Podcast Episode

The Living Jewishly Podcast

Judaism and the Ethics of Abortion

Nov 22, 2022 Episode 98

Living Jewishly / Dr. Danny Schiff

“People have a variety of misconceptions about the Jewish approach — it starts with the idea that there is ONE Jewish approach.”

— Dr. Danny Schiff

Few questions are as thorny or polarizing in the mainstream as the question of reproductive rights — specifically regarding a woman’s right to choose. Religion plays a major role in this debate, with many pointing to biblical teachings as a reason to undercut the hard-won legal victories fought for by women, particularly that of Roe v. Wade in 1973. When it comes to Jewish Law, the question is not so clear-cut, and neither the ‘pro-life’ nor the ‘pro-choice’ sides will find easy or undeniable wins.

This episode of the Living Jewishly Podcasts is an instalment of What Would You Do?, a podcast about ethics in our modern world. In this episode, Dr. Elliot Malamet speaks with Rabbi Dr. Danny Schiff, author of Abortion and Judaism, Foundation Scholar at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, and the founder and president of the Museum of Jewish Ideas.

Tune in for a thoughtful and insightful discussion about Jewish perspectives on abortion and how the abortion question can guide us into the exploration of deeper issues — including the ability of ancient religions to meaningfully address modern ethical dilemmas.

“Informed Jewish discourse about abortion recognizes that no one answer fits all cases, and the discussion must therefore take these subtleties into account.”

— Dr. Elliot Malamet

This‌ ‌episode discusses:‌ ‌

The major misconceptions that people hold regarding the ways that Jewish ethics and law approach abortion
The limitations of relying on examples drawn from ancient source material — and why the concept of abortion would have been rare at the time of its writing
Whether evolving technologies influence our moral or ethical understanding of certain medical procedures

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Highlights:‌ ‌

00:51 Intro

04:09 Major misconceptions

06:22 Limitations of ancient sources

09:29 “Pro-choice” v. “pro-life”

12:21 Relationship between technology & morality

15:16 Forming a Jewish response

18:57 Beginning of life

25:13 International abortion laws & rates

28:48 Rights v. responsibilities

32:54 Our self-referential era