Can a person who commits suicide go to heaven?

The number of individuals committing suicide each year is staggering. For every person who takes that step, the individual leaves behind grieving family and loved ones. It seems there are more questions than answers when one stands by the grave of a loved one who has taken their own life. One of the more consuming questions, at least for many Christians, is “will my loved one go to heaven since he/she has committed suicide?”

Although Sacred Scripture never directly addresses suicide, we can be assured from the teachings of the Church and interpretation of the Scriptures by the Church that one can, indeed, go to heaven despite having committed suicide. This should never be taken as an endorsement or encouragement of suicide since it is, still, a sin. It should, however, bring a measure of comfort to those grieving families left behind. We are to never forget that we serve a merciful and loving God who has the final say as to where we spend eternity.

There are those, such as the European Court of Justice, which accepts and allows suicide as a human right. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, views it differently and sees suicide as a contradiction to the laws of God. Since the Lord God is Lord over all life, from conception to death, then we are to believe God is the only One who can take life since God is the only One who can truly create life. If we are to believe God is, indeed, the Lord of all life then we must recognize we do not have the authority to take life – even if it is ours.

We read in various passages of the Old Testament about the value of blood and its significance regarding human life. The Old Testament shows us that to shed a person’s blood, regardless of if it is our own or someone else’s, violates God’s property since we are the creation of God. As a result, we see in Genesis 9:5-6 where “and for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man. ‘Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.’”

We know that the Church teaches man is responsible for everything we do consciously and voluntarily. The Church also teaches that we cannot be held responsible for those actions which we do under the influence of drugs, coercion, out of fear or ignorance, etc. Although the Church once taught, as a result of the Council of Braga in 561, that one who committed suicide could not receive a formal funeral. Additionally, Pope Nikolas I in 860 called suicide a mortal sin and even went as far as to proclaim those who commit suicide were to be eternally damned. We are to understand that it was during this time the Church was limited in its understanding of mental illness and mental health. With the progression of our understanding of mental health comes a better picture of the voluntary, or involuntary, action of suicide.

Suicide is not human freedom. We must remember that we are not free to kill anything we do not have authority over and God, who is our Creator, is the one who has control. The lies that suicide is some form of expression of human freedom is from the pits of hell. It is satanic. There is no freedom in mental illness, and we know, based on research and a better understanding of mental health, that it suicide is often the end to the suffering of depression. The psychiatrist Menfred Lutz once said “it is a sickness that drives the patient into death. Suicide is the deathly end of a depression-similarly as a deathly asthma attack can be the end of a sickness. No one is guilty of being sick in that way.”

Most Catholics are aware of St. Padre Pio’s unique mysticism and gifts. There are a few stories associated with the great saint which can provide hope that the Church’s teaching on suicide and the potential for redemption of that individual is accurate. The first story I want to share is one of a woman who went to Padre Pio to question him about her brother, who had committed suicide after suffering some severe financial difficulties. She went to his Mass but was initially unable to get close enough to him to speak with him. She sat in church crying while Padre Pio was in the confessional. Then, suddenly, she was nudged by someone who said Padre Pio was calling for her. Padre Pio summoned her and as she approached him in the confessional he said “Don’t worry, stay calm, he is saved.”

Another story is of a bereaved woman whose husband had committed suicide. She went to Padre Pio to inquire as to the state of her beloved husband’s soul and Padre Pio responded “He’s saved. Between the bridge and the river he repented.”

The Catechism addresses suicide by saying, in CCC 2281-2283: “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. If suicide is committed with the intention of setting an example, especially to the young, it also takes on the gravity of scandal. Voluntary co-operation in suicide is contrary to the moral law. We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance. The Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives.”

If we are to think of the reasons which drive an individual to suicide, we can easily see how it is under conditions which prevent an individual from voluntarily choosing suicide. Situations such as extreme financial hardships, intense physical or emotional suffering, or the belief in the loss of a future are some of the reasons which drive an individual to suicide. It is for those reasons, and so many more, that an individual’s capacity to fully and completely choose suicide is diminished. As a result, we can rest in the light of the Church’s teaching that reflects the mercy of God. God can, and does, provide salvation for those who have taken their own life.