TORONTO - Last month, we looked at the low rate of organ transplantation in Israel and the road to legislation that aims to respect Judaism’s value of preserving life without risking the desecration of a body or the hastening of death in order to be able to harvest organs. Now we’ll explore how various streams of Judaism grapple with this issue.
 

The Halachic Organ Donor Society has the most interesting Web site I came across on this subject, starting with its mission statement: “To save lives by encouraging organ donation from Jews to the general population (including gentiles) by educating them about the halachic and medical issues concerning organ donation.”

The trilingual site (English, Hebrew, Spanish) includes testimonial videos from rabbis including one from a rabbi who subsequently died while waiting for a kidney. There is information about conducting one-day seminars and emergency phone numbers.

“If you need to immediately consult with a rabbi before making a decision concerning an actual case of organ donation then this is considered a medical emergency because you can save eight lives (www.hods.org).”
 

The Toronto Board of Rabbis has produced a brochure with 19 smiling faces below the headline, “We’ve signed our organ donor cards. Have you?” The text continues, “We believe in the Divine mandate to save life — an obligation first expressed in the Torah itself: ‘You shall not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor (Leviticus 19:16).’ We see organ donation as a new means to fulfill an ancient, eternal religious duty (www.bit.ly/jdon09).”

That theme is continued in a brochure put out by the Union for Reform Judaism, with background on the issue and an organ/tissue donation card. “Jewish tradition teaches that we are partners with God in continuing and sustaining the daily miracles of creation.

Organ and tissue donations are an extension of this partnership. Through donation, you have the unique and holy opportunity to bestow the gift of life and wellness from one of God’s creations — you — to another. With your gift, you are responding Hineini (Here I Am!) to God’s call (www.bit.ly/jdon19).”

The Rabbinical Assembly’s 16-page Jewish Medical Directives for Health Care includes two forms that deal with end-of-life issues. In regard to organ donation, four alternatives are presented ranging from “when I die any or all of my vital organs and other body parts be donated for the purpose of transplantation” to “I do not wish that any part of my body be used for purpose of transplantation (www.bit.ly/jdon14).”

For more on the Conservative movement’s views on organ donation, Rabbi Joel Roth’s responsum examines the use of artificial limbs, animal organs, and human blood, bone marrow and kidney donations (www.bit.ly/jdon15).
 

I was not able to find a detailed online analysis of the permissibility of organ donation by Agudath Israel of America aside from spokesperson Rabbi Avi Shafran pointing out that there is not unanimity on the issue (www.bit.ly/jdon10) and advising consulting a rabbi due to the complexity of the matter. (www.bit.ly/jdon11).

Writing in Forward, Elaine Berg of the New York Organ Donor Network quotes Rabbi Moshe Tendler, a professor of medical ethics at Yeshiva University: “The often repeated query, ‘Is it really permissible to desecrate the dead by removing their organs?’ is answered by the undisputed affirmation that the saving of a life takes precedence over all other ritual concerns...In truth, it is not a desecration! No greater honor can be bestowed on an individual than that of being a savior of as many as eight lives through donation of heart, liver, kidneys, pancreas, lungs and small intestines (www.bit.ly/jdon13).”

A look at the importance of organ donation wouldn’t be complete without acknowledging its impact on individual lives.

“On Sept. 29, 2005 just after her birthday, at the start of the Jewish year, my mom received the gift of life, a second birthday in the form of a kidney transplant. She had been sick for some time and had begun dialysis six months prior. On a fateful September day, while at a dialysis treatment, she was informed that a kidney donor had been found. We were shocked and overjoyed. The kidney and blood type were a perfect match. We were told by the transplant coordinator that this was like winning the lottery…On Sept. 24, 2006 my mother, Sara, turned 60 years old. This Web site has been up since then to wish her a happy birthday and raise awareness about organ donation.”
The name of the site: www.HappyBirthdaySara.org.
 
Mark Mietkiewicz is a Toronto-based Web site producer who writes, lectures and teaches about the Jewish Internet. He can be contacted at highway@rogers.com.