Explain Christian views on suicide Essay

In a extensive sense self-annihilation thunder mug be defined as, the act of purposely ending your bread and butter. However, there argon many different types of self-destruction. Durkheim identified quaternity kinds egoistic suicide, which is the result of feeling ones life is essenceless altruistic suicide, the act of giving ones life for the greater well(p) anomic suicide, the result of a major social miscellanea that disrupts a persons sense of order and fatalistic suicide, the results of undue regulation, when ones future is pitilessly blocked by despotic discipline, such as in a prison or dictatorship. Christians cogitate that totally life is sacred, and therefore the vast majority of denominations ar against all forms of suicide. In examining the reasons behind this, a good place to start is the Christian teaching on the sacredness of human life.Christians conceive in the sanctity of life, meaning that all human life is created in matinee idols attribute and has intrinsic worth. The Decalogue teaches, Do not come out. This includes cleaning oneself-importance. Elsewhere in the white-haired Testament, Ecclesiastes 717 states, Be not over much wicked, uncomplete be you foolish why should you die before your time? untimely ending your life pr thus farts the truster from serving paragon to his full potential. This mood is backed up in the New Testament, where the Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 316, Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? Christians reject the idea of total bodily autonomy, meaning that they do not believe we involve the right to do whatever we insufficiency with our bodies. The Bible suggests that our bodies are not our sustain, but Gods, and therefore we do not call for the right to destroy them.Historical church fathers have held consistently negative spatial relations on suicide. Augustine was one of the first to publically lecture out against it. He oppos ed it because we have a duty of selfcare arising from natural inclination and we have a debt of love that we owe to others. In The City of God he wrote, certainly he who kills himself is a homicide, and so much guiltier of his own death, as he was more loose of that offence for which he doomed himself to die.To take ones own life into ones hands and act precipitously by committing suicide is to look away from God (a final and definitive refusal of cuss in God and a denial of trust in his providence, by the very nature of the act itself excluding any subsequent repentance/penance).Furthermore, doubting Thomas was also against suicide. In Summa Theologica he set forth three reasons why suicide is immoral. Firstly, it is contrary to natural law. Secondly, suicide does injury to the common good because the persons community leave suffer. Thirdly, it is a sin against God because life is Gods gift to man. For it belongs to God alone to chat sentence of death and life, according to Deu teronomy 3239, I will kill and I will make to live.However, there is one form of suicide that some Christians would accept, and that is altruistic suicide in the form of martyrdom or self-sacrifice. Jesus taught that, Greater love has no-one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. For example, in Judges Samson brings down a temple killing both himself and the Philistines. Augustine said that suicide was rooted in pride and wishing of charity, whereas martyrdom is commendable and for the good of others.The different Christian denominations are by and large unified when it comes to views on suicide. In the Roman Catholic Church it is regarded as a mortal sin, and the Catechism asserts, Everyone is responsible for his life before God who has given up it to him. It is God who remains the sovereign Master of life.The Presbyterian Church would hold a similar view, as the Westminster Confession reads, The sins forbidden in the sixth order are, all taking away the life of ourselves, or of others, except in the case of public justice, lawful war, or necessary defence. Even though they clearly teach that suicide is a sin, it is not an unpardonable sin. buyback is by grace alone and if one is truly saved, nothing (not even suicide) can separate them from Jesus. The United Methodist Church believes that suicide is not the way life should end, but would be hesitant to label it a sin. Therefore, they denounce the condemnation of people who commit suicide, and do not believe surviving family should be stigmatised.Modern psychology has impacted the Christian view of suicide. In the past Christians were guilty of separating physical and mental illness and although they were in support of treatment for physical ailments, they were wary of psychiatric treatment. Even at once some fundamentalist churches would see illnesses such as depression as purely spiritual afflictions. In the wake of high profile suicides such as Rick Warrens son Matthew, most leadership are encouraging the Church to acknowledge that matters of depression and suicide are medical in nature and should be addressed no other than than other physical illnesses. They imply that to do otherwise promotes stigma, shame and restricts the believers access to appropriate care.Another reason why Christians are against suicide is the profound negative effect it can have on other people.self-destruction does not just harm the person who dies, it is a form of bereavement even more devastating than usual because the family will forever agonise over what led the person to take their life, and if they could have prevented it. This is especially so if the family discover the body or witness the suicide. Suicide can damage close communities such as schools and churches. Wyatt said that, suicide can have devastating effects on others. In fact, it can be one of the most selfish and destructive acts anyone can perform.