I think it is worth remembering that for every
“crazy” person who kills himself, there are many more suicide
victims who show no evidence of “craziness”at all. I’ve lost three
dear friends to gunshot suicide. None of us saw the signs, and
indeed, they were hard to detect. But maybe, as the world itself
becomes more frenetic … as our society itself becomes
“crazier,”we have an obligation to try harder. I know I wish I had.
Finally, while editor Jonathan Thompson’s introductory
remarks were, in most respects, well-considered, calling it
“self-murder”made me wince. When one of my friends died, a
misguided minister came to visit and asked if he could say a
prayer. He prayed for me, my family, her family and friends. And
then he said, “Amen.”
I asked, “What about the woman we
just buried?”He replied, “I can’t pray for her – she made her own
choice.” Suggesting that suicide is a sin is hardly comforting.
Jim Stiles
Monticello, Utah
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline A quietus made … Is no sin.
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