Matthew 24:14

Suicide always comes with a jolt.
Even when it occurs to the sick or elderly, there is the initial shock — then the awful emptiness.

Why are so many, worldwide, choosing suicide as the solution to life's problems?

Why is it, with so much to live for, that so many in the prosperous nations are not willing to live out their lives?

We read of the plight of the poor Haitians or the Vietnamese boat people who risk life and limb in leaky, dilapidated old boats in a frantic attempt to flee the poverty or the oppression of their country for the abundance and freedom of the outside world. They do not choose death as an escape. But their despair is so great they risk death in attempting to find a better life.

Yet in the countries sought out by refugees, the lands of their dreams, people who have enjoyed the better life by the thousands choose death as an escape.

What a paradox! In countries in which it would seem there is little real cause for despair and worry, people destroy themselves as a final solution to their problems.

Suicide has become a major problem in the industrialized nations, of the Free World. But some Eastern European countries fare no better. Hungary has the dubious honor of having the highest suicide rate in the world with East Germany an immediate second. Fourteen other nations make the list before the United States. Those highest on the list are some of the technologically and industrially most advanced nations of the world. They are the socialized nations where the people should have the least to worry about in life and future.

The lowest ratings in the world are among those nations that would be considered to have the least by way of physical riches, the nations of the Caribbean, South America and the Philippines being at the bottom of the rankings!

They Are Sick

Why do people in free and prosperous countries hate themselves and their lives so much that they seek and all too often find in suicide the final solution? Those in the poorer nations of the earth risk their very beings in hope of obtaining freedom and the opportunity to live as most of us do.

Why? We ask again. Is there an answer?

What is missing in the lives of so many who decide it just isn't worth the effort of living? They indeed reflect the attitude of the ancient patriarch Job: "I am sick, sick of life . . .” (Job 10:1, Moffat translation).

The whole world seems to be sick of life. On every hand we hear threats of war or fears of future missile attacks. Men in governments can threaten the desolation of whole continents. No one is ready to be the first to give in to stop it. The world is indeed sick!

The leaders of this world are becoming exactly as God said the descendants of ancient Israel would become: ". . . the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment" (Isa. 1:5-6).

This is describing the state of mind of our people today and the state of civilization were it to be engulfed in hydrogen war. We are mentally and spiritually sick and unable to face the tremendous strains of life.

Our Youth Are Dying, Too

Self-inflicted death strikes at the healthy as well as the infirm. It strikes at the established more than at the poor. Although attempted by more women, a higher toll is exacted from the men — mostly because of the methods used. Women prefer the slower-acting route of drugs or sleeping pills, while men usually choose the more violent and sure forms such as shooting or jumping.

The most pitiful of all statistics is the awesome toll exacted among our most intelligent, capable and valuable asset — the youth of the world. Self-destruction is the final solution to life's hopelessness for an increasing number of young people. In the United States, for example, death by suicide among young people has tripled in recent years. It is the THIRD LEADING CAUSE of death for young people of the United States following accidents and homicide. Recently, preliminary studies indicate it has now risen to the second leading cause of death.

The problem, again, isn't uniquely one of the United States. Austria, Denmark, Holland, Germany (East and West), Hong Kong, Hungary, Japan all suffer the horror of their young people choosing the final solution to their problems. The malady strikes most viciously among the highly socialized, technologically advanced nations of the world.

Why? What are the reasons these young people give up on life before they have lived it?

The answer reads like a litany written to the 20th century: too much money, too much alcohol, too many possessions, too many drugs, not enough love and concern by parents. Add boredom, depressions, stress, fear, frustration, hopelessness, low self-esteem and guilt — which all too often are connected to a recent family breakup.

Even more heartbreaking is the realization that for every successful attempt, there are 50 to 60 unsuccessful attempts. In addition there are the scores of unreported, unlisted attempts made by those in their sub-teen level that are counted as accidents to protect the very young and their families. No parent wants to acknowledge that his or her child has given up on life. All too often that is exactly the case.

Who Are the Victims?

A profile of the typical victim makes no sense on the surface. Most are from the middle to upper-income families. They generally are or have done well in school and are accepted or respected by their peers. As in all attempts at self-destruction, more females make the attempt while more males succeed. In most causes they have been crying out for help and the plea has gone unrecognized. Nearly 75 percent of those who succeed have talked of suicide in the past. Many have made previous attempts and failed only to repeat and succeed. Most seem to have planned their action and carefully carried out their plan.

Two groups appear to be more susceptible to the desire to find a final solution for their problems. They are those who are loners, who are more comfortable by themselves, and those who are substance abusers, who misuse alcohol or drugs. The misuse of these substances is an attempt to find relief from worries and frustrations. When the crutch fails and no relief is found, they turn in desperation to another solution. Hopelessness and despair are common denominators found with most suicide victims, whether young or old.

What problems could young people possibly have that are so insurmountable as to require such a grisly solution?

The Problem of Competition

Adults speak of the pressures on the job and the many stresses they have to face in the competitive world of today. They escape for the weekend to the mountains or seashore. They have recreation vehicles, campers, boats — you name it. Nothing is too much to ease the pressure. In addition to all this, they seek escape with alcohol or drugs and feel they deserve the respite. “But what kind of problems do kids have?" they ask.

In this modern day world of ours, youngsters have the same pressure to compete, the same pressures to be accepted, the worries about the future. And children have parental pressure, too. The demands by successful parents for their children to succeed and to uphold the family reputation are horrendous. Gets better grades in school, be a doctor, be a lawyer, attain, achieve, succeed — these are some of the problems young people face. All too often they face the problems without the help, encouragement and understanding of a knowing and loving family.

Austria, Germany and many other European nations, Japan, Hong Kong — all are having to acknowledge the pressure to succeed in the highly competitive school systems of these countries is an important factor in the rising suicide-death rate. In a recent study conducted among students in a Hong Kong junior school, 14 percent of those interviewed are reported to have said they would choose suicide if the going proved too hard at school or the pressures from home became too great.

Job security and future wellbeing in many of these countries depend on how well the young have done in school. Higher education or university level education is only available to those who have passed the secondary level with high enough marks. Failure dooms most young people to a life of mediocrity, low-paying jobs and little future. The pressures are intense. A reflection on the parents is implied. Many young people simply cannot cope with the trauma.

The resulting attitude is an overwhelming sense of futility. No hope. Nothing left to live for. They are trapped — held captive by parental demands, habits, environment and personal problems. They seek escape.

They search desperately for answers and that elusive, intangible feeling called happiness. Promiscuity doesn't give it. Alcohol and drugs can't provide it. The family doesn't seem to be interested or care. Desires once fulfilled have no lasting satisfaction. There is no peace of mind.

At the apex of life, there is no hope. They are blind to the scripture that says: "Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment" (Eccl. 11:9).

Youths should be without the pressures and stresses of adulthood. Youths should be responsible and dependable as youths. Youth should be a time of rejoicing and enjoying life, but life lived so it will not bring condemnation in the future.

A close, loving, understanding and interested family is one of the prime deterrents of futility in a young person's life. Money, cars, drugs can't substitute for a caring family. Lasting happiness for either the young or old does not come solely because of the physical goods possessed.