• Religion and Suicide in the Highlands: An exploratory study of the role of the church in deaths by suicide in Highland, Scotland.

Suicide is a spiritual matter. Spiritual distress can be felt by individuals and communities and often represents a "disconnection" from the main stream or expected norms that prevail in the community. There is currently a policy emphasis on community care and community building and a growing interest in how spiritual need relates to these trends. Faith communities are a fast growing research area. Workshops in Highland during the establishment of Choose Life found that ministers and other spiritual advisers were seen as having an important role, both in the prevention of suicide and in influencing community response to suicide. As a result, the highland Choose life group commmissioned a study "Religion and suicide: an exploratory study of the role of the Church in suicide events in Highland".

The main findings were

· Ministers and congregations want to respond to suicide, but are unsure how to do so
· Knowledge is limited and sometimes wrong
· Funeral and post suicide activity is important as an information giving community event which can either tackle stigma or encourage it
· Suicide is seen as a collective responsibility which requires collective solutions
· There is limited or non existent communication between health and social care professionals and ministers
· Ministers and congregations identify an urgent need for training in knowledge, skills and attitudes
· Faith communities are largely untapped community resources to support preventative work.

The full report of Religion and Suicide in the Highlands. by Dr H. Mowat and Professor J. Swinton is available for £5.00 plus postage from:

Professor John Swinton

The Centre for Spirituality, Health an Disability,
School of Divinity with Religious Studies and Philosophy
King's College · University of Aberdeen · Aberdeen · AB24 3UB · United Kingdom
Tel: Int code+44 (0)1224273224 · Fax: Int code +44 (0) 1224-273750
Email: j.swinton@abdn.ac.uk