‘Perspectivism’ in The Halakhic Debate on Abortion Between Moshe Feinstein and Eliezer Waldenberg – Relations Between Jewish Medical Ethics and Socio-Cultural Contexts (original) (raw)
Related papers
In the Beginning: A Jewish-Catholic Dialogue on Abortion
2016
As technological advances increase, the frameworks of our existence become further called into question. Contemporary bioethics still tirelessly grapple with issues regarding the end and beginning of life. However there is great need to extend beyond the horizons of Western secular ethics and be able to create inter-religious dialogue surrounding these issues. The debates on abortion often become forcibly polarized in public discourse which severely hinders the development of an analytical and dialogical space which speaks not only to the content of opinions, but to the contexts of historical, theological, and philosophical traditions which have informed and shaped the way abortion is perceived and handled by both individuals and institutions. This paper seeks to deconstruct the abortion debate within both Orthodox Jewish and Catholic tradition in order to locate the fragile points of friction and tend to the hermeneutics of each tradition in order to understand the way in which ethics is formed and deformed within them. In doing so a new dimension to inter-religious dialogue and ethical relations between traditions is formed that extends deeply into questions of embodiment, human nature, ensoulment, and the horizons of life and death as necessary variables to interact with in ethical reasoning across religious traditions in a pluralistic society.
Religious, moral, and legal rhetoric of abortion argument
International journal of health sciences, 2022
The issue of ‘right to life’ is a most recognized fundamental human right in all democratic set-upsunquestionable in both legal and moral spheres but it comes into contested mode regarding its absoluteness with an interplay of law and morality in cases such as in matters of ‘Abortion’ activity. The western Christian states especially the common law adhering countries have much perennial debates over the subject and the necessity of a comparative study of abortion laws cannot be denied for a better conceptualisation of the study over the subject ‘abortion’. The study of three western nations having common law system has been taken into consideration for the purpose of finding gaps and controversies.The aspect of the studyis to benefit each society from each other’s experiences for best suitability of the practice in different situations and learn from each other. For the better objectivity of the research findings some western philosophical arguments also been taken into account with...
Journal of Religion & Health, 1980
A practicing physician reviews the contribution of Jewish ethics, as it relates to the structure of Jewish law, to the issue of abortion. The topics approached include the status of the fetus, the relationship of fetus to mother, abortion and murder, therapeutic abortion, and the rights of the mother. The discussion describes rabbinic answers to abortion requests and is followed by a summary of the Jewish attitudes toward termination of fetal life. An appendix is provided, dealing with central aspects of Jewish ethics, the structure of Jewish law, their relationship, and a note on abortion legislation in Israel.
Abortion and Jewish Public Policy
Torah Musings, 2021
Rabbi Dr. Immanuel Jakobovits was the founder of the modern subject of Jewish medical ethics. His views on abortion, particularly regarding public policy, carry great weight. This article explores his views on public policy regarding abortion in light of Jewish law and thought.
Delivering a Difference: An Analysis of Orthodox Judaism and Abortion
This essay will examine the extent to which the works of Jacques Derrida can be applied to the Old Testament to justify Orthodox Jewish thinking concerning abortion. Due to the limited scope of this essay, only the verses Exodus 21:22-23 from the Tanakh will be examined. This essay will argue that these verses can justify Orthodox Jewish thinking on abortion; however, it cannot be assumed that this is the only interpretation of the text.
My Body, My Choice: Biblical, Rabbinic, and Contemporary Halakhic Responses to Abortion
2021
Since the Supreme Court grounded the right to an abortion in a constitutional right to privacy, legal and societal debate has continued around the status of a fetus in utero, a woman’s countervailing claims, and the interests of states and society as a whole. As American courts have faced an issue that intertwines legal, moral, and philosophical questions, so too the halakhic process confronts analogous complexities. The main line of Jewish tradition makes a much-needed contribution to the discussion of abortion. Without sharing the view that the fetus is from conception fully a person, it stops short of a complete dismissal of the value problem in destroying a fetus. However, whatever value attaches to “potential life,” the primary concern lies with the woman. She exists. Her voice and her needs must be heard. And her life, (no matter how slim her chances of survival), health, and mental well-being come first
J IMA, 2010
Modern secular bioethics has focused on developing a set of universal principles to guide clinical decision making. However, this ignores the important role of religion in resolving bioethical questions. It is imperative that health-care providers understand these belief systems in order to traverse value conflicts and provide the highest quality care to a diverse population. This paper focuses on the process of bioethical deliberation in Judaism, Catholicism, and Islam. Abortion is normatively prohibited in each faith and through examining how each ethical code allows for abortion when the mother's life is in peril due to the fetus, we highlight the value of unborn life in each faith. Orthodox Judaism uses the concept of rodef, or pursuer, to permit abortion in this scenario, Catholicism uses the moral concept of "double effect," while Islamic law cites the maqāṣid, higher objectives of the law, to permit abortion in this scenario.
The Problem of Abortion: Jurisprudential or Philosophical?
Islam and Christian - Muslim Relations, 2005
This article contends that the problem of abortion is essentially philosophical rather than jurisprudential. Although much debate derives from diverse, and sometimes contradictory,rulings by different legal systems on the act of terminating the life of a foetus and from varied responses to these rulings, it is necessary to ask about the reasons for these legal rulings and moral responses. Four contending theories of abortion, emphasizing respectively the concepts of sanctity of life, free will, value of investment and conscious entity, are briefly outlined and criticisms of each theory noted. Analysis of the logical structure of the theories and identificationof presuppositions underlying them confirm the claim that the problem is essentially philosophical, which indicates the need for debate in the philosophy of values and in metaphysics.