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Consider a man beset with multiple problems.
He is suffering from incurable cancer, has lost his job, is deep in debt, his wife wants a divorce, and he is estranged from his children. He decides to end his life and climbs over the rail of the Golden Gate Bridge.
As he is preparing to plunge into San Francisco Bay, he is spotted by police.
The police dispatch a highly trained psychologist, who talks to the man in an attempt to dissuade him from taking his life. In the meantime the police identify the man and confirm that all his problems are indeed true. He is not crazy, just distraught.
Should the police intervene? Whose life is it anyway?
THE FACTORS IN QUESTIONIs taking the man off the bridge is a legitimate use of police power?
Is it for or against the public interest to let people jump off bridges?
Is it for or against the public interest to let people jump off bridges?
Is this a deeper issue concerning the preservation of life, or just a simple matter of public inconvenience?
Should society demand that he live - overriding his desire to end his own life?
Is there ever a time when suicide is justified, especially when a person is legally competent?
If a person has no choice about coming into the world, should they likewise have no choice when to go out?
POSTED COMMENTSlupus@jay-mar.com wrote:
"I think suicide should be prevented. I have worked with terminal HIV patients and have been given more than one death sentence by physicians concerning my lupus. I was close to death as were my patients. When a diagnosis that is hopeless is given, we (and our families) start to prepare them."
anonymous@aol.com wrote:
There should be laws to protect the individual's right to choose their own way to die. If doctor-assisted suicide were legal, people wouldn't have to jump off bridges!
Naomi wrote:
What is required is good pain control, meditation, relaxation techniques, good care, love, affection and counseling. Then one can cope with a lot more and may even be happy to be alive in times of pain.
With good pain control, meditation, good care, love, and counseling, one can cope and may even be happy to be alive in times of pain.
@mindspring.com wrote:
When someone commits suicide, he may end his own suffering, but everyone he leaves behind suffers for the rest of their lives. I know this from first-hand experience.
@juno.com wrote:
I attempted suicide. Now seven months later I have found a lot of reasons to live. Yet I still am not sure I would stop someone else. To be there and get out is very difficult. There is a price to every ticket!
paysach@hotmail.com wrote:
I think that the police should not interfere with this man's decision. Even though I do believe that he is doing the wrong thing by committing suicide, nevertheless this a religious belief and the police have no right to carry out a religious issue.
JEWISH PERSPECTIVEJudaism regards suicide as a criminal act. Someone who commits suicide is considered a murderer. It matters not whether he kills someone else or himself. His soul is not his to extinguish.
Judaism's opposition to suicide is found in the story of Noah's Ark. After the flood, God says to Noah:
Your blood which belongs to your souls I will demand; from the hand of every beast will I demand it. From the hand of every man; from the hand of every man who is his brother will I demand the life of man. (Genesis 9:5)
The Talmud (Baba Kama 90b) learns from the first part of the verse, "And surely the blood of your lives I will demand," that one may not wound his own body. All the more so, he may not take his own life.
METAPHYSICAL LAWSThere is a deep spiritual consequence to suicide.
When a person commits suicide, the soul has nowhere to go. It cannot return to the body, because the body is destroyed. And it is not let in to any of the soul worlds, because its time has not come. This state of limbo is very painful. A person may commit suicide because he wants to escape, but in reality he is getting a far worse situation.
After death there are no solutions, only consequences.
In this world, if we try hard enough sometimes we can solve the problem. But after death there are no solutions, only consequences.
When a Jew commits suicide, he is not permitted a full Jewish burial, and there is even a debate whether shiva (the seven-day mourning period) is observed or whether the kaddish prayer is said.
(In practice today, however, suicide is usually treated as a normal death, since it is assumed that the person was not of a normal state of mind.)
THE SUICIDE OF KING SAULIn the Bible we see an incident in which suicide seems to be permitted.
The Philistines were battling against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and they slew ... the sons of Saul. The battle then focused against Saul. The archers found him, and Saul was terrified of them. Saul said to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and stab me with it, lest these men come to stab and torture me." But his armor-bearer did not consent, for he was very afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell upon it. When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dying, he also fell upon his sword and died with him. (Samuel II, 1:5-10)
The Sages offer a number of reasons why Saul's suicide was unique:
- Saul feared that his enemies would use torture to try to force him to worship other gods. (Ritva - 14th century)
- Suicide is permitted in the face of an attempt at forced conversion. (Rabbeinu Tam - 12th century)
- Suicide is permitted only if the lives of others would be in danger as a result of torture. (Rabbi Shlomo Luria - 16th century)
- Saul acted out of respect for the Israelite kingship, as he feared the Philistines would mockingly parade him through their cities. In other words, he committed suicide to sanctify God's name. (Y'dai Moshe - 20th century)
In summary, suicide is absolutely prohibited, unless there are unusual and extenuating circumstances - e.g. forced conversion, endangering the lives of others, or sanctifying the Name of God.
DISCLAIMER: This module discusses sources for the purpose of education. Any real-life situation must be discussed with a rabbi, well-versed in Jewish law.
_(english).jpg "Life by Accident")
_(english).jpg "Is Stem Cell Research Ethical?")
(15) FSD , June 29, 2009
I really think in some cases where the pain is so much that only more "harm" can come out of living further. In that case it should be ok to end the suffering and further worsening the situation. But one should always go out trying and fighting. I hope I do my best.
(14) Mitchell Minkoff , February 19, 2009
suicide cae justified
If it is true that Hashem loves us, he wouldn't want us to live in terrible, unrelenting pain.I believe to live in this situation can not possibly be G-d"s will. Suicide must be forgivable if it ends suffering.
