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LIZA3213
Guest
if we pray to God to take us (sinfully) is it the same as contemplating suicide?
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bpbasilphx
Guest
It depends.
In the depth of depression while being pursued by Jezebel and Ahab–and after his greated triumph, no less–the Prophet Elijah prayed, “It is enough. Lord, take away my life, because I am not better than my fathers.”
I think God has enough sense to know when one of His children is having a bad day, and He loves you through it.
Hope this helps.
In the depth of depression while being pursued by Jezebel and Ahab–and after his greated triumph, no less–the Prophet Elijah prayed, “It is enough. Lord, take away my life, because I am not better than my fathers.”
I think God has enough sense to know when one of His children is having a bad day, and He loves you through it.
Hope this helps.
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Nita
Guest
I’m not sure what you mean by sinfully. Could you clarify?
Praying/asking God to take you is in no way the same as contemplating suicide. One who contemplates suicide contemplates ending his life through his own action. One who asks God to take him is asking the One who has the right to exercise power over life and death. This is not necessarily sinful.
As I recall, St. Padre Pio when suffering some illness sometimes desired to die. He even referred to those who prayed for his recovery as his “enemies” (not in anger tho; more like truthful joking).
Even St. Paul said:
*Phillipians 1:21-24 "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If it is to be life in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. **My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. **But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. *
I know several elderly (one was my grandmother) who hope God will call them home - and I think, include it in their prayers. As in any prayer of petition, after telling God of our request, we need to conclude as Our Lord did in the Garden of Gethsemane: “…nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”
Nita
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LIZA3213
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If we pray to God to take us home to him is it as much of a sin as contemplating suicide. Would such a prayer not be considered a rejection of the gift of life?
After I posted - I realized that some people might misread what my intent was.
After I posted - I realized that some people might misread what my intent was.
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Nita
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Asking God to take us home is never as much of a sin as contemplating suicide.
Suicide is an evil act, a serious mortal sin. To contemplate doing that is to contemplate oneself carrying out an evil act.
In praying God to take us home, we are asking Him to do something that will naturally occur at some point in our life – we’d just like Him to speed it up a bit.
There are so many motives that could be behind such a prayer, and perhaps some of them are sinful.
Bouts of severe pain or depression are typical times when people ask God to call them home. As long as they make the prayer with a heart desiring God’s will and willing to accept His decision, I don’t think it’s a sin. Their motivation is a rejection of pain and depression more than a rejection of life.
The biggest danger I see is that if the painful circumstances are long term and one continually focuses on dying (in thought and prayer), it could lead to sin. Eg. rejecting God when He doesn’t do as asked; anger towards Him; and possibly starting to entertain thoughts of suicide.
This might be a good question to ask Fr. Serpa on the “Ask an Apologist” forum here on CAF. (The very first one listed on the home page.)
God bless,
Nita
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