Tamar-Abortion(+Jewish+Medical+Ethics)

Is abortion okay according to Halacha? At what point is a fetus considered a human being? What are some Rabbis personal opinions on abortion?

In Melachim Aleph, there is a case where Tamar is raped. According to religioustolerance.org, it is okay to get an abortion after rape, if it would save the woman from severe mental anguish (Whether the abortion would take place in the 1st or 2nd trimester would go according to halacha).

Genesis 34: One day Dinah, the daughter of Jacob and Leah, went to visit some of the Canaanite women.2 When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, who was chief of that region, saw her, he took her and raped her.3 But he found the young woman so attractive that he fell in love with her and tried to win her affection.[[|a]]4 He told his father, I want you to get Dinah for me as my wife.

In Judaism, the only circumstance where it would be okay to abort the baby would be if the the baby is threatening the life of the mother. In that case, the baby is considered equal to a pursuer of the mother who is trying to kill her. Once the baby's head is visible while being delivered, both lives are considered equal and it is as if they are both pursuing each other.

Halacha says "//...a baby...becomes a full-fledged human being when the head emerges from the womb//. //Before then, the fetus is considered a 'partial life//." So according to that, abortion would be okay up until the baby comes out of the woman's womb. The reason why abortion is not okay according to many rabbis is because it is a potential life, even though it does not gain 'person status' until birth.

According to //Halacha,// one is not allowed to harm a fetus and the fetus should be considered a human being. However, a person's life who is already living takes precedence over the fetus.

According to religioustolerance.org, it is okay to get an abortion after rape, if it would save the woman from severe mental anguish (Whether the abortion would take place in the 1st or 2nd trimester would go according to halacha).

[|http://www.friendsofefrat.org] At the Efrat organization in Israel, they work on saving babies from abortion by providing financial aid to families who don't believe they can support a child. ( I read an incredible true story and it was very touching and inspiring, but it was still a once-in-a-lifetime chance type of thing-- so it does not really change my views on abortion).

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Here are some possible opinions of when a fetus is considered a human being (we talked about in Gemarah): 1. At conception 2. At birth 3. When it reaches its second/third trimester 4. When the gender is determined 5. When the baby is fully formed 6. When the heart beats 7. When the baby would be able to live on its own (out of the womb)

Genesis 9:6 reads: "He who sheds the blood of man, through man [i.e., through the human court of law] shall his blood be shed."

Most rabbis also forbid aborting fetuses that have a birth defect, because they believe every life is of equal value. The exception to this is Rabbi Eliezar Waldenberg, who permits first-trimester abortions if it would cause the the baby to suffer.

My opinion: I'm pro-choice. I think a woman has a right to choose what she wants to do with her body and her life. Obviously I'm not saying that Abortion is a good thing to do or that it does not have its consequences, but I definitely think a woman's right to choose trumps the fetus that may or may not have "life." If I were of the opinion that abortion is not okay, I still would agree with Rabbi Eliezar Waldenberg, because if a baby was only coming into the world to suffer, why make them go through that?

I like this topic because it's controversial whether it's discussed in terms of Judaism or just ethics and morals. It was interesting to hear all the halachic explanations too.