The Chicago archdiocese has dedicated a memorial in honour of the Rev Charles Rubey, recognising his work supporting families whose loved ones died by suicide. The memorial, titled At Peace, is located at the Queen of Heaven Catholic cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.
The archdiocese states that this is the first memorial of its kind by any US archdiocese. Historically, the Catholic church banned funeral rites and burial on consecrated grounds for those who died by suicide until a 1917 church law was revised in 1983.
Rev Rubey, who founded the Loving Outreach to Survivors of Suicide in 1979, views the memorial as a sign of the church's shift towards a more compassionate understanding of suicide. Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV has also dedicated some monthly prayer intentions to people suffering from mental health problems and suicidal thoughts.