Doctrinely speaking, what happens to someone who commits suicide ?


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Doctrinely speaking, what happens to someone who commits suicide ?

Well, their spirit is separated from the body, and the body goes to what we term the Spirit World. There, they wait for the Resurrection and judgment of Christ, and may receive additional instruction and teaching about the role of the Savior and His gospel.

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Do they reach peace ?

As TFP said, they do not reach peace through suicide.  What most people are seeking from suicide is not peace, but rather an escape from pain and suffering. Those who have suicidal thoughts, or who make suicide attempts have, generally speaking, either stopped feeling hope and happiness, or they suffer from mental illnesses that make it harder for them to do so. They feel they have no value, or that they will not be missed, often despite all evidence to the contrary.

But even after suicide, there is hope for peace, as they still have the opportunity to learn how Christ's Atonement can reach and affect them. 

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And can they still go at least to the telestial kingdom ?

I do not believe that a person who commits suicide will be judged solely on that single act. In their judgment, I expect that their mental illnesses and their choices will be considered far more heavily in judging their lives and their eternal rewards. What is important to weigh is the choices they made in the context of their environmental factors and psychological make up. I see no reason to believe that suicide imposes any limitations on a person's capacity to obtain celestial glory.   

 

ADDITIONAL THOUGHT: Ultimately, what happens to a person after suicide seems, to me, to be mostly of academic interest, or a matter of comforting those who are close to the victim. I think it is enough to say that the suicide itself will not be the limiting factor, but the other choices in the person's life. Certainly, families separated by suicide are able to be reunited in the eternities.   

I should hope that knowledge is enough. Because we would find great advantage to spending more time learning how to help those with suicidal thoughts and tendencies than we will by spending our time speculating about what happens after their deaths.

Edited by MarginOfError
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