[RunningEagleRuns]

What is your opinion on this subject? I have heard stories of people who come back from hell after attempting suicide..

[Travelinglady]

I'm glad to see your mood is "cheerful." I guess what keeps folks from posting is the fear that if they say it's fine and folks won't go to hell for doing it, then you'll feel like you have permission.

My understanding is that the historic position of the Catholic church is people who commit suicide go the hell. I'm not sure about other groups. To be on the "safe side," I hope if I ever get that desperate, I'll not succeed. I really don't want to die by my own hand.

[carrie_ann]

Originally Posted by RunningEagleRuns

What is your opinion on this subject? I have heard stories of people who come back from hell after attempting suicide..

if there is such a place as heaven and hell and such a being as god then he would be a bastard to punish someone for the pain that cuases them to commit suicide and all bastards be damned ... just my opinion!

[seeker1950]

I've often thought about that subject...not that I am contemplating it at all, but the way society/religion has taught us that suicide is forbidden as a sin, sending one to hell, so to speak.
Honestly, my objective opinion is ....which is worse (or better): To become infirm, incapable of self-care, relying on the kindness of relatives or strangers, incurring huge healthcare debt....or when that time comes, choosing to exit and thus save everyone the inconvenience and worry. I would probably opt for the latter, but part of my reasoning is that I'm totally alone, daughter living overseas, and no other close relatives who would be up for the task. Also, I've witnessed a lot of abuse and financial swindling perpetrated on the elderly in their last days. Sad, but I'm beginning to see how common this has become. I honestly would prefer to make my own arrangements while I still had my wits and a degree of mobility, so that if I had to make such a decision, everything would be done and no chance for greed or graft on the part of caregivers, etc.

[James_from_Idaho]

Originally Posted by RunningEagleRuns

What is your opinion on this subject? I have heard stories of people who come back from hell after attempting suicide..

Hello.. You know, that is a tricky subject ? I think everybody with bipolar has thought about suicide at one time or another.. I have thought about it myself.. Been close to doing at times.. But I always choose to soldier on.. And the feeling passes.. And that is the way to beat it.. You start thinking about it less and less.. I would hope that one wouldn't be condemned for it.. I have a nephew that committed suicide.. And I have to have faith he will be forgiven.. Anyway, hope that helps.. I would get more deeply spiritual about the subject.. But we are not allowed.. God bless

[optimize990h]

Originally Posted by RunningEagleRuns

What is your opinion on this subject? I have heard stories of people who come back from hell after attempting suicide..

I sometimes feel like I have been to hell and back. That does not mean that suicide takes me to hell. It means the hell I know is of my own making.

The brain is the most powerful organ in the human body and it's too bad I can't harness that potential in a efficient, quick way. These are just my thoughts, so take what you like and leave the rest behind.

[Inedible]

If your life isn't yours to dispose of as you choose, then whose life is it, really? I think the threats of hell (eternal punishment) are mostly to make death sound worse than any problem a person can have while they are still alive. The problem with that is just that no one can really know except someone who has already died and they aren't talking. That's what faith is for; it fills in the gaps for what we can't know. The best argument I know of for not resorting to suicide is that it is a decision which can't be undone. It can't be properly evaluated because you can't put the unknown up against what you are facing and weigh the evidence. Having done it, if things are worse, there is no way back.

[James_from_Idaho]

We are born with a soul.. It is the electricity that keeps us alive.. Every man, woman, and child, has the right to seek out God.. What he made was perfect.. To call God a bastard is just ignorance.. But the fact is, there is a God, there is a hell, and there is a choice.. Amen.. Of course the devil would not want us to find that out.. He wants to keep us deceived.. There is light and there is darkness.. And everything inbetween..

[James_from_Idaho]

And with that said, that will be my last post for the night.. I am going to bed.. lol.. I am sorry if I offended anybody today.. God bless

Originally Posted by James_from_Idaho

We are born with a soul.. It is the electricity that keeps us alive.. Every man, woman, and child, has the right to seek out God.. What he made was perfect.. To call God a bastard is just ignorance.. But the fact is, there is a God, there is a hell, and there is a choice.. Amen.. Of course the devil would not want us to find that out.. He wants to keep us deceived.. There is light and there is darkness.. And everything inbetween..

I think that probably crosses the line as far as discussing religion
Nobody know that there is a god or a devil or a heaven or a hell. There is no evidence that any of those things exist but there is ample evidence that they are simply the imaginings of early man. Religion and MI make a dangerous mix.

[Travelinglady]

Pardon me if this IS a religious statement: The God I know would not punish someone who is just so miserable he/she can no longer think rationally or bear to live any more, so ends his/her own life. At least I don't recall seeing any place in the you-know-what book that speaks to this issue.

Okay, I'm going before I get into trouble, too! Good night, all!

[Raindropvampire]

I was raised baptist. The stance I was brought up on was that if you aren't around to ask forgiveness then you CANNOT be forgiven. Therefore if you commit suicide you've committed a murder that you cannot ask forgiveness for and you go to hell. Also if you believe in the book that won't be mentioned here it says god won't give you more than you can handle. So if you kill yourself you're second guessing him. Do I think that my sister that committed suicide is in hell? Yes I do. Do I think it's only from her committing suicide? nope not at all.

