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מכון שלזינגר לחקר הרפואה על פי ההלכה

participation of a physician in execution of a capital punishment

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7 באוגוסט 2015

הרב המשיב: אחר

שאלה:

Shalom uvracha. I am putting together a shiur on the halachic analysis of whether a physician is permitted to participate in a government ordered (fair and appropriate secular court) capital punishment. I have been unable to find any contemporary teshuvot that discuss this, and was hoping you might be able to help.
Kol tuv,
A

תשובה:

In brief, gentiles are also commanded on a system of justice, and a gentile who violates one of the 7 Noachide commandments can be sentenced with capital punishment. (See details in Rambam Hil. Melachim 9:14)
Thus, a physician would be permitted to participate in such a court ordered capital punishment if there was a witness to the crime. According to some authorities, testimony of relatives and the criminal's own admission also suffice. (See Minchas Chinuch #26, #192 and sources in Frankel Rambam ibid.)
However,  circumstantial evidence alone would not suffice.
Regardless, a Jewish physician may not participate in a government ordered execution of a member of his faith.
Kol Tuv,
Meir Orlian

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הרב דר' מרדכי הלפרין שלום רב. בנושא כשרות לפסח של כופתיות מזון עכברים וחולדות, בנוגע למרכיבי המזון, אני מבקש לציין את הדברים הבאים: 1. תהליך

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