Matters of Life and Death

About the Book

Incredible medical breakthroughs of today, like genetic engineering, in-vitro fertilization, and cloning, as well as the ability and choice to prolong life force us as Jews and human beings to struggle with the dilemmas posed by modern medicine. How does one decide which treatments to accept as appropriate and which not? Jewish law and ethics, as Dr. Elliot Dorff points out, which stem from the an...

About the Author

Elliot N. Dorff ---

A Conservative rabbi, Elliot Dorff was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1970 and earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy from Columbia University in 1971, with a dissertation in moral theory. Since then he has directed the rabbinical and master`s programs at the University of Judaism, where he is Rector and Distinguished Professor of Philosophy. He has written over 150 articles on Jewish thought, law and ethics, and eight books, including Varda Books title Matter of Life and Death: A Jewish Approach to Modern Medical Ethics. He is co-editor of the halakha l"ma-aseh commentary in Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary.

Contents

Table of Contents Preface Acknowledgments Part One Matters of Method and Belief Consulting the Jewish Tradition for Moral Guidance Fundamental Beliefs Underlying Jewish Medical Ethics Part Two Moral Issues at the Beginning of Life Having Children with One"s Own Having Children Using Donated Genetic Materials Preventing Pregnancy The Social Context of Generating Life Part Three Matters at the End of Life Preparing for Death The Process of Dying After Death Part Four The Communal Context of Medical Non-medical Aspects of Medical Care Epilogue: An Imperative to Choose Life Notes Appendix: The Philosophical Foundations of My Approach to Bioethics Notes to the Appendix Bibliography Index

An Excerpt from the Book

JEWS LIKE TO THINK OF THE JEWISH TRADITION AS A WAY OF life. That phrase describes the all-encompassing nature of Judaism, with concepts, values, stories, and laws articulating a point of view on virtually everything, from the most trivial to the most sublime. Depicting Judaism as a way of life also conveys its ever-developing nature, for just as the condi­tions of human life continually change, so too do Jewish views and patterns of action. In each age, however, Judaism must earn the compliment...