The sin of suicide & purgatory for Protestants

[Caitlin]

I have heard that your state of mind can possibly lessen the weight of sins. About a year or two ago. A very dear friend of mine committed suicide. I am not sure what went through his mind exactly before it happened. I just know that he was in a lot of pain because of severe health issues. He had a transplant of one of his vital organs. But soon after his body started rejecting the transplant. He had other conditions as well. But I believe this one was causing the most pain. Pretty soon he just gave up. He was a Protestant. I am not sure what denomination though. The idea of purgatory is actually one of the things that drew me to the Catholic Church. But it is not the thing. There were other things too. I wanted to believe that there was still hope for him even after death. I have wanted to ask this question for the past year or two. But was very hesitant until now. Weather or not he is in purgatory will not change how I feel about the church. I still believe that the Catholic Church is the church. Or at the very least it is as close to the truth as anyone is going to get. I will not leave. No matter if he is there or not. But I still want to know. Could there be hope for him even after death? Is it possible for Protestants to be in purgatory? I know that committing suicide is a mortal sin. But what is the Catholic Church’s full belief on the matter? And what is the Catholic Church’s belief on state of mind when it comes to sin?

 

[puer.dei]

Could there be hope for him even after death? I

There absolutely is hope for your friend. It’s entirely possible that the pain he was in – both physical and psychological – affected his ability to make a rational decision.
God loves us. All of us. Don’t ever forget that.

 

[OnAJourney]

The Church recognizes that those who commit suicide are often not in a healthy frame of mind. I’d say that there is hope for your friend because from what you’ve described it sounds like his mind was deeply troubled, I would be too if my health were in such a poor state.

God understands the nuances of mental health and how it can be strained by physical pain and or terminal illness.

 

[fredystairs]

I have heard that some Protestants can go to purgatory. One saint (and I have no idea which one) stated that generally Protestants stay in purgatory longer than Catholics because Catholics in purgatory have living Catholics to pray for them and to offer masses, etc. Since Protestants do not believe in purgatory, they do not offer prayers, etc. The Protestants do not have any way to shorten their time.

 

[JanR]

I have heard that some Protestants can go to purgatory. One saint (and I have no idea which one) stated that generally Protestants stay in purgatory longer than Catholics because Catholics in purgatory have living Catholics to pray for them and to offer masses, etc. Since Protestants do not believe in purgatory, they do not offer prayers, etc. The Protestants do not have any way to shorten their time.

Catholic friends and relatives can still pray for Protestants in Purgatory. We can pray for anyone in Purgatory. Since Protestants don’t believe in Purgatory, other Protestants aren’t going to pray to shorten their stints there, but we still can – and should.

 

[ZMystiCat]

I know that committing suicide is a mortal sin. But what is the Catholic Church’s full belief on the matter?

To quote the CCC, the second part of 2282 says:

Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, or torture can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide.

2283 in whole says:

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.

So there is still hope. Remember that mortal sin requires:

1. The matter to be grave (suicide is).
2. The person has full knowledge.
3. The person gives deliberate consent.

The second part of 2282 directly addresses that third one: We don’t know the extent of culpability. Suicide is grave, but whether an act of suicide is a mortal sin or not is hard to say. That’s why 2283 points out that there certainly is hope.

 

[Dan_Defender]

Suicide is a grave matter, it is a violation of the Fifth Commandment. At the same time, it is up to God to decide who gets saved, He is the wisest judge.

 

[fredystairs]

And I agree with you on this.

 

[InThePew]

Objectively speaking (so looking at it from a completely detached point of view) the act of suicide is gravely sinful. However that does not mean that those who commit suicide die in a state of mortal sin. Sin requires a deliberate decision made freely - without the person’s ability to choose their own actions being restricted by anything including things like mental illness or depression. At the risk of stating the obvious, suicide isn’t something which tends to be associated with people of sound mind. We also commend all the dead to the Father’s loving mercy; in the words of the Committal from the Order of Christian Funerals: “In sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, we commend to Almighty God our brother/sister”.

 

[BT3241]

I think its pretty sad that some will not pray for them - it not a sin to do so. They have condemned the person to hell if there was some chance it might save them.

What do they think Gods going to punish them for praying for victims of suicide?

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I have heard that some Protestants can go to purgatory. One saint (and I have no idea which one) stated that generally Protestants stay in purgatory longer than Catholics because Catholics in purgatory have living Catholics to pray for them and to offer masses, etc. Since Protestants do not believe in purgatory, they do not offer prayers, etc. The Protestants do not have any way to shorten their time.

Of course Protestants go to purgatory. The fact that they didn’t believe in it, does not keep them out of it. It is a good thing to pray for the forgotten souls in purgatory, and there is a pious practice of offering sufferings and penances for “the most forgotten soul in purgatory”.

 

[JerryZ]

Well, not only there is always hope, remember only GOD knows what is in our hearts and will judge us accordingly and with love even if we did not love HIM.
Also your friend now has an advocate and if he is in purgatory you can pray for him to help in his healing. Remember purgatory should be viewed as the way our Lord employs to scrub us of all the attachment to sin we may carry over after our departure from this life.
As for the question on culpability it is the teaching by the Church, that our own culpability can be diminished when we are under stress, illness, pain can affect our intellect.
Peace!