X-Message-Number: 13925 From: "Dani Kollin" <> Subject: Judaism and Cryonics Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 14:41:32 +0200 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0015_01BFD545.77617A80 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1255" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit As an Orthodox Jew I was more than curious to see what my religion had to say on the topic. Suffice it to say I was not at all surprised by the response with regards to cryotransport, however I was surprised that the "authorities" were sufficiently well-versed to include and even allow its use in surgery. Dani P.S. Lexicon: "Halichic" means "based on law" (Halacha being law) Dear Dani; Cryogenics may be used, Halachically, in surgery (Parkinson's, cancer,etc), if the procedure is approved by the proper authorities in the Health Ministry (F.D.A. in the U.S). In speculative future cure of the dead, the application of cryogenics is problematic. Once a person is dead, there is no Halachic obligation for us to resurrect him, in the future. It is our duty to bury the dead; not to cremate, freeze, or place in a mausoleum - "Igrot Moshe" (R' M. Feinstein) Y.D. III, 144. People should be buried in the ground, to facilitate quick decomposition (which has a purifying effect) - "Tur," "Code of Jewish Law" 362. All the best, Rabbi P. Waldman The Aish Rabbi ------=_NextPart_000_0015_01BFD545.77617A80 Content-Type: text/html; [ AUTOMATICALLY SKIPPING HTML ENCODING! ] Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=13925