts for nearly all suicides. However that may be, suicide is certainly very rare among those who live their lives habitually trusting in the Providence of God.

Human justice recognizes that defects in the understanding or in the will may mitigate a crime, or even excuse entirely. Anglo-American law excuses otherwise criminal acts committed by one who either cannot understand the wrongfulness of the act, or if he does, is unable to conform his conduct to the requirements of law. In fact, though, this defense succeeds in our courts only rarely.

Before God we may expect better results. He knows exactly the extent to which we appreciate the nature of the evil we do. He knows exactly the force of the constraints upon our will and the strength of the temptation. He knows precisely the extent to which we freely choose evil.

Subjective considerations aside, it should be clear enough that "the Everlasting," as Hamlet calls Him, has indeed "fix'd His canon 'gainst self-slaughter," which is to say, God has forbidden it. In his encyclical The Gospel of Life, Pope John Paul II, now a canonized saint, recognized the subjective factors which often mitigate the evil of suicide, but also wrote: "Suicide is always as morally objectionable as murder. . . . suicide, when viewed objectively, is a gravely immoral act."

Many stories have appeared in the last few weeks about an unfortunate young woman who faces a terminal illness which may bring much suffering before it brings death. The news stories say she intends to commit suicide in Oregon on the first day of November. She seems to have many friends and family members around her. Any one of them who really loves this poor soul, should look for an opportunity to ask her if she has really considered the possibility that after death she will have to appear before the Judgment Seat of God, and all that that implies. Perhaps the thought might puzzle her will. Perhaps it might give her pause.