Christianity and suicide

Can someone please provide me with a list of Bible references to suicide. Is it condemned? What about people with mental illness, people not in their "right" mind. Im sure God would understand? What are your thoughts guys?

why so interested ???

i would ask google. sounds to far fetched but there was a site devoted to nudity references in the bible so suicide is definitely possibly there.

The Catholic Church teaches that suicide is a sin, though recognizes that in the vast majority of cases the conditions for sin are likely not met (i.e. people who commit suicide are likely not in a sane state of mind and suffer from some sort of illness and thus are not culpable).

We should not speculate on people's conditions in the afterlife, and should always pray for the repose of the departed.

]Very few would argue with the fact that suicide is a direct breaking of the Sixth Commandment which is, "You shall not murder." We are not to murder each other or ourselves. God created human beings in His image and each of us carries within us the potential to overcome the evil in this world, and to rule and reign with Christ in heavenly places. If we are Christians, we no longer belong to ourselves, but to God. We are overseers of our bodies and our lives (which belong to Him), and we are responsible to guard that which has been entrusted to us.

Suicide is a grievous sin that seriously hurts both the heart of God, and those who loved the deceased. The pain of losing a loved one who took their own life is not easily healed, and often isn't fully healed until Heaven. Whether you are contemplating suicide or know someone who killed themselves, God wants you to know there is hope and life for you. He is the great Healer and Restorer of what has been lost or stolen.

Many of the greatest saints and heroes of the Bible faced overwhelming depression and sometimes wrote that they wished they had never even been born. King David, (Psalm 13:2-4), the prophet Jeremiah, (Jeremiah 20:14-18), and Job, (Job 7:15-16) among others, all reached low points where they despaired of their very lives.

Job says, "So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life. I loathe it; I would not live alway: let me alone; for my days are vanity" (Job 7:15-16).

Yet, each one of these men were blessed of God, and persevered through their trials as an example to us. Though they faced great suffering and injustice, they kept their faith in God and His goodness, and in so doing, were sustained and led into abundant life.

Though we may get depressed from time to time, we believe that the act of suicide never takes place apart from demonic influences driving one to take their own life. Suicide is directly counter to the power of life that God has put so strongly into His creation. Everywhere we look we see life growing, even in the most hostile environments. This "survival instinct" is a gift from God. In fact, if He didn't bestow this gift upon His creation there probably wouldn't be any life on this planet at all! Suicide, then, is directly contrary to the will of God, and originated in the realm of the demonic host, who come only to "steal, and to kill, and to destroy" (John 10:10). Though demons may try to tempt us to kill ourselves, as Christians we have power over the devil and he cannot push us to do this if we sincerely call on the name of the Lord!

We are all in a spiritual battle. The problem is, many of us are not aware of it, and do not know how to protect ourselves against attack.

with true love of god, there would be no need for suicide..

keep on knocking and the door will be opened

Thanks everyone for the imput. I did google it as well, just thought I'd ask in the sanctuary as well for the feedback of those Christians who have done a study on the topic. Thankyou peaceful libra.

The tricky part is that you cannot repent suicide because....well your dead. So most fundamentalists will say that suicide is an automatic ticket to hell.

Suicide is a sin because "thou shall not kill." However you won't find the condemnation or condoning of suicide in the bible. A wise man once told me that it was purposely left out of the scriptures because if suicide was openly forgiven then more people would do it. And if it were an automatic ticket to hell then it would bring pain to the loved ones of those who have taken their own life. We aren't supposed to positively know who goes to hell. That's between each individual and God.

I think it all depends on each circumstance and the persons relationship with God.

i don't think there is anything in the bible about suicide.

do i think that someone deserves to go to hell for living a sad and depressed life and eventually killing themselves? no..

do i think that anyone should kill themselves ever? no..

anything about anything to do with hell should be ignored. christianity is a religion of love, not fear.

Originally Posted by Ukr-Cdn

The Catholic Church teaches that suicide is a sin, though recognizes that in the vast majority of cases the conditions for sin are likely not met (i.e. people who commit suicide are likely not in a sane state of mind and suffer from some sort of illness and thus are not culpable).

We should not speculate on people's conditions in the afterlife, and should always pray for the repose of the departed.

This is a spot on representation of the Catholic Church's position.