Halochos of eerev Pesach which occurs on Shabbos

The vagaries of the lunar calendar are such that erev Pesach coincides with Shabbos infrequently and with an irregular pattern. The occurrence of erev Pesach on Shabbos gives rise to numerous complications with regard to the eating of chometz and its disposal, the proper mode of fulfilling the mitzvah of the Shabbos repasts and preparations for the seder. The following is intended for general guidance. The individual readers Moro de-Asro should be consulted with regard to any questions which may arise

Is there a Right to Physician-Assisted Suicide?

In Part I, the author explains that it is the adjudication between the conflicting claims of individual liberty, personal autonomy and self-determination versus the preservation of life as a societal value that is at the core of the issue posed by physician-assisted suicide. In Part II, author makes the case against suicide, noting that liberty is not absolute and the state retains powers of sovereignty to curtail an individual’s liberty in the face of a countervailing state interest. In Part III, the author discusses the relevant case law relating to the withdrawal of medical treatment. Part IV concludes with a discussion of active suicide as distinguished from passive suicide. The state’s interest in preventing overt acts of suicide is far more compelling that an individual’s interest in refusing medical care

The Physician as Conscientious Objector

This Article examines the right of doctors to object, because of conflicts with the doctor\u27s own morals, to treatment requested or refused by patients. Focusing mainly on end-of-life care, the author compares court opinions allowing or prohibiting doctors to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatment at the request of patients or their surrogates

Learning from Everyone

In the teaching of writing and literature, it would be helpful to teachers and students to encourage students to overtake, use, and reuse one another\u27s various uses of language in essays and other course work. This essay was the keynote address at the Fourth Annual Colorado Conference of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning in Estes Park, Colorado in June 1998

Mitochondrial DNA Replacement: Moral and Halakhic Concerns

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), transmitted from mother to child, have their own genetic code that may cause debilitating genetic diseases. To prevent such unfortunate occurrences, researchers have developed a process enabling them to completely replace an ovum’s mitochondria with mitochondria contributed by a donor. Children born by use of this method have genetic material from both the mitochondrial donor and the birth mother; they are “three-parent babies.” Resultant medical, ethical, legal and theological problems are obvious. Moreover, this technology may pose significant risks to neonates born of such procedures. Certainly no person has the right to cause harm to a fellow human being. Although the intent is to prevent disease, the moral issue is whether, in the course of experimentation, it is ethical for a person to intervene in the natural order in order to generate a life that may be burdened by physical or mental defects that would otherwise not occur. Additionally, those procedures result in the creation of numerous fertilized ova that will never be implanted in a uterus. Many would assert that destruction of any conceptus is a form of abortion. Should surplus fertilized ova be indefinitely preserved in a state of suspended animation? Who is deemed to be the mother, the birth mother or the genetic mother? If the latter, can a child have multiple mothers? There is talmudic support for the notion that a person may have multiple fathers. If so, it is also possible that a person may have multiple mothers. Such a conclusion gives rise to increased probability of future inadvertent incestuous relationships. It is for that reason that Jewish law regards conduct resulting in suppression of parental identity as biblically proscribed