Would surrendering your life be sinful?

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So I watched A Quiet Place recently (a good film BTW-good use of suspense, good focus on family, especially dads etc)

Anyway, for those who don’t know, it’s basically a thriller/horror film set in a place where if you make a sound, an alien will immediately tear you apart. One of the guys in the film (some random person) was overwhelmed by the situation and he basically screamed so he could die.

From a Catholic perspective, would just giving up like this be sinful (ie would be it be suicide)? I always feel like in a very difficult life/death situation, I would simply let myself die instead of suffering or living in turmoil.
 
I don’t think so.

There are plenty of martyrs who could have renounced their faith and lived but did not and died.

I think this is in the same arena.
 
Suicide ?
They do say - it’s a cowards way out.
Struggle is what gives us character.

I saw the movie Jurassic Park
One scene, if they stayed perfectly still -
they would not be seen by the dinasour.

Be still - and know I am God
Be still - upon your bed…( Psalms )
 
No,surrendering yourself in the hands of Jesus would be great, like Mother Mary in Luke 1:38.You can live one day at a time,spiritual martyrdom is to love, even if other hate you,but you love every one with out conditions for the sack of the name of Jesus or for the love of Jesus.He is always with us in Matthew 28:20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Hebrews 12:3 Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners,[c] so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. 4 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children—

“My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
or lose heart when you are punished by him;
6 for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves,
and chastises every child whom he accepts.”

7 Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? 8 If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. 9 Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. 11 Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

12 Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.God Bless
 
Maximilian75 said:
I don’t think so.

There are plenty of martyrs who could have renounced their faith and lived but did not and died.

I think this is in the same arena.
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I think it’s a bit different-- to renounce one’s faith (even just externally) would be wrong, so allowing oneself to be killed for the faith is a good thing in that it prioritizes the spiritual goods over the external goods; it is better to suffer physically than to commit sin. St. Thomas Aquinas said, “the evils of the soul are more to be feared than the evils of the body, and evils of the body more than evils of external things.”

When it comes to something like what’s being discussed in the OP, what we need to take into account is that human life is sacred and is as a general rule to be preserved when it can be done without the privation of a higher good, i.e. the good of one’s soul. It’s a similar principle to that of euthanasia or just suicide in general. So while it would be right to die for the faith (because it is better to allow evils of the body than to commit sin), it seems it would be wrong objectively speaking to just “give up” in the way described in the OP.

Now, I do think such a person may have greatly reduced culpability due to extreme duress that may impede judgment (but this can’t be seen as an excuse).

I also think this may depend somewhat on the particular circumstances; this is a rather contrived scenario but I don’t think we can say every action that will likely lead to death is a sin. But I do think the cases where it isn’t will be fairly limited and require a certain motivation and set of circumstances (e.g. the person is not simply trying to die or to escape suffering (indeed death cannot be willed) but is aimed at some higher good).
Lea101 said:
I always feel like in a very difficult life/death situation, I would simply let myself die instead of suffering or living in turmoil.
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For this we should pray that we are never taken to this point, and that God grants us the strength we need should a situation arise. 1Co 10:13 - “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
 
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If you were in mortal sin and wanted to save someone’s life but it put you in danger you would have to walk away?
 
Nelka said:
If you were in mortal sin and wanted to save someone’s life but it put you in danger you would have to walk away?
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As would be the case for someone in the state of mortal sin who refuses to renounce the faith under threat of death, I think what would happen to that person would depend on their disposition (i.e. it is conceivable for someone to be “martyred” for completely selfish and misguided motives). How about someone who has perfect contrition and is willing to risk his life to save another? In the strict sense, they need perfect contrition and the intention to confess as soon as possible (if it were possible). I would think this may, but not necessarily, be present; again, things must be done with the correct disposition.

But let’s use a more general example just to illustrate the point a bit: if I am in a state of mortal sin, and I currently have no intention of confessing any time soon, I’m surely going to be hoping I don’t die. At the same time when things get specific it seems there is a bit more in play here when it comes to the person’s disposition and responsibilities. I don’t have a solid answer for the kind of situation you describe, as it will probably depend on a number of things interior to the person involved, as well as the circumstances, and I feel something like this requires a whole other topic to discuss thoroughly.

