Article November 29, 1993 Issue

Suicide is not an option

The Christian Science Monitor

The continuing debate in the United States about the right to take one's own life—with or without assistance—and the adoption by the Dutch government of laws that permit assisted suicide illustrate the degree to which suicide has become accepted by society. Yet if we look at the teachings of the Bible, and specifically those of Christ Jesus, we find that death is never a friend.

In fact, the New Testament's message is quite the opposite. Through his life, Jesus showed us the love that God has for us no matter who we are. He taught that we are not meant for suffering, death, and mortality but for eternal life. In one place, John's Gospel reports Jesus as saying, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (3:16).

For some, everlasting life might seem to translate into everlasting misery! If we think that life is material and that everlasting life means we are doomed to stay within a mortal body for eternity, this would be a very grim prospect indeed.

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