Topics Ethics

Question You have such a helpful and accessible website! Thank you and all the contributors for such a great free service to the public! If, G-d forbid, somebody is going to harm himself (e.g. commit suicide), then am I obligated to stop him? What lengths should I go to? For example, what if the only way I can stop him is by harming him in another way (e.g. by breaking his arm)? What if I will harm somebody else? Thanks, keep up the great efforts!

Accepted:
December 2, 2010

Comments

nice question; but obviously answering it depends on many things ... for example I assume we're talking about an adult (though of course there's no clear cut-off age for adulthood), and you'd certainly want to clarify the mental state of the person (depressed? crazy?) as well as the physical state (ill? suffering from terminal disease?) as well as whether, most abstractly, the person has good reasons ... (financial distress? about to be murdered by Nazis? etc.) .... Since you chosen to spell out the word 'G-d' I assume you've got a religious background, so of course you may want to consult your religion -- but then again it's rare that there's absolute consensus even within a religion about specific cases -- generally major western religions at least frown upon suicide, but that fact leaves open whether others have obligations to stop a suicide in progress ... Finally, we might also distinguish the case where suicide is predictable v. suicide IS in progress -- ie it's easy to argue we may have obligations towards steering people in bad shape towards help (I think), less obvious that we have obligations towards stopping one in progress ... (the really interestig question would be whether, were certain conditions fulfilled, we would be obligated NOT to intervene ....)

anyway sorry not to offer a specific answer, but there remain too many unspecified questions before an answer can be given! hope this is at least a little helpful anyway ...

best,