{"id":68037,"date":"2018-12-06T11:15:17","date_gmt":"2018-12-06T18:15:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=68037"},"modified":"2018-12-06T20:13:45","modified_gmt":"2018-12-07T03:13:45","slug":"reactions-to-a-tragedy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/12\/reactions-to-a-tragedy.html","title":{"rendered":"Reactions to a Tragedy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"TNRB<\/a>
The interior of BYU\u2019s Tanner Building, where the suicidal leap occurred.
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

By now, many of you will have heard the very sad story of the suicide of a nineteen-year-old BYU student who jumped from high in the Tanner Building. \u00a0Some \u2014 and they\u2019re getting a fair amount of media coverage for it \u2014 are blaming the student\u2019s death on inadequate campus counseling resources:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

New York Post<\/em>:\u00a0\u201cCollege student\u2019s suicide blamed on \u2018overbooked\u2019 counseling center\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know if the complaints cited in that article have any merit. \u00a0I have no idea how BYU\u2019s counseling services compare (in terms of budget and numbers and availability of counselors) to those offered at other colleges and universities. \u00a0I have no opinion on that question, except to say that it\u2019s probably unfair \u2014 and it\u2019s usually quite unkind \u2014 to blame a suicide on anybody. \u00a0Suicide has complex causes, it\u2019s not always somebody\u2019s \u201cfault,\u201d and there is no realistic way to prevent it in every instance. \u00a0Could additional counselors have made a difference in this case? \u00a0Maybe. \u00a0Maybe not.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

If this case indicates that improvements should be made, then, if they can be made, they should be made. \u00a0We often see where changes need to be effected only when a serious problem arises or something very wrong happens; that\u2019s part of life in an imperfect, fallen world.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In my own limited experience with the counseling resources available from the Church \u2014 as the bishop of a singles ward adjacent to the campus of Utah Valley University, I referred several members of my ward for professional counseling and the Church often picked up the tab for it \u2014 I was satisfied with the help that they provided. \u00a0In at least one or two cases, if memory doesn\u2019t deceive, I sent members of my ward over to the John Taylor Comprehensive Clinic at BYU.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, a few exceptionally harsh critics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints<\/a> are seeking to weaponize this tragic incident against the Church and its university, contending \u2014 for example \u2014 that this young woman\u2019s suicide demonstrates the utter indifference of Church and University leaders to the health and wellbeing of BYU students, which follows from the greedy and mercenary character of both BYU and its ecclesiastical sponsor.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

That claim is grossly unjust and exploitative.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In any event, I thought that some might be interested in reading a response from BYU Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) to Monday\u2019s suicide. \u00a0It can be found here:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

https:\/\/caps.byu.edu<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And here is a link describing the services offered by CAPS:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

https:\/\/caps.byu.edu\/services<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 By now, many of you will have heard the very sad story of the suicide of a nineteen-year-old BYU student who jumped from high in the Tanner Building. \u00a0Some \u2014 and they\u2019re getting a fair amount of media coverage for it \u2014 are blaming the student\u2019s death on inadequate campus counseling resources: \u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nReactions to a Tragedy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"    By now, many of you will have heard the very sad story of the suicide of a nineteen-year-old BYU student who jumped from high in the Tanner\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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