Snapshots of…Suicide or Sacrifice?
Many people either loved this movie or hated it. With out being too Christian, knowing that Jesus did not write this movie I took it for what it was and enjoyed the point the writer was trying to make.
As you watch the movie for the first 45mins of it, it centers on the unknown and the awkward antics of the supposed “Ben Thomas”. You come to know after a while that he is a man living from pain and a mentality to do penance in order to escape a situation that involved a huge regret.
His way of freeing himself from the deaths he caused seven individuals, the seven weights he carried (hence pounds), is by giving vitals pieces of his body away. From a lung, liver to bone marrow to those who are “good” and can live a better life than he did. He sacrifices his body but it’s only to free himself of the pain he caused in the other seven. Through out the movie you come to realize that one of the seven was his fiancé. Then you get it, he is going to give away his heart which he feels he lost emotionally with his fiancé when she died, the most vital organ he has.
In the movie we see that he is going to “lay” his life down but the motivation behind him wanting to die, initially being selfish changes when he finds love. He moves from escaping pain and life to laying his down to preserve another life because of love.
So the question, is taking your life worthy of being labeled suicide or sacrifice depending on the motivation behind it? One normally ends in a selfish motive, suicide and the other ends in a selfless motive, which we call, sacrifice. Is the death of an individual called sacrifice if its based off of a selfless motivation due to extreme circumstances?
From solders that have jumped on grenades to preserve the lives of his fellow brothers, we would call that sacrifice, even though the soldier knew he would die. The husband that jumps in front of a bullet for his wife knowing it will take his life, we call that sacrifice. “Ben Thomas” knew if he gave up his heart to another who needed it he would die, even with his death coming by his own hands, what would you label his act?
I would call it a sacrifical Suicide or a Suicidal Sacrifice. Why… anything done out of the context of good/ or Christ (which is the only good) is selfish. Now, I have call it the above, because we know how strong the human will is when it come to preservation of self. Very Strong!!! So it still takes something of a sacrifice to give your life for the preservation of another. However, we know how weak the human will is when the reality of Christ is replaced by human emotion. Very WEAK!!!
So, I do believe that one who runs from human circumstance and does not fall into the arms of Christ, could very well be called Suicidial.
Much Love.
Jason
For those who are in Christ Jesus!
TO LIVE IS CHRIST, TO DIE IS GAIN Philippians 1:21
As Christians, our goal is to constantly pursue a life which emulates the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. We struggle daily to live a righteous life without sin, and practice the act of unconditional love…in which Jesus Christ taught as his commandment. If we are to show unconditional love and pursue our goal of being more like Christ…what better way than to lay down ones for another as did our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For Christ did not commit suicide, but instead gave us the gift of eternal life with his act of great “Sacrifice.”