Euthanasia is the intentional ending of life based on compassion grounds. Some people or cultures believe that bringing suffering to an end demonstrates love. However, Orthodox Judaism teaches that life is provided by God, and He alone can take it. The orthodox Jews law and culture accords a life of a high value. Life preservation is the ultimate commandment for Orthodox Jews religion and culture. At the same time, their law acknowledges that an individual’s suffering should not be prolonged (Baeke et al., 2011). When a person’s time to die has come, it should be respected and allowed to happen. The dying process should not be extended unnecessarily.
Orthodox rabbis use the Halacha as their divine norm, which should guide Jews in the decisions they make and what they do in their everyday lives. Based on the norm, the Jewish law does not support or tolerate euthanasia because it shortens a person’s life. No one is allowed to cut short another person’s life or their own life. Most Orthodox Jews believe that all possibilities should be implemented to help ensure that life continues. As a result, they find it hard to accept that a person is dying (Baeke et al., 2011). They insist on continuing treatment even if it is not offering any benefits. They believe that hope should be sustained. Any action that hastens death is equivalent to murder regardless of the laudability of the intentions of the individual doing euthanasia. Most Orthodox Jews hold unto this belief hence reject euthanasia.
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Although most Jews support the hospice, many Orthodox Jews reject the idea. They consider it unethical because it involves refusing to give or receive aggressive treatment to cure a terminal illness in favor of focusing on reducing pain and improve the quality of life (Baeke et al., 2011). This belief is based on the Jewish laws, which require all effort to be made even when life can only be extended by a short period.
References
Baeke, G., Wils, J. P., & Broeckaert, B. (2011). ‘There is a time to be born and a time to die’ (Ecclesiastes 3:2a): Jewish perspectives on euthanasia. Journal of religion and health , 50 (4), 778–795. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-011-9465-9