To be honest something like this might be a question to ask a priest or a professional apologist to get a more principled answer.
 
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I really dont know the right answer to this one. I would say that culpability as a previous poster said would come into play. So I would say it would be a venial sin.

I went to the movies recently with my daughter to see Midnight Sun…I think that was the name…(beware lots of drinking and partying in the beginning, may not be for younger audencies).The girl has a disease that if she goes in the sunlight she can die. This could be a spoiler alert!!..Well she accidentally went into the sunlight for 45 seconds and that in turn made her body deteriorate over time(months or so.) But what I didnt get is that at the end of the movie…this is kind of another spoiler alert…she decides to go out into the sun for a whole day with her boyfriend. Now if 45 seconds will hurt her body, I cant image what a whole day out in the sun would do. How does she not know that a miracle wouldnt be in place for her, so I thought going out in the sun all day was a bad decision.

Also to note that a person who is giving their own life up so someone else can live can be meritorious, like St.Maximillion Kolbe gave up his life for the married man at the concentration camp.
 
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I was thinking of culpability too, but I was wondering if it’s even a sin. We are not directly killing ourselves, but rather giving up fighting for survival (where choosing to be alive is a conscious and difficult choice to make).

Would it be comparable to someone deciding not to take medication (eg cancer etc)? And in the context of the movie, would one really have to spend the rest of her life keeping quiet until she messes up and gets torn apart to avoid sin?

I found it rather interesting yet frustrating because I don’t think we can get a good answer
 
When you put it that way it does seem more difficult. Part of me wonders whether a really far out there scenario like this is comparable in any way to extraordinary care and the like. However I am hesitant to say it is because the line we draw doesn’t seem to be the clearest.

In any case we certainly aren’t permitted to will our own death as an end, nor as a means. And also in any case it’s a situation we’d all hope to avoid!
 
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To wish you can die to be with God or to escape life’s problems and evils, is okay.
To wish you can die to oppose God’s will, or any other bad reason, is a sin.

Personally, I don’t think it’s right at all. God gave you sufferings, they are blessings designed to help you to eternal salvation. You should use them instead of just giving up and wanting to die.
 
But to wish and to actually die is different.

I mean if I was getting chased by a beast for example…maybe I’m exhausted and scared so I give up and let myself be eaten. Or do I have a moral obligation to survive until it’s physically impossible…?

Or the guy whose arm was trapped in the boulder (I can’t believe I forgot his name). Do we have to cut off our arm to be free or do we give up and let ourselves die of starvation?

There’s so many scenarios and I admit just thinking about this got me feeling some type of way
 
Preservation of life isn’t an absolute obligation in every case. The Catechism tells us it can be legitimate to refuse “medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome” for instance. But again I don’t think the principles here, along with how we can apply them to other scenarios, are especially clear, which as you said is a bit frustrating.

Of course I agree with BridgetN that suffering isn’t an excuse to just give up, but at least in the case of medical procedures again, there can be such a thing as “over-zealous” treatment as the Catechism I think rightly mentions.

And yeah, situations like this are unpleasant to even think about.
 
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I think you must be willing to cut off your arm, lose a limb, or the like to save your life.

For example, Bob is told by a doctor that his leg needs to be amputated in order for him to live. Bob says he rather die than live his life without the use of his leg. What must Bob do?
Answer: Life is more important than full ability. Bob must get the amputation.
Sometimes it’s hard, but you can make a heroic sacrifice of it.

I don’t know if that helps. 😉
 
We must will to do God’s will.

Giving up is not God’s will.

Our not giving up might spur on a thousand people to honor the gift of life more.

There’s infinite apostolic value in our lilfe.
 
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It would be gravely sinful to act for the purpose of being killed. However, one is not ordinarily required to take extraordinary means to preserve one’s life.
 
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