Why Did An Area Pastor Hang Himself?

     I was grieved recently when I read that the a local pastor in our area congregation committed suicide, leaving behind a wife and two young children.  The police pronounced him dead by hanging in his home at 8:45 pm one evening.

     The newspaper said that the members of the pastor’s congregation were asking one another why he did it.  That’s a good question.  Because the word “suicide” isn’t in the New Testament, and there’s no record of early Christians committing suicide.  (Except of course, that Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, also hung himself.  But that was before Christianity was founded.)

     A spokesperson for the congregation explained the pastor’s suicide to a reporter this way.  He said, “Pastors are human, and are subject to the same trials, emotions, and struggles as normal people.”[1.  The Christian Post (Washington, DC), April 15, 2014, p. 42.]

     That explanation bothered me.  After all, is it really true that all Christians (including pastors) are just as stressed, confused, and bewildered as non-Christians?  The original Christians taught that Christians are “strangers” in the natural world, and are a “royal priesthood” in the natural life.  So, Christians are supposed to live truer, stronger, and more blessed lives than non-Christians.

     The truth is, Christians have the potential to live supernaturally stress-free lives.  The problem is, unless they’re motivated by the indwelling Holy Spirit within them, they don’t live stress-free lives.  And that’s apparently what happened to the pastor in the newspaper story.  He apparently was not being motivated by the Holy Spirit during his ministry – at least, not deeply enough, at least and not often enough.

     To avoid the stress and confusion that plagues non-Christians, Christians need to pray daily, “Fill me, Holy Spirit.”  Joanna and I do that every morning.  And we hope you and your loved ones do it every morning too.