“I was suicidal and you welcomed me”: Framing suicide prevention in Mongolia through the lens of Christian hospitality (IN Navigating complexity in our world: Public theologies for everyday life, edited by G. Okesson & A. Allen)

Despite the preventable nature of suicide and the WHO’s call for national suicide prevention programs to be developed in every country, a number of countries including Mongolia have yet to develop a comprehensive program that operates the suicide prevention plan at the national level. Drawing inspiration from Mongolia’s traditions of hospitality and taking seriously the role of the Church within Mongolia’s public and very secular sphere, action steps informed through the lens of Christian hospitality are offered as a possible starting place for the actual conceptualization of a national prevention plan in which the Church is proactively engaged. By creating safe spaces through suitable infrastructures, valuing the inner dimension of people’s lives, and facilitating shared responsibilities, the Mongolian Church is able to step into the public sphere as a proactive contributor and participant in preventing suicide in Mongolia.