(13) RB , August 1, 2008
Experienced voice
Suicide is NOT evil or selfish, it is a symptom of a disease. Suicidal death is a result of a "mental illness/disease". Heart failure death is the result of "heart illness/disease". Breast cancer death is the result of "malignant neoplasm illness/disease", do you see the pattern here? If you can cure this in a person, then they will not die. I think suicide is largely misunderstood as "giving up" or "copping out". Everyday there are people morphine medicated unconsciousness to alleviate pain, but a mentally ill person is given therapy and antidepressants. My experience was that I became delusional, thinking that impending doom was immanent. There was nothing, it was in my head, my mental illness caused me to believe something that wasn't real. I slowly lost my daily function over a 6 week period. I mentioned my mental trouble to a couple of friends and my mother, and they did not know what to do and said "oh, it's just in your head". I was blinded by my illness and only wanted to sleep to stop the emotional anguish and physical agony in my stomach that came from not eating for the last 10 days. Finally the the "pain" from the "disease" overcame my "body's" ability to "cope". I took 60 pills, drank a bottle of alcohol, laid back on the bed and expected to die. I was found and EMS took me to the hospital and I came to a couple of days later. Then, I received intensive physical and mental care, which helped me to overcome my delusion. Did God make me like this, only to punish me? I think that thought would surely make me even more mentally anguished. or am I simply "ill", and in need of a cure. If someone is turning blue, you quickly help them breath. If someone collapses holding their chest, you call EMS. If you find a lump in your breast, you call a doctor. If someone talks of suicide, call psychiatrist.
(12) Francis , March 24, 2008
Suicide is an evil disease, we have no power on our own to kill ourselves nor matter what. suicide is evil.
suicide can simply mean a cry for help, or killing one's self.
There is often reasons one can commit suicide, though some people commited suicide out of stupidity, selfshness, foolishness, lack of understanding, and so on.
The major cause of suicide is:
[1] Shame: Shame is number one cause of suicide, so many people commited suicide just because they did not make it because of there mistakes or inability to achieve there goals, 60% of this people run out of there towns, cities or country to live in a place that they can forget the past, 20% can manage to live nor matter what, 10% chooses to become sadist, 5% of them may continue to attemp suicide from time to time, while 5% are on record.
[3] Depression: depression is one of the key act of suicide which can cause by many things, [1] disapointment [2] illness [3] desperation [4] abuse [5] racesm and more.
[2] Guilt: guilt is one of the most dangerous reason one can kill his/her self, this is because they do not want to face the punishment for being guilty. for example: a nation like thailand, a little thing can lead to life inprisonment, which is known as double death, in that case some people may choose to die rather than seeing there death or living without hope of free.dom. this people died to escape punishment. Can i call it a suicide caused by LAW? yes, it's.
[4] Over-preasure: presure can cause suicide in many aspect, presure is one of the reason why one can kill his/her self because of Fear, thinking he/she wont make it anymore to satisfy people. What a pity suicide!
[5] Belief: belief is another reason, some people commited suicide because of there religious belief, they belief that if they die they will go and rest which is lie. what a foolish suicide, Shame on them!!
[6] To achieve a gaol: so many useless one's commited suicide just because they want to achieve a goal of killing his/ her self. so many cowards today are still looking for reasons to kill there self and when they are filled ith an evil spirit, some of them want to know what death looks like, or what one's become after death. this is one of the most stupid suicide.
[7] Revenge: revenge can lead to suicide, alot of poor people today believes that there being poor, disappointed, or living with any pain was caused by a fellow, 15% of this people belief's in spiritual world that after death, that one can still operate in this seeing world, in that case they may kill there selves in away to revenge or to punish the cause of there problem. this is a suicide that can cause by living as a sadist.
[8] Loneliness: some lonely people ended up in suicide. Loneliness is one of the most dangerous thing that can happen to a male/female, it's a feeling of living without hope, some people simply see it that no one cares for them, or that they are not beautiful/handsome, or that they are the cause of there loneliness. there is many types of loneliness, for example: living without money and hope is loneliness.
[9] Protest: protest is another act of suicide, this is a situation where one's die for others by vaulent, or kill his/her self because his/her love once did not make it, especially football fans. this is another form of suicide with a cowardish reason, if am not mistaking.
[10] Habit: habit can also lead to suicide, bcause some habit's can be equal with shame.
(11) DaJoy , February 13, 2008
Hero's
People often mention 'what about others' suicide is selfish, because that's what your focused on, the negative side of your life. Or in some cases whatever chemical malfuncion is causing depression. You have to constantly tell youself really why am I crying? And prayer maybe the answer. Mostly I just begged for death. But it didn't come, there must be a reason then? What is the meaning of life? Pherhaps what is most difficult is that you don't know. You can only hand someone hope. Not an answer. Baruch Hashem we have the answer to leading a meaninful life. Even if you don't "know why" ("why ___" anything) the point is you can be meaninful. You can be happy. You can make others happy, and those are the people that will be, or already are meaningful to you.
I don't know who you are or where your coming from the ones who said 'it's a choice, if you want to you should be able to' but your wrong. Or you haven't thought about it, not with any real empathy. I thought that every day, many times a day. If I had really belived it, I would have tried harder. If I was supposed to go, I would have a helping hand. There have been many who died "accidentally" staging a suicide attempt.
You don't know your effect on the world. This new batch of tv seems to reflect that (Six Degrees of Separation) This show Hero's. You don't know how you effect other people, you don't know how YOU are SUPPOSED TO effect them. The point is YOU ARE SUPPOSED to DO SOMETHING. Most people live as if they are dead, and do not realize. You don't need a superpower to beleive in people. To smile. To make a kiddush Hashem by being polite. By stepping up. It's hard enough. It's heroic enough.