You Are Not

IT'S NOT
YOUR FAULT!

To Clone Or
Not To Clone?

ALONE?

DOMESTIC
ABUSE...

• Is the single greatest
cause of injury to
women
• Is rarely isolated
• Threatens the lives of
millions of women,
children and men
every day

A renowned medical ethicist
provides some food for thought.

eye color, height, personality, intelli-
gence and facial features?
Special to The Jewish News
"Should we create a taller basketball
player?
A three-handed piano con-
pinning a series of high-tech
certist? Or a supermicroorganism to
parables, renowned medical
fight disease?" he asked. "These tech-
ethicist Dr. Fred Rosner chal-
nologies could cure human disease,
lenges Jews to explore issues
but they could also lead to world
raised by increasingly sophisticated
destruction," he said, adding, "Good
genetic technology.
is often not pure good but mixed with
Asking many more questions than
some
potential danger." He pointed to
he answered, Rosner, the first annual
germ
warfare
as an evil example of
Milton M. Alexander Memorial lec-
technology.
turer at Temple Beth El last Sunday,
Rosner said as a
presented a Jewish perspec-
Jewish medical ethicist,
tive on cloning, genetic
he has been asked to
engineering and genetic
comment on many
sc -- .eening.
tricky questions, like,
He argued that on the
would
an etrog engi-
whole, genetic screening,
neered
with lemon
gene therapy and other
genes
be
ritually pure? -
applications of genetic engi-
How many transplanted
neering are permissible in
lemon genes turn the
Judaism when used in the
etrog into a lemon?
treatment, cure or preven-
And,
if we genetically
tion of disease.
grew
scales on a catfish,
While not a rabbi, Rosner
does
the
catfish become
expert on Moses
is
kosher?
Maimonides, the great
Dr. Fred Rosner:
But he did not sup-
medieval doctor and rabbi,
Meditations on genetic ply the solutions for
and serves as director of the
technology.
these riddles.
Department of Medicine at
"I realize I'm asking
Queens Hospital Center in
more
questions
than
giving answers. I
Jamaica, New York. He is also an
came
here
to
sensitize
you to the ques-
authority on medical ethics, and the
tions.
We
have
to
identify
the ques-
author of six books on Jewish medial
tions
before
we
can
get
to
the
answers.
ethics.
These
are
the
questions
rabbis
and
' Rosner explained that the basis for
scholars are grappling with today,"
most rabbinical ruling on the permis-
Rosner said.
sibility of genetic engineering and
While in general, genetic engineer-
gene therapy is whether it helps
ing
and therapy does not violate
humankind.
Halachah
(Jewish law) by undermin-
"If Tay Sachs disease, diabetes,
ing
God's
creation of the world, any
hemophilia, cystic fibrosis, Hunting-
attempt
to
clone a human being
ton's disease or other genetic diseases
would
be
prohibited
in Judaism, he
can be cured or prevented by gene
said.
sOrgery, it is certainly halachically
"I was once asked, (If a computer
permitted. Such genetic manipula-
could be programmed to open a
tion is not considered to be a viola-
prayer book, lay tefillin and pray,
tion of God's natural law, but a legit-
could it be counted in a minyan?' I'd
imate implementation of the biblical
have to say the answer is no. It must
mandate to heal," he told the audi-
have a Jewish soul."
ence.
But should these techniques be
allowed to alter human traits such as

AMY MINDELL

S

❑

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