HEARTS of the CITY / Exploring attitudes and issues behind the news
A rotating panel of experts from the worlds of philosophy, psychology and religion offer their perspectives on the dilemmas that come with living in Southern California.
Today’s question: “Suicide almost always involves despair and hopelessness. Is it ever morally defensible?”
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Father Thomas P. Rausch
Chairman of the department of theological studies, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles
“No, only God has dominion over life, which remains a sacred gift. To despair is to turn away from the encounter with God precisely in the depths of our lives, it is to give up on the promise that God’s salvation triumphs over suffering, evil, and ultimately death itself, revealed for us in the resurrection of Jesus. But if the church continues to hold life sacred, it also recognizes that when a person commits suicide he or she usually does so under extreme pressure, and so with a greatly diminished responsibility. Compassion for the person and the family is what is called for, not judgment and condemnation.”
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Sharon Presley
Executive director of Resources for Independent Thinking, Oakland
“If you don’t own your death, you don’t own your life. If you don’t own your own life, who does? The church? The state? Why? Each individual is the absolute sovereign of his/her body and mind. No one can rightfully choose except the individual, otherwise we are slaves to someone else’s morality. If someone is suffering from intractable pain, who are we to tell them they must continue to suffer? What God does that honor? What kind of morality is that? If the pain is psychological, we may do our best to dissuade them from suicide, but ultimately the decision is the individual’s alone.”
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Rabbi Elliot N. Dorff
Rector and professor of philosophy, University of Judaism, Los Angeles
“For the Jewish tradition, God created the world and therefore literally owns everything in it (e.g., Deuteronomy 10:14; Psalms 24:1). We, then, do not have the right to commit suicide, for that destroys something that does not belong to us. American pragmatism has taught us to equate the worth of individuals with their ability to accomplish tasks. Judaism instead asserts that we each have divine worth, even in conditions of pain, physical or mental incapacity, or depression. Enough morphine should be used to alleviate pain, and Judaism requires friends and family to visit the sick (biqqur holim) so that they know that people care about them. Ultimately, though, each of us must affirm the divine worth of our lives.”