I have a similar religious background as this kid. My gut instinct is that he didn't commit suicide. Even if he could fake it he believed what he preached and taught. And he'd believe that suicide was damning him to hell. He'd believe that even if he fooled everyone else that God would know what he'd done.
That said, if he did commit suicide or his parents suspected he did they would do their best to hide it or ignore it or choose to ignore the possibility because they don't want to think of their son spending eternity in hell.
These aren't my current beliefs but what I was raised with and very much what I'd assume of a similar background. Suicide isn't just a sad possibility or option. It would be considered worse than your child being murdered.
My upbringing was much the same. However, in recent years, I've noted that folks have begun to come to grips, in some circles, that folks can have serious depression, and that suicide is a result of that. It's not what I'd call acceptable, but, it's becoming more understood (if that makes sense), however, not in ALL circles. With that said, I've known several folks who committed suicide, and I live in a Bible Belt. None have ever went to this kind of forethought, or any forethought, to make it appear it was an accident, or they'd been murdered.
Reading your words are exactly how I was raised and still have it deep inside me. Suicide would be worse than murder.
Thanks to all of you for sharing your thoughts and convictions about these religious concepts regarding suicide.
No offense to anyone but I have always felt these religious tenets were anything but religious.
I worked for 15 years on an adult, in-patient, locked, psychiatric unit of a regular hospital. Was Charge Nurse for the last 7.
We had countless admissions of suicide attempts. Countless. Their thought processes were so distorted! They had not slept well in days, weeks, or even months.
They had not eaten well in weeks or months. Drastic weight loss amounts. They were often on medications for depression. But those same medications, as well as others, are known to increase suicidal thoughts.
Many of them were dealing with severe, chronic, debilitating physical pain. Arthritis with back pain was a big one. What little sleep they could get would often be interrupted by the pain.
Physical illness: Chronic lung disease, heart disease, thyroid disorders, poorly controlled diabetes, kidney disease, impaired mobility. Any disorder that impacted their daily lives.
Many were Bipolar. A very serious disorder of dramatic mood swings, precipitated by chemical imbalances in their brains. None of us have the power to control the chemical balance in our brain.
Many of them were enmeshed in the throes of grief. Loss of a spouse, child, parent, or significant other. Relationship loss of any type was a common theme.
Sexual orientation issues caused many suicide attempts. Mostly related to the feeling that they were a disgrace to their family by being gay.
Chemical dependency was a factor for many attempts. The inability to stay clean.
No matter the cause, whenever I brought up how badly they would be missed by their loved ones if their suicide attempt had been successful, the most common response was: 'My family would be better off without me. I am a terrible burden on them.'
Every suicide note found at the scene was brought in by EMS and placed in the patient's chart. The greatest majority of them thanked their families for loving them and expressed regret for any hurt they were causing them. They often mentioned what a horrible burden they had been on everyone.
These were not bad people. These were not weak people. They were SICK people. Very ill. Severe depression. The symptoms, in and of themselves, create minefields of risk for suicidal behavior.
No one can think normally with sleep deprivation, poor nutrition, chronic pain, grief, or chemical imbalances in the brain.
We had several chaplains who visited any patient on our unit who requested them. I sat in on quite a few of their visits at the patient's request. The topic of a Supreme Being's opinion of suicide attempts came up quite often.
All of our chaplains told every single patient that the Supreme Being they prayed to would never punish a person for being sick! How could He?
This is my heartfelt belief too from dealing with the mentally ill. If I, a regular person, can feel immense compassion for these people, how much more does a Supreme Being.
Sorry this is so lengthy. It is so close to my heart, I didn't know how to cut it down. I want people to have a better understanding of the tragic illness that causes suicide.
I don't mean to offend anyone either, or come across as trying to tell anyone else what to think. It's an emotional subject, and others don't have to agree with me.
But it truly breaks my heart to think that the mentally ill who attempt suicide have this added burden of religious teachings to be burdened with as well...
JMO
