My brother is contemplating suicide

[Caravaggio]

I was told my brother is SERIOUSLY considering suicide. He has medical and financial problems and if things get worse, he will do it.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEEEEEEASE pray that he does not do this. He has TOTALLY left God; brought up in a very Catholic home but thinks Christianity is a big fake now. Thinks there is just non-existence on the other side which would be better than the suffering he is going through now.

I don't know where else to turn. I have prayed so much for his conversion but he seems to be getting WORSE. He hates everybody and everything. His heart is filled with blackness. I heard in the past he may even have dabbled in the occult, and now I think a demon may have entered him. I feel he already IS in hell the way he hates so much.

PLEASE pray for him not to do anything so drastic as suicide. This would kill my parents and I know something inside me would die also. I can't imagine living knowing his soul is suffering so much in hell. He suffers now and I hate it, but at least while he's living there's hope (albeit it a very fine thread).

Thank you for your prayers.

[NeoCaveman]

I will pray for your brother.

The fact that he told you is a good sign, it is cry for help. I hope he gets the help he needs.

[jigsaw]

Full Speed Dittos for Reply #6 above.

Your brother may be too confused to have a good grasp of reality and that may be
due to a chemical imbalance which can be significantly alleviated by proper drugs.

Your brother wants help, but he can't help himself.

You can.

He may not be able to say so now, but someday he'll thank you for intervening.

[trickyricky]

Demonic harassments and attachments are very, very real.

Most people, thank God, never have to face someone who is possessed.

[Siobhan]

You've got my prayers. You know what to do

(1) a first line attack with medical intervention for him,

(2) second line -- stand with him and love him constantly no matter what, no matter what gets revealed;

(3) third part, if you can get to a church or chapel with Perpetual Adoration, you and his family and friends go there and plead to Jesus, plead His Most Holy Body and Most Precious Blood, plead through the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus for your brother -- so many graces come from this (Remember the man whose friends ripped open the roof where Jesus was and lowered their friend down in front of Jesus and how Jesus healed the man because of the faith of the friends. You have friends here on FR and friends among the Saints in light.)

(4) You need a good solid priest for your brother with experience with this kind of darkness and despair. Many times priests of the Institute of Christ the King and the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter are well-prepared for these situations and at least know who to turn to. You have already been given advice along these lines already, but I wanted to mention those two.

Also, Maronite Catholic priests and other small Eastern rite Catholic priests like the Ethiopian rite Catholics and the Armenian rite Catholics -- but expecially the Maronites are well trained and know how to intervene and handle a case of spiritual or demonic trouble. Go to the Maronite priests. sandyeggo and NYer would surely help you via Freepmail with that.

For my part, I will remember your brother in the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy and in the Rosary and when I make my Communion on Holy Thursday. Remember St. Faustina's prayer which she received from the Lord, and pray it especially when most afraid or discouraged,

JESUS, I TRUST IN YOU

[no more apples]

Pray the prayer that never fails.

"Father in heaven,THY WILL BE DONE. Amen"

I will pray this for your brother. Keep us posted. God bless you.

[Caravaggio]

Thanks for all the prayers and advice here.

You said, "most (and I mean most) people who want to seriously suicide, do it. They don't tell anyone. Your brother is pleading for help."

The thing is, he DIDN'T tell me. I only found out through someone he confided in and he doesn't WANT anyone else to know. So I don't know if he falls into that category of "crying for help". He sees suicide as a pragmatic decision. He sees it as a last resort to his life not working out the way he wanted it.

Not only that, he lives in California and I live on the other side of the world. So it's difficult to talk to him even if I WANTED to. No-one has given him any religious advice for years because he absolutely refuses to listen.

I'm sorry if I gave the wrong idea about him having a demon - I don't know for sure. I just panicked and wrote that cos I know he dabbled in that in the past and I couldn't see any logical explanation for him wanting to kill himself other than a diabolical reason, especially since doing all those sorts of things provides an opening for a demon to enter into this world.

