Was Jesus' Sacrifice Suicide?

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I’ve recently started looking into whether or not it is proper to classify Jesus’ sacrifice as suicide. I understand that in Catholicism suicide is considered a Mortal Sin. As such I was curious to get the (name removed by moderator)ut from a Catholic forum on the matter.

Let me start with a basic definition of suicide (and please let me know if there is a different definition used by Catholicism and provide references):

noun​

1 the intentional taking of one’s own life.
2 destruction of one’s own interests or prospects: Buying that house was financial suicide.
3 a person who intentionally takes his or her own life.

verb (used without object), su·i·cid·ed, su·i·cid·ing.​

1 to commit suicide.

verb (used with object), su·i·cid·ed, su·i·cid·ing.​

1 to kill (oneself).
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Based upon this definition, we can say that Jesus’ sacrifice was a suicide if he intentionally sought to take his own life. There are many verses we could use to show Jesus’ intent to die on the cross, but I think the most forceful is this one:
John 10:17-18 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
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Here Jesus is quite plain that no one else takes his life from him. Instead, he lays down his own life. What’s more, the Father loves him for this. This seems to fit the definition of suicide exactly.

While not quite as direct, the Synoptic Gospels paint a similar picture. For instance, when Jesus starts to teach the disciples about his suffering, death, and resurrection, Peter tries to dissuade him. Jesus rebukes Peter as Satan for tempting him away from the crucifixion.
Mark 8 He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
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It was always Jesus’ intent to die on the cross in order to fulfill God’s will.

Additionally, in the account in Matthew when Judas betrays Christ and brings men to arrest him, one of his disciples gets out his sword to defend Christ - cutting off the ear of one of the High Priest’s servants. However, Christ rebukes him, telling him that he could call forth legions of angels to his defense if he so chose. He explains he does not do this for then he could not fulfill the scriptures (Mark 26:50-54).

So he intentional seeks his death and he willing hands himself over to die despite having the power to avoid such a fate. The mob is merely the instrument of his death. They can only harm him because he wills it to be so. Therefore, it seems to me that Jesus’ sacrifice is in fact an instance of suicide.
 
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It depends on the definition of suicide used. There is the Christian theological term, which is describes a sin whereby an individual murders themselves. No Christian thinker at any point in history has ascribed this to Jesus.

There is the sociological definition of suicide which encompasses a broad array of acts, including “self-murder” but also altruistic suicide. The latter describes behaviours intended to benefit others, for example, a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to protection his fellow soldiers. There is a degree of contention regarding the distinction between “self sacrifice” and “altruistic suicide”.

Regardless, no mainstream Christian (whether Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox) thinker (whether cleric, theologian or general thinker) describes the crucifixion as “altruistic suicide” because Jesus did not crucify himself.
 
If you willingly walked over to a pack of Lions, or to a Bear Cub with the intent that the Lions/Mother Bear would kill you - would that not be considered suicide?
 
Or, suicide isn’t sinful. Or further qualifications are necessary to distinguish the conditions under which suicide should be considered sinful 😉

The scriptural testimony at least appears quite clear that Jesus sought his own death. His words in John in particular match up exactly with the definition of suicide.
 
Suicide is prima facie sinful, with obvious caveats about mental illness reducing responsibility.
 
I’ve shown that Christ’s sacrifice meets the definition of suicide. Was he mentally ill? sinful?

When a soldier willingly throws himself on a grenade to save his comrades, is he mentally ill? sinful?
 
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iam1me said:
If you willingly walked over to a pack of Lions, or to a Bear Cub with the intent that the Lions/Mother Bear would kill you - would that not be considered suicide?
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But that is a false analogy. The more appropriate analogy would be walking over to the pack of lions or to the bear in order to save someone else.

Jesus laid down His life for others, not for the express purpose of a meaningless death.
 
iam1me said:
The scriptural testimony at least appears quite clear that Jesus sought his own death. His words in John in particular match up exactly with the definition of suicide.
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The Scriptural testimony is quite clear that Jesus did not desire His own death, but He willing laid down His life for others. “My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (Mt 26:39)

It can only be “suicide” if you call it suicide when someone willingly dies in the place of another…which seems to twist the normal context of the word “suicide.”
 
It’s not a false analogy. The point is that when Jesus handed himself willingly over to the mob that carried him off and which ultimately had him crucified - this was fundamentally no different from willingly walking over to a wild predator knowing that it’s going to kill you. It was suicide.

Yes, the reason he did so was to save us - no one is disputing that - but that doesn’t change that the fact that in order to accomplish that he had to willingly give up his own life
 
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No he didn’t desire his own death, but he chose to die all the same in order to fulfill the scriptures. He did willingly choose to die even if didn’t desire to die.
 
iam1me said:
I’ve recently started looking into whether or not it is proper to classify Jesus’ sacrifice as suicide.

Let me start with a basic definition of suicide:

noun​

1 the intentional taking of one’s own life.
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Jesus didn’t take his own life. Not suicide.
Based upon this definition, we can say that Jesus’ sacrifice was a suicide if he intentionally sought to take his own life.
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But, He didn’t. Others did. He permitted it, but He didn’t commit suicide.
 
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iam1me said:
It’s not a false analogy. The point is that when Jesus handed himself willingly over to the mob that carried him off and which ultimately had him crucified - this was fundamentally no different from willingly walking over to a wild predator knowing that it’s going to kill you. It was suicide.
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Metaphorically? Maybe. Not in terms of what suicide really is, though. Moreover, Jesus didn’t “walk into the teeth of a predator”. The ‘predator’ came to him, arrested him, and then crucified him.
 
By permitting His death, isnt this why its called His sacrifice?
 
He is the sacrificial lamb, His blood needed to be the new atonement for sin
 
Catholicism does not rely on Oxford/Webster dictionary definitions for theological concepts. Suicide is ultimately an act of despair. Sacrifice is not (so a sacrifice cannot be suicide). If in an attempt to save someone’s life one takes an action that results in his death (he died pushing the little girl out of the way of that truck), it what society/culture/religion would this be considered suicide?
 
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