Q & A - WITH RABBI RISKIN

Question: In light of the American election campaign and the criticism aimed at Sarah Palin, I would like to know what the Jewish attitude is towards abortion. Are we adherents of the “right to life,” or do we believe that women control their own bodies?

Answer:

The Mishna (Ohalot, chapter 7, Mishna 6) is very clear in its instruction: “If a woman is not managing to give birth, the fetus is to be cut up in her womb and extracted, limb by limb, because her life takes precedence over its life. [However,] if [the fetus] is mostly emerged (meaning most of the body, or the head) then it is not to be harmed, since one life does not supersede another life.”

According to the Mishna, then, a fetus in its mother’s womb is not yet called a “life” (nefesh). The concept of human life begins only when the fetus emerges into the world.

(This position is significantly different from the Christian one, which maintains that the embryo is actually a human life from the moment of conception. In the terminology of the Church fathers, “ensoulment” occurs at the very beginning of the pregnancy.)

However, this does not lead to the conclusion that Judaism permits abortion so long as the fetus has not yet emerged from the womb. The Gemara (Arakhin 7a) teaches that it is not only permissible but even obligatory to do whatever is necessary on Shabbat (including performing activities that are usually forbidden on Shabbat) in order to deliver a baby: “Rav Nahman said, quoting Shemuel: If a woman dies during childbirth on Shabbat, a knife is brought (even if it must be carried from the private domain into the public domain, or vice versa) and the woman’s belly is cut open and the fetus is extracted.” In other words, one must desecrate Shabbat, if necessary, in order to save a fetus, even if it is not even certain that the fetus is alive. Certainly, if the fetus was considered as nothing more than a piece of the mother’s flesh, there would be no license in such circumstances to desecrate Shabbat for its sake.

Navigating between the above two sources, Rabbi Haim Soloveitchik of Brisk explained that even if the fetus is not yet regarded as a “life,” it is certainly a potential life, and it is for this reason that Shabbat is desecrated on its behalf. For the same reason, any action that will harm the fetus can only be permissible if there is a very important reason.

As to what constitutes sufficient justification for such harm, there is considerable controversy among the poskim. Unquestionably, the life of the mother takes precedence of that of the fetus. However, when it comes to other issues – such as genetic defects, etc. – an authoritative rabbi must be consulted for guidance. Each instance must be treated individually, taking into full consideration the fetus as well as the circumstances of the parents and the rest of the family.