What is the catholic church's belief on suicide?

Question

and where can i read about it in the catachism?

p.s. im not suicidal. a classmate of mine commited suicide and i want to know what the church feels is his fate. I dont plan on suicide

p.s. im not suicidal. a classmate of mine commited suicide and i want to know what the church feels is his fate. I dont plan on suicide

Answer 1

Catholics believe suicide when committed in full knowledge and deliberate consent is a complete turning away from God (a mortal sin) and will send a person to hell.

There are 3 conditions of a mortal sin: grave matter, full knowledge, and deliberate consent.

While suicide (or any kind of murder) is always a grave matter, people who commit suicide may not always have full knowledge of what they're doing. Drugs can definitely impair one's thinking, as can other things, such as diseases, intense pain, or anguish.

Therefore, suicide is not automatically treated as a mortal sin.

We are commanded by Christ not to judge others so we leave final judgment to God who alone knows each person's heart.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

They believe it is a mortal sin.
But the human condition is seldom that cut and dried.
All those who jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge and lived to tell about it, said that on their way down they realized that their problems were fixable.
Most enlightened people believe that a person living in unbearable pain without hope of it ever stopping may make it justifiable.
And even those who committed suicide that most people consider unjustified, are worth forgiving because a last desperate act of frustration, is still a desperate act to stop some pain, emotional or physical, whether. real or unreal..
It is important to remember that emotional pain ALWAYS diminishes with time, and financial problems are livable, it’s the fear of financial problems that cause the need to escape, and these also pass with time. Overwhelming fear is one of the strongest emotions we feel, but one of the also one with the shortest duration. It always passes and leaves strength and resolve in its place.
It's far too easy to condemn the actions of others.
It is very true many would change their minds with some guidance, or other help, but were unable, for one reason or another, to get that help.
And few know for sure how they would act in the same circumstances.
Even some Catholics question this form of blanket condemning.
It's not as important how The Catholic Church believes but how you believe.
I hope you are asking this for information, not justification. If the latter is the case, please seek help. It’s always out there.
I hope this helps…

Answer 3

well in Ireland in the not too distant past when the catholic church ruled with an unsympathic fist any roman catholic that commited this act was classed as having sinned against god and thus were not given a proper christian burial.It was a awful awful stigma on the family concered.I can remember the priests telling us your soul will go to purgatory if you commit suicide,you'll be damed..I'M NOT JOKING.Nowadays there are support groups for those left behind and the church is more understanding and helps the families .As far as i know the church as a whole still says that your soul goes to purgatory if you commit suicide.Anyways why do you want to know??..Hope you plan on staying around in this world .Its not a bad place realy..

Answer 4

Quoting from teh Catechism,

Suicide contradicts the natural inclination of the human being to preserve and perpetuate his life. It is gravely contrary to the just love of self. It likewise offends love of neighbor because it unjustly breaks the ties of solidarity with family, nation, and other human societies to which we continue to have obligations. Suicide is contrary to love for the living God.

You can find it in the catechism at http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s2c2a5.htm#2280

Remember that in order for a sin to be a mortal sin, the sin must be seriously wrong, you must know it is wrong and you must do it out of your own free will.

Many times, a person is suffering from mental illness when he or she commits suicide. Mental illness would make a person not responsible for his or her actions.

Please contact em through Yahoo Instant messenger (everydaycatholic) if you want to discuss this further.

Answer 5

In The Catechism of the Catholic Church which was published a few years ago and is authoritative, it's in paragraphs 2280 - 2283 of the chapter "Life in Christ." It says that suicide is a sin, but that we can't be sure if the person went to Hell because only God knows the state of their soul, whether they were sane or not, and all the factors involved.

Answer 6

I don't know, but I am a Christian and I have heard preachers say that suicide is the only thing we cannot be forgiven for. But, I don't believe that as the bible says all sins are equal and if I just did a minor sin and died such as telling a little white lie and my neighbor just murdered someone and a plane crashed on us and killed us, are we both equally sinful? We did not have time to repent our sins. Now, someone in my family killed herself and I believe she is in Heaven, because she was a wonderful person all of her life and she became emotionally ill and shot her self in the heart.I believe she was ill and she was not in control of what she was doing, so I think God saved her because she spent her life following God and spreading the word of Jesus. She would have never done that if she was in her right mind. No one has suffered more than our family as the result of her suicide. It is sad that people who kill themselves, never realize just how important they are. So, no matter what religion you are, I think suicide is something our forgiving God will forgive.

Answer 7

The Catechism of the Catholic Church
Section Two: The Ten Commandments
Chapter Two: You Shall Love Your Neighbor As Yourself
Article Five: The Fifth Commandment (all of it)

Answer 8

The lord giveth and its up to the lord to taketh away. A suicide will go to hell , does not pass go or collect 200 dollars. Hell is the stick and heaven is the carrot apon which these towers of babel are built.

Answer 9

They used to believe that they went directly to hell, did not pass go, did not collect 200 dollars.
I think that now they have backed off that position and have said that it is in God's hands (where it has always been). Now, what happened to all the people that went directly to hell before they changed their minds, like what happened to all the people that went to hell for eating meat on Fridays?

Answer 10

The Catholic Church believes that a person would be in Limbo, non existence, but I believe that a person would go to hell.