Relevant Principles of Jewish Law
In judging cases for organ donation, rabbis apply a range of Jewish principles and consider precedents concerning the donor. These Jewish principles include mutilation of the body, the risk of the medical operation, delaying the burial of the dead, the determination of death, and the duty to preserve or save life. Removing an organ from a body (live or dead) violates several Torah prohibitions. However, as a general rule in Jewish law, virtually all prohibitions are overridden (with the exception of murder, sexual morality and idolatry) if there’s the potential of immediately saving someone’s life. The conditions that need to be met to override prohibitions are: the recipient is at hand and his/her life is in danger, and the donor consented to organ donation during his lifetime.
Read more about this topic: Organ Donation In Jewish Law
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