[Maven]

Wow, carrie_ann and one or two others say basically what I say...how can God be a loving God if He would punish you by burning forever, especially if you were in such misery? When a person gets to that point, they're not able to think about the consequences of their soul, or they don't care. God is not merciful if he couldn't forgive someone for not being able to handle their pain. This "God won't give you more than you can handle" crap is B***S***! Then explain how some people, upon hearing devastating news, become vegetative, depressed and unable to get out of it, or end up in a mental hospital for the rest of their days. I'm so sick of people who believe something but instead choose to say they "know" it! No, you don't. You do not know what happens after life is over. I'm not saying God isn't real, or any person's beliefs can't be true, but stop saying you know, because you don't. Even if you've died, science has explanations for what happens in the brain. I'm NOT saying this proves Heaven or the afterlife isn't real (I have my own ideas of how physical effects happen at death that perhaps connect you to the spiritual plane and take you through to Heaven), but I'm saying we don't have scientific proof.

i think the seperation from God as eternal, is describing living with hellish memories, and only having ourself to blame. in the afterlife, i am not able to comment in fact, but mamma nature is a strict teacher, and never forgets when attacked. life will defend herself, viciously.

[possum220]

Always wondered about this question. Life has to be hell on earth if you are going to commit suicide.....

[Emotionally Dead]

I don't know what I believe in any more. I pray to a God but my feelings are so mixed. My biggest problems are those who take religion too far. Everything is either about God or the Devil, and that is ridiculous. Those who say that you will go to Hell for committing suicide will be joining you, because it is also noted that we can not judge. If we go to Hell for every sin then we are all going. Oh, and give me a break when you say that someone who is a serial killer can ask for forgiveness and go to heaven, but someone like that one kid here who was beaten and raped and committed suicide is going to hell. How pathetic...

I choose to believe that there is not a Hell, and Hell is here on Earth. I choose to believe that our God who is supposed to be so loving sends those of us back who did things wrong to get it right. At least, if I really believed in anything that is what I would believe. Remember, the "book" was interpreted and written by man, and every religion has their own "book". Who is to say any of them are completely accurate?

[James_from_Idaho]

I agree PAYNE1, I have been through the book.. Found nothing that condemns somebody for suicide.. It says all sins will be forgiven, except not accepting the savior.. But I hope that is not a license for somebody to commit suicide by any means.. There are always better options then suicide.. Think about how your family feels when you do such a thing.. I found out first hand.. My nephew killed himself.. The pain it caused my sister and whole family is something I can't describe.. Anyway, food for thought...

I was twelve, when after years of drinking and spending recklessly, I happened on my fathers dead body. The trauma in me seemed to spread cuz I was too stunned to speak or scream or cry. I froze. My family has never recovered. There is bitterness and hatred which goes unspoken and I've needed to become distant, due to their inconsistancies which terrify my step-son. They say one thing, then do another. It is traumatizing to him. He has many friends and he is a good student. He participates in bof club and he enjoys it. I could not, in my wise mind, abandon him to the selfishness of the world I see. I live with painful memories, but watching him live, applies healing medicine to those wounds. Maybe the future will see me smiling again? I believe it might.

[James_from_Idaho]

Originally Posted by George H.

I think that probably crosses the line as far as discussing religion
Nobody know that there is a god or a devil or a heaven or a hell. There is no evidence that any of those things exist but there is ample evidence that they are simply the imaginings of early man. Religion and MI make a dangerous mix.

Well, that is your opinion.. And you are entitled to it.. But I know there is a God.. But I will stop there.. Because we are getting into that shady area of starting a religious debate.. And they don't like us to do that.. And I am sorry that I have been so highly spiritual in these rooms.. I realize that, and I am trying to tone it down.. I am sorry.. God bless

[seeker1950]

I've been thru the whole gamut and spectrum of belief...from Fundamentalist Christian to agnostic...maybe what one would even call athiest. Also, I can say here that I've had one very remarkable experience while I was young and praying...my spirit/essence was lifted up out of my body. I guess one would call this an "out of body" experience. Because of that, because it was so unexplainable, so extraordinarily real, I tend to believe there is a higher power that we cannot explain. I was in a bunk at camp, praying, and a warm presence presented itself on my lower left side. I was lifted up out of my body. This happened two nights in a row. It scared me, actually, but the sensation was physically real, and I've never been able to recapture that experience since then. Because of that experience, I do feel there is a higher power. I do not aspire to a church or attend. Because of that experience, I do feel, as Maven said,
(I have my own ideas of how physical effects happen at death that perhaps connect you to the spiritual plane and take you through to Heaven), that our spirit, essence, transcends the worldly plane. I really do feel we are all tied together spiritually. I also feel that there is a benevolent and loving presence that "forgives" our emotinal and mental frailties. Mistakes we make here are forgiven.

[RunningEagleRuns]

im thankful for all the responses. thank you!