Judaism On Abortion

According to Aaron L. Mackler, abortion presents the greatest divergence between Roman Catholic and Jewish approaches. In other words, there is a significant difference in the way Roman Catholicism and Judaism views the practice of abortion. As a member of the Abortion in Judaism group, it was my role to find evidence for, and discuss key differences in the perspective of abortion from the Roman Catholic and Jewish perspective. By performing this role, I have become more aware of how abortion itself, the status of the fetus, and killing of humans is viewed by authorities of both these religions. In order to effectively compare the perspectives the Roman Catholic and Jewish religions have on abortion, to the class, our group believed that
it would be lucrative to focus on defining abortion, presenting the perspectives each religion holds regarding abortion, and then comparing the views of each religion. Specifically, the factors of how authorities of each religion view abortions, the status of the fetus, and acceptable reasons for abortions in each religion were assessed. Long story short, the stark differences observed in these factors, among the religions, provided lots of material to present, as well as features that distinguish certain perspectives of abortion as Jewish or Roman Catholic. Making the class aware of how the authorities of each religion viewed abortion was one of the top priorities.
This was a top priority because we wanted to first educate the class on each perspective, which would allow them to correctly understand the perspective each religion takes regarding abortion, and why it does. By doing this, the class becomes more exposed to other takes on abortion, and may respect the opinions of others more knowing why they might feel a certain way. In regard to the Roman Catholic religion, specifically the magisterium, there is an absolute prohibition against abortion. Put in another way, abortions, when directly terminating a pregnancy or destructing of a fetus, absolutely must not be performed. This goes against preservation of life, held by the Roman Catholics. On a differing note, abortion in Judaism is permitted, by Jewish authorities, if the life of the mother is at risk. This perspective is derived from the notion that the fetus has a lesser status from the woman, and that the fetus can considered an aggressor, which the mother has the choice of aborting as an act of
self-defense. The magisterium is completely opposed to direct abortions in which destruction of the fetus is desired. Though, the magisterium is not completely opposed to indirect abortions. Indirect abortions refer to the unintentional destruction of a fetus, resulting from a procedure that saves the mother, justified by the principle of double effect. The life of the mother is being directly saved, but the fetus is destroyed indirectly, being saved if possible. Removing a cancerous uterus from a mother, resulting in saving the mother’s life, but unintentional death of the fetus would be an example.

In Judaism, abortions are generally wrong.
Although, there are circumstances in which abortions are allowed. An example of this would be to save a mother’s life. A fetus has a lesser status than that of the mother, as it is part of the mother. The fetus is not considered a person until birth. Jewish authorities allow abortions for pregnant women at risk of dying. In this case the fetus is considered a pursuer that threatens the life of its mother. Therefore, the mother, a viable person with a higher status than the fetus, is allowed to have an abortion as an act of self-defense. One life can not be taken for another. It is important to mention that an abortion in Judaism absolutely can not occur after a head has been observed during the delivery. This is because the fetus obtained the status of a person, and an abortion would be considered
murder.5

In my opinion, the key difference between both religions, in regard to abortions, originate with the status of the fetus, and interpretation of the relationship between the mother and fetus. According to the magisterium, the fetus is a person, separate of the mother, with a soul anywhere before three weeks of gestation. Therefore, the fetus can not be murdered. In Judaism, the fetus is part of the mother, with a lesser status. When the soul enters the fetus is not important. Rather, what kind of soul enters the fetus is. These, in my opinion, are the factors that make the Roman Catholic and Jewish approaches to abortion so dissimilar.

In summary, the magisterium prohibits direct abortions, which is an intrinsically evil act, while abortions in Judaism are generally not allowed unless the life of the pregnant woman is jeopardized. The magisterium does allow indirect abortions, which are justified with the principle of double effect. Direct abortions are not allowed because the fetus is considered a person at conception, and killing is an intrinsically evil act. Indirect abortions refer to a procedure performed to a pregnant woman to save her life, which may have the unintended death of the fetus. Saving the life of the mother is intended, not the death of the fetus. In Judaism, when the life of the mother could be compromised by the pregnancy, the fetus can be considered an aggressor with a lesser status than the mother, and an abortion may be performed as an act of self-defense.