Equiping Faith Communities to Minister to Those Impacted by Suicide

By the Rev. Canon Bobbe Fitzhugh, Episcopal Church in Wyoming

Serving St. James’ Encampment, Chapel on the Plains Medicine Bow, St. Thomas’ Rawlins

“6% of adults and 17% of adolescents are thinking about suicide at any given time and 50% of any congregation is impacted by suicide in some form. These statistics make this an issue that the church cannot avoid. Communities of faith have both a theological obligation and a call by God to face this challenge head-on, equipping members to do the same,” says Michelle Snyder, Executive Director of Soul Shop™, the leading provider of faith-based suicide prevention workshops in the US.

September is Suicide Prevention month, and the Episcopal Church in Wyoming is offering a faith-based suicide prevention training program. The free day-long workshop will be held on September 13, 2023 from 8:30-4:30 at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Rawlins. Pre-registration is required. https://Diowy.info/soulshop

Workshop format includes the creation of worship resources, training leaders in suicide awareness and basic conversation skills, and how to extend the invitation to those who have been suicidal in the past to share their stories. This Soul Shop™ workshop will address the primary obstacles to dealing with suicide such as stigma, fear, and shame; statistics/facts about suicide; and how ministries can create a supportive environment while shifting the culture around how people deal with this subject and one another.

The Episcopal Church is committed to removing the stigma of suicide, historically seen as a mortal sin in many faith traditions. Although scripture itself offers no explicit condemnation, in the 5^th Century, St. Augustine wrote that suicide was always wrong and that it violated the sixth commandment (thou shalt not kill). This faith position has endured through many centuries and many denominations. Thankfully, that is not the position of more and more churches today.

There are no easy answers as to why some, because of the many layers of mental illness or deep darkness, decide that suicide is the answer. The church may not have an answer for that, but the church is not supposed to make the situation worse by condemning victims or survivors of suicide with theological misinterpretations. The Episcopal Church believes that if someone suffers from mental illness and addiction and cannot see God’s image in themselves, if the voices of self-hate and depression and despair drown out the sound of God’s promises and they take their own life, that is devastating and unspeakably excruciating enough. But they don’t go to hell. They were in Hell.

Our God is a God of love and hope. Paraphrasing Psalm 24:1, everything, and everyone, belongs to God. This unconditional love of God reaches beyond the grave, providing love and forgiveness to those who take their own lives, as well as for those who are left with both sorrow and guilt that they should or could have done something to prevent someone from dying by suicide. All are born in the image of God and all are held in the same pure love of God. If some could not feel the truth of God’s love in life, they are surrounded by it in the life everlasting. God stays with us through our suffering, through our joy, through our grief, sorrow and despair.

As St. Paul teaches in Romans 8:39, “Nothing in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” To that end, The Episcopal Church educates, funds and proudly advocates for those impacted by suicide.

The Episcopal Church in Wyoming is recognized as a leader in Suicide Prevention efforts in Wyoming. Many of those efforts have centered on secular training programs, the development of suicide prevention liturgies and legislative advocacy for suicide prevention funding. “This faith-based prevention approach from Soul Shop™ adds value to the tremendous work we are already doing in a state that is consistently higher than the rest of the country in suicide rates,” according to Bishop Paul-Gordon Chandler.

For more information, contact Rev. Canon Fitzhugh or go to https://www.soulshopmovement.org/

From “A Prayer for Those Touched By Suicide,’ – “We commend all those overcome by the chaos around them and the torment within them to you. We pray that all those who sought relief by their own hand will know the comfort of your eternal presence, where you wipe away every tear and where there is no sorrow. We ask your comfort to all those whose lives have been touched by the pain of suicide, that you would lighten their darkness and bring them out of their distress. We ask that you touch all our hearts with your love and compassion, allowing it to overflow through us, touching the hearts of others. Give us grace to care for one another: forgiving all, sharing all, and striving to always radiate your loving presence in our pain filled world. Uphold us, enfold us, and sustain us with the joy and comfort of your never-ending peace and never ceasing love.” Amen. - The Reverend Bernadine Craft (2014)