Suicide and atheism

[veiled]

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=81459

I'll just take out a few lines that I personally find amusing and sad.

"A New York man is linking the suicide of his 22-year-old son, a military veteran who had bright prospects in college to

Comments

[shatteress]

“Malpractice?” What? As if his assignment was “go home and commit suicide”?
Not only are all atheists not immoral (or suicidal, hello!), not all scientists/"secular" teachers are Atheist. I’ve read a couple of different books lately by scientists who’s studies of the intricacies of life actually inspired them to re-consider the notion of a creator or an intelligence of some sort that designed the framework of this “life” experience we are having. Science and God are not incompatible. I hope this bereaved father can find a way to transmute his pain back in into something more positive than blame and hate.

[veiled]

It's common for people to blame others in that sort of tragic situation. I hope he can figure out the real reasons behind his son's suicide. It's always very sad to hear about something like this, especially with a person so young... But I do not think it's right to blame atheism or the teacher for trying to get his/her students to think for themselves.

[shatteress]

It may be "common" or "normal" but it also not the only option for handling grief and it is far from the best option. I hope he moves on to some other way of dealing with this that will help him reconnect with his lost love for his son. I remember reading about a father who had lost a young daughter, and he poured his grief into founding some kind of charity organization to help children, and as I remember, there was a quote something like "This is how I express my love for my daughter now, through this work. I still love her so much." I thought that was the most beautiful and touching thing ever, that love was still his to feel and he focused on that.
I bet that underneath all his blame, he is probably questioning his faith a little bit too, and just can't bear to acknowledge that right now. I bet the real reason for the kid's suicide was that he was so damn confused that he just wanted to know the "truth" and rushed to find out. Haha. I wonder why he didn't leave a note?

[shatteress]

Hey I just wanted to share this link to a podcast I listened to recently. It goes along with the idea that religion does not own "god" or have a registered patent on “morals”, science and atheism are not always in bed together, and other ways that people "box" things unnecessarily. It basically says that belief systems are tools, you can feel free to use as many as you want for your own personal purposes and they are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
http://www.stevepavlina.com/podcasts/Pavlina-013-Beyond-Religion.mp3
Stever Pavlina is, like, my role model or something :) I highly recommend listening to the podcast when you get a chance, but here’s a short summery of it too:
http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/04/stevepavlinacom-podcast-013-beyond-religion/

[veiled]

Thanks I will definitely check it out when I get home from work!