Sacrament?

This is coolbert:

Death before dishonor? Better to die free than live as a slave?

See the wiki entry for Masada. The First Jewish War 70 A.D. Ritual slaughter by the defenders when position hopeless.

"According to Josephus, the siege of Masada by Roman troops from 73 to 74 CE, at the end of the First Jewish–Roman War, ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Sicarii rebels who were hiding there."

Masada however not a lone instance as the practice of ritual suicide during a time of war. More common perhaps than thought with an international dimension!

1. Jauhar.

"Jauhar, sometimes spelled Jowhar or Juhar, was a Hindu practice of mass self-immolation by women, in the Indian subcontinent, to avoid capture, enslavement and rape by Muslim invaders, when facing certain defeat during a war."

2. Puputan.

"Puputan is an old Javanese loanword or term for mass ritual suicide in preference to facing the humiliation of surrender. Notable puputans in the history of Bali occurred in 1906 and 1908, when the Balinese were being subjugated by the Dutch.

3. Dance of Zalongo.

"The Dance of Zalongo refers to the mass suicide of women from Souli and their children that occurred in the aftermath of the invasion of Ottoman troops on December 16, 1803. The event is commemorated in Greece in the context of the Greek War of Independence."

4. Pilėnai.

"Pilėnai . . . was a hill fort in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Its location is unknown and is subject to academic debates, but it is well known in the history of Lithuania due to its heroic defense against the Teutonic Order in 1336. Attacked by a large Teutonic force, the fortress, commanded by Duke Margiris, tried in vain to organize a defense against the larger and stronger invader. Losing hope, the defenders decided to burn their property and commit mass suicide to deprive the Order of prisoners and loot."

Jew. Hindu. Javanese, Greek, Lithuanian. An international spectrum of players in the historical sense, the cultural imperative to die free than live as a slave!!

coolbert.