Just about every religion I've studied or read up on regards suicide as
taboo.  Judaism and Buddhism both regard life as sacred and suicide as
tantamount to murder, even if it's one's own choice.  Suicide not only
affects the suicide but the lives of all who know the suicide and strangers
as well.

As it says in the New Testament (sorry, I can't remember the exact verse or
book): No man is an island; every man's death diminishes me.  I think this
is universal, not confined to Christianity.

Kat

----- Original Message -----
From: "Bill K Ach" <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.c-palsy
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, July 15, 2002 4:05 PM
Subject: Re: Bad Anniversary This Weekend


> Suicide is not only the ultimate act of selfishness, it is a sin. It is
> the ultimate tragedy.  Life is a gift from God which we cherish  because
> it is His greatest gift to us, not something we deserve or can earn.
> Hope is one of the three theological virtues, Faith and Love the other
> two.  As Hans Christoffersen recently wrote: ''Some view religion with
> suspicion because they see in it a claim to explain everything, thereby,
> in fact, explaining nothing.  To me, religion is not about having all the
> answers; rather, it is the ability to give creation a voice with which to
> praise God while we await the deliverance of all creation into 'the
> freedom of the glory of the children of God,' and in the meantime strive
> to live in accordance with that hope.''  In Romans 8:18-23, Paul writes
> of all creation groaning while we await the deliverance of that creation
> into the freedom that is ours because God loves us, knows each and every
> one of us by name and desires that we live happily with Him in eternity.
> This is the reason He made us - to know Him, love Him and be happy with
> Him in this life and in the next.  Perhaps the suffering we endure on
> earth is part of that groaning while awaiting that final glory of which
> Paul speaks.
>
> Suicide is the ultimate renunciation of Faith, Hope and Love--a
> renunciation of Faith because we tell God we don't believe what He has
> revealed to us, Hope because we don't believe God loves us, and Love
> because we love neither ourselves, our loved ones, our neighbors and
> ultimately humanity.  John Donne once wrote that no man is an island.
> What we do or fail to do affects everybody.  When we take our lives, we
> tell God that His greatest gift to us is not worth having and thus we
> throw it away.  We are not our own; we have been bought by Christ's
> passion, death and resurrection - and what a great price He paid!
>
> Let us use the time we have on earth to be a blessing to all we meet
> during our life's journey.  We are all on a pilgrimage to a better place.
>  In the meantime, God has given us talents to be used not for our glory
> but for His.  Let us use our time to advantage, as life is short enough
> as it is without our making it any shorter.  God has placed us on earth -
> warts and all - for a purpose and nothing happens by chance.  Our
> universe posits the existence of a divine intellect.  Our lives have a
> beginning and an end by His providence and He will call us home in His
> own time, not ours.
>
> Psalm 139 speaks of God having known us before we were born.  He knew us
> while we were in our mothers' womb, being formed there in secret.
> ''Where can I go from your spirit? from your presence where can I flee?
> If I go up to the heavens, you are there, if I sink to the nether world,
> you are present there.  Truly you have formed my inmost being;  you knit
> me in my mother's womb.  I give you thanks that I am fearfully,
> wonderfully made; wonderful are your works (Psalm 139: 7-8, 13-14).''
>
> Someone once wrote: ''All creation gives God praise.  Will you be
> silent?''
>
> We pray for all this man's survivors.
> Robin and Bill
> On Sat, 13 Jul 2002 10:19:13 EDT "BG Greer, PhD" <[log in to unmask]>
> writes:
> >Kat,
> >
> >    I grieve with you. But as you said, the action you friend took was
> >his
> >choice. I had a similar incident "up close and personal" in my senior
> >year in
> >college. I did not know the individual involved all that well, but she
> >was
> >beautiful, a great actress and the daughter of the dean of my college.
> >She
> >gave me a ride home and then went to her home and did the deed. It was
> >very
> >traumatic and soon after I graduated with honors and received a
> >"glowing"
> >letter from her father! Talk about guilt. Theological beliefs aside,
> >the
> >ultimate freedom we have is to take our own lives.
> >
> >    At least you friend did not get in a car and kill someone else.
> >Grieving
> >on the anniversary of traumas is a normal thing. I will pray for you.
> >
> >Bobby
> >
> >>Yes, I did go through counseling, and have learnt to put the past
> >behind.
> >>It's just that whenever the anniversary rolls around, I get a bit
> >depressed
> >>for a few days, and it's the same for his family and other friends.
> >His
> >>was a life truly wasted.  He would have been a brilliant writer if he
> >had
> >>not made the choices he did.
> >>
>
>
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