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Assisted Suicide : How Can A Person Reach Salvation If They Kill Themselves?

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Another question Weber might ask about assisted suicide is: How can a person reach salvation if they kill themselves? In The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber explains that, “the rational organization of life on the basis of the idea of the calling. It was born out of the spirit of Christian asceticism” (Weber, 1930, CST pp. 307). This means that people live to fulfill their calling. Their calling can be their work, some accomplishment, or anything that they feel is their purpose in life. Since Weber believed that the purpose in life is to fulfill this calling, he might answer that a person can still reach salvation if they have fulfilled their purpose in life. He claims, “the psychological motivation that arose out of the conception of work as a calling and as the means best suited (and in the end often as the sole means) for the devout to become certain of their state of salvation” (Weber, 1930, CST pp. 307). By fulfilling their calling, a person can confirm that he has achieved salvation. This confirmation is the psychological motivation to live a purposeful life. He also pointed out that “people do not wish ‘by nature’ to earn more and more money. Instead, they wish simply to live, and to live as they have been accustomed and to earn as much as is required to do so” (Weber, 1930, CST pp. 301). People want to live their lives simply. So by fulfilling their calling to the required minimum for the guarantee of salvation, an individual will be content.

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