3 September—Gone are the good old days when the Roman Catholic Church officially considered suicide to be a mortal sin. The concept of peccatum mortale, as your friendly parish priest might—just might—have put it, is especially fascinating in consideration of suicide.

Because a mortal sin can lead to damnation if the sinner doesn’t repent of the sin before death. And that’s something a suicide really doesn’t have the opportunity—or will—to do. It’s likely, in fact, that a suicide wasn’t even thinking of religious ramifications of the ultimate DIY job.

Keep in mind that damnation, like human greed, intrusive government, and taxes, is forever. And don’t forget that absolution from damnation, unlike a presidential pardon, is totally out of the question. As well it should be.

That was then. Now, of course, the somewhat more liberal and consumer-less-unfriendly Roman Catholic Church, while certainly not condoning suicide any more than murder, no longer consigns the taker of one’s own life to damnation.

So it shouldn’t have been surprising that one of yesterday’s morning emails from the good people at Franciscan Media appeared to suggest that suicide is—shall we say?—worth considering. But it was. Surprising. True, the insouciant guy with his head on the double line might have done better with his head on a railroad track. But why quibble? And the ties would have been uncomfortable.

On the other hand, would you even want to pose like that? And, judging by the condition of the road, the picture couldn’t have been taken anywhere in Connecticut . . .