The traditionalist Jewish physician and modern biomedical ethical problems

Recent advances in biomedical technology and therapeutic procedures have generated a moral crisis in modern medicine. The vast strides made in medical science and technology have created options which only a few decades earlier would have been relegated to the realm of science fiction. Man, to a significant degree, now has the ability to exercise control not only over the ravages of disease but even over the very processes of life and death. With the unfolding of new discoveries and techniques, the scientific and intellectual communities have developed a keen awareness of the ethical issues which arise out of man's enhanced ability to control his destiny. In response to the concern for questions of this nature, there has emerged the rapidly developing field of bioethics. Jews, to whom all such questions are quests not only for applicable humanitarian principles but for Divine guidance, must, of necessity, seek answers in the teaching of the Torah. "The Torah of God is perfect" (Psalms 19: 8), and in its teachings the discerning student will find eternally-valid answers to even newly-formulated queries. As physicians and patients turn to Rabbinic authorities for answers, Jewish scholars seek to elucidate and expound the teachings of the Torah in these vital areas of concern. The present essay highlights some of the ethical issues faced by the Jewish physician who faithfully observes his tradition in all matters including his daily practice of medicine. Although more questions are raised than answered, the aim of this essay will have been achieved if the reader is stimulated to pursue these issues in the extending writings on the subject now available in English.