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Dad links son's suicide to 'The God Delusion'

This is a good one. I came across this story on World Net Daily. According to the report a 22-year-old young man committed suicide and his family and friends are blaming a college biology course, and the Richard Dawkins book 'The God Delusion'.

"Three people told us he had taken a biology class and was doing well in it, but other students and the professor were really challenging my son, his faith. They didn't like him as a Republican, as a Christian, and as a conservative who believed in intelligent design," the grief-stricken father, Keith Kilgore, told WND about his son, Jesse.

"This professor either assigned him to read or challenged him to read a book, 'The God Delusion,' by Richard Dawkins," he said."

First, the blind belief in a God and religion has caused and are still causing the deaths of hundreds of innocent lives. For example, the deaths of innocent and sick young children have and continue to plagued our society because their "God-fearing" and "faith healing" parents have placed so much faith in their God; consequently and sadly, choosing to pray to God for help instead of seeking medical attention for their children.

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Tags: God, Religion, suicide

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Comment by linda wagner on November 23, 2008 at 3:52pm: My son just commited suicide on Nov.1, 08. When someone like a child commits suicide you are so grief stricken that you have to blame somebody. He really is probably blaming himself, but can't say it outloud. Maybe his son have a chemical imbalance like mine. They probably told him to pray about it and if he did it right it would go away. So much for Christians and their wish fulfillment based religion.

Comment by THE GRENADIAN FREETHINKER on November 23, 2008 at 8:59am: The biology class nor the book was responsable for this young man unfunate death. Neither his parents is dumb. I believe, as Vina said "The boy probably was culture-shocked" coupled, in my view, with the inability and fear to confront his parents, may have a tremendous effect on his decision. I quite vividly remembered as a young man while living with my parents; I decided to lock, in other words put my hair inot dreads, and the first thing I was told by my believeing father were thiese word "no locks in my house or you got to go". No question on why I wanted to do such a thing which I really wanted to do.

Comment by Deborah Mitchell on November 23, 2008 at 8:37am: Yes, John, you'd think that the parents would feel better knowning their troubled son is in a better place. I do feel for them, though, having lost a child, espcially in such a public way. But a crisis of faith doesn't add up to suicide. I bet the boy had many struggles throughout his life, not just this last bout....

Comment by John Bunyan on November 23, 2008 at 7:12am: Why are they so upset? If they believe in their God, their son must be there with him. Right?. Sorry, I have sympathy for their loss but not their hypocritial reaction to it.

Comment by Buffy on November 23, 2008 at 4:11am: Sadly the parents likely brought him up in the usual fundie vacuum where anything besides the Bible or "approved" materials/media were strictly verboten. Then he gets out in the real world and discovers everything he'd been told and taught was at best questionable and at worst a complete lie. It had to have been a serious jolt to his psyche.

Comment by HotMess on November 22, 2008 at 11:49pm: I bet his parents aren't telling the whole truth about his mental health status, either.
There could have been a lot more going on in his home life than will ever be known outside of his immediate family.

Comment by Andrew on November 22, 2008 at 10:55pm: To add t my previous comment, I doubt that a book is to blame. This book is available to 6,720,000,000 people. There has been no dramatic population decrease recorded since its release.

Comment by Vina on November 22, 2008 at 9:44pm: I don't think his parents are dumb. hey, they might be at a stage of grief. It's normal to blame. But personally, there is no one to blame. It was nobody's intention. The boy probably was culture-shocked. If only there was someone to help him understand more and accept rather than just giving him a book to read.

Comment by Andrew on November 22, 2008 at 7:41pm: I don't have a tremendous background in psychology, but still believe that it had less to do with his beliefs and what he was challenged to read. An atheist of a similar age without the proper coping skills and as Rikka mentioned, anyone to turn to, could find themselves in a similar position as this young man did.

The blame which the grieving parents placed can perhaps be summed up as dumb, along with the tabloid style portrayal of their circumstance, however, they are grieving and will no doubt feel a need to place blame. I sincerely hope that without announcing their atheism individuals or groups will support the parents' emotional state and allow them the time they need, and provide them with comfort separated from religion, that will allow them to realize that a book was not the reason for their loss.

I suspect, based on further reading about the young man, that he was going through a momentous life change and had other issues to deal with than religion, a biology class or a book.

Comment by Rikka on November 22, 2008 at 6:27pm: Pity he didn't feel he had anyone to turn to to help him understand and organize his thoughts.

Would this have happened if his parents had taught him that atheists are okay people?