He doesn't see himself as sick so he wont see a psychiatrist. He won't listen to ANY advice! I feel like there's an invisible wall preventing words from getting through to his ears.

I know he may sound like a real jerk, but he IS my brother whom I love and I desperately want him to be saved, so please do pray for him.

Thanks so much. I really appreciate it.

[TotusTuus]

I will plead God's mercy for him. Nobody this side of the abyss totally leaves God. Under no circumstances has God left him. Your brother still, dimly, seeks happiness - his contemplation of suicide appears to him the only path to it. God is Happiness Himself. You who know him and his circumstances in a way that we online cannot, will have to figure out the best way to lead him to the path of this Happiness. At some point, God will need to enter into the explicit equation. Maybe then, for example, you could introduce him to the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and the story behind it.

Yes, seek proper Medical help first. Prayers for you and the rest of his and your family as well so that you will be strenghtened and lead to the wisdom and knowledge that you will need to help him.

[netmilsmom]

Is he married?
I know this sounds like a big step, but she may want to consider having him taken to a Psych ward. He will be there for three days, get some needed medication. Things may look better for him.

I will keep praying!

[French-American Republican]

Psychiatry is a business. What psychiatrists want to do is get people hooked on drugs.

What I say that this guy should do is tell his brother that suicide is an affront to the Lord and an embarrassment to his family and that he should think about others instead of indulging in selfishness.

[Cold Heat]

Get him to a doctor.

Don't force him, but keep suggesting this.

They can help, and it works.

Depression kills and it can be controlled and prevented.

[scottro]

I am in agreement with you, i don't know who you are or who you brother is but God is going to release your brother from this spirit of suicide. thank you Jesus, we stand behind You and take authority over this deceiving spirit and tell it to leave and never return , in Jesus name Amen.

[scottro]

I am in agreement with you, i don't know who you are or who you brother is but God is going to release your brother from this spirit of suicide. thank you Jesus, we stand behind You and take authority over this deceiving spirit and tell it to leave and never return , in Jesus name Amen.

[Palladin]

How are you in touch with him? Do you email each other? Maybe he can open up to you since you are far away, and email is a good way to communicate, without being "in his face".

Tell him you have a bunch of people on the internet praying for him and his situation. Maybe that will create an opening.

Do let him know that you love him. Call him on the phone, if possible, and tell him that you love him.

If he knows that one person loves him --with no strings attached-- he may respond, and change his mind about life.

In the meantime, he has my prayers.

[fatima]

Caravaggio,I will pray.Try to suggest that he visit the doctor,fatima

[Dajjal]

Prayers for your brother

[ahadams2]

1. Prayers on the way.

2. Demonic posession is relatively rare. Much more common (especially among those who have dabbled in drugs and the occult) is the condition of demonic *oppression* (i.e. bringing of demonic spiritual pressure from outside the individual).

3. Initially your brother needs psychiatric help, you don't mention how old he is, but if he is a minor either your parents (much better) or an external agency (not so good) may be able to have him committed against his will. Be aware that *not* doing so, is doing your brother no favor.

4. My impression from the other posts on this thread is that you're Roman Catholic (I'm not) so in that case you need to locate a Roman Catholic priest who has some background in dealing with these things. You needn't be looking for an exorcist just yet, all you want to find for now is a priest who has dealt with similar situations in the past and understands the dual nature (mental and spiritual) of the problem in question.

5. Perhaps someone on here can suggest a Cloister or Monastery known for their intercessory prayer practices. If you can locate one such and explain to them what's going on, it's sort of like calling in heavy spiritual artillery...anyway worth your consideration.

just my 2 cents on that,

[ladyinred]

Please don't just try to deal with this yourself. Contact medical help for him right now. I will pray with you for help for him.

[fatima]

OpusatFR,I had 3 bad ones and I work with a few priest's who had a few.

[fatima]

netmilsmom,Not true,Most do not.