In the framework of the “Church and Law” series of interviews, Iravaban.ne spoke about the suicides, the act, and the attitude of the church to it with the Caretaker Pastor Senior Priest of St. Sargis Church of the Ararat Patriarchal Diocese, Father Petros Malyan.
– Father Petros, Christianity strongly condemns suicide. It is considered even a more serious sin than killing another man. Why?
– The phenomenon of suicide dates back to pre-Christian times, it comes from earlier times. There are religions that accept suicide. For example, Buddhism and Hinduism accept it, but the Armenian Apostolic Church and in general, the Christian Church denies suicide because the life we have is a gift from God․ He has given it to us, and only God can take it in time. He rules this. Naturally, suicide interferes with God’s work.
Mkhitar Gosh has a separate section in his “Lawcode” condemning suicide, which says that people who are mentally healthy, their judgment will be more severe than those who have had mental disorders.
Suicide is a manifestation of socio-economic and personal problems that bring a person to zero; and a person thinks that there is nothing else beyond it, and only suicide remains.
The ritual of suicide has been practiced in Armenia since pagan times; they have even turned it into an art, a civilized thing. At the funeral of King Artashes, women, concubines, and servants were sacrificed. Suicide was accepted in India. Widows set themselves on fire to join their husbands. And it was considered very normal; no one was holding their hand.
These manifestations of suicide have reached our times and improved. In Japan, for example, people wear white kimonos, go especially to Buddhist temples, spread white clothes on green grass, and commit suicide. The situation in Armenia is also very painful in terms of numbers. We have more than 400 suicides, 3 times more suicide attempts. I have to say with regret that the number of suicides has increased in recent years. I am sorry to say that this war left its mark. I do not remember that during the first Artsakh war, during the Four-Day War, the number of suicides was so worrying.
– According to the canons of the Church (mentioned in ‘canon 11’ of the twelve monks of the Church of Christ, preserved in the name of St. Athanasius of Alexandria), the priest cannot perform any rite, except in cases when the suicide occurred due to “negligence”, insomnia, mental illness. At the same time, it has been proven that people who commit suicide are in a state of mental imbalance. Isn’t there a contradiction here?
– Grigor Tatevatsi says, what is the difference between a murderer and a suicide? The murderer has a chance to repent, to receive God’s mercy, the suicide does not. As I said, life is a gift from God! None of us has the right to interfere in God’s creation. Suicide is considered the most serious of the 7 deadly sins that cannot be forgiven.
The Armenian Apostolic Church, I think, the other Christian churches do not perform the burial procedure for those who committed suicide. From a Christian point of view, suicide is the result of a weak faith. When faith is lacking, hope is lacking, and when a person has strong faith, he does not lose hope. The person who commits suicide has selfishness, they are egocentric, self-centered. A person who commits suicide commits a double sin․ First, they depict suicide scenes in their mind, choose one of those scenes that they finds comfortable, and second, the sin when they already are committing it.
– Father Petros, I’d like to ask my question again in connection with the contradiction. As I mentioned, the church stipulates that the priest cannot perform any rite, but the exceptions are suicides due to “lack of mind”, insomnia, mental illness. Meanwhile, it has been proven that people who commit suicide are in a mentally unbalanced state. Is there no contradiction here?
– No, there is no contradiction. The rule is established: the church does not bury the person who commits suicide, no ritual is performed. Let me tell you something, those who commit suicide do not only have mental disorders, there is no difference between intellect and the class they belong to. Suicides are committed by the rich, the poor, and heads of state, government officials, scientists, artists, and doctors. The problem here is not that they should be merely unbalanced. Many leave a note before committing suicide, but many commit suicide without explaining the reason.
The society is also very guilty in connection with suicides, because before committing any suicide, the person always gives a message in words and mood to those who live next to him. Usually we do not pay attention, we cannot prevent it.
– The Church does not perform burial of suicides, leaving the judgment to God. This is how the church defines it. In your opinion, in this case, the judgment is left to God, or by not fulfilling the rite, the Church itself judges that person.
“We have no right to judge.” We are just following the church order. God is the judge.
– Let’s also talk about a soldier who sacrificed his life (killed himself) on the battlefield or in order not to be captured. Does the church consider this to be suicide?
– Many countries have sewn poison capsules on the collars of their army soldiers so that they do not fall into captivity, as captivity is dishonorable. We glorify the captives today, but it has always been a disgrace. And they chewed that capsule with their teeth, drank the poison and died so as not to be taken prisoner. During the April war, our hero boys “killed themselves” with the last grenades in their hands, and killed several enemies. This step taken for the defense of the homeland can never be considered suicide.
Recently, many boys who are participants in the 44-day war come and say, “Father, we have committed a sin, we have killed a person.” I say you killed the enemy. There have always been wars, and at all times the heroes have been sanctified. Our soldiers can be very calm, they are not murderers, and they have defended their homeland, their parents, their mothers, sisters, and the church. We did not attack, we were attacked and we defended ourselves. So, there is no problem here. If he died during the self-defense, he was not taken prisoner, it is justified.
– Recently, online games have become very popular, which push mainly teenagers to commit suicide. What role can the church play here?
– We always put everything on the church in extreme situations. Here, first of all, the state and its structures must play a role: police, prosecutor’s office, national security. Of course, the church must also have its role. And our church does serious work in that sense, especially among the youth. Of course, these online games are terrible things. Very often the parents bring from 10 to 14-year-old children who are unable to sleep at night, have convulsions and are afraid.
What are you looking at now, they are slaughtering, dumping, beheading, what should those children learn? Here, too, the family has a role to play. We cannot go into everyone’s house every night and see what the child is up to. In order to get rid, the parents give the phones to the children, who separate in their rooms and begin playing those games. What can the church do here?
We have Sunday schools, we have a youth union. We work with them, we do not make them zombies, they should only come to pray, we teach patriotism, we present them the identity, the history of our church, and the history of our church and people is mixed, it is not separate, no matter how much we separate, it is impossible.
– Summing up the conversation, please talk about whether this approach of the church in connection with suicides has any effect on reducing their number.
– It seems to me that it affects, yes. Future suicides, after all, are living in our society. They hear, they see, they communicate, they know that the church does not accept them. People have the ability to think, they say, well, by getting out of this earthly life, what am I going to do in heavenly life? Many times this thought holds back. I would simply advise that no one should have such stupid thoughts, first of all in the mind. First, that life is a gift from God, second, they are alive, but their parents and relatives live on this earth. That’s why I say they are egocentric, self-centered, at that moment their own yes speaks to them. They are weak-willed people. A person who has strong will, shall not commit suicide, he will fight.
