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proof from the actions of Esther HaMalkah, who endangered herself 13 1 AnsweR to Question 3 13
when she came before King Achashverosh in order to save the Jews.
The most difficult question is the third one. Is it permissible to be-
If so, when it comes to disabling a bomb, which has the potential come pregnant for a fourth time after having had three Caesarian sec-
to harm a lot of people, it is certainly a mitzvah for every Jew to en- tions, when the statistics show a thirty-percent chance of danger to
danger himself on behalf of others. Even in order to save assets, it is life (according to the questioner)? There is a lot of reasoning required
probably allowed. In wartime, even if the enemy is coming for “straw in order to determine whether she is allowed to place herself in this
and stubble,” it is like pikuach nefesh, because if they succeed in this, degree of danger.
they will return to kill people. Practically, it is probably possible to allow a fourth pregnancy for
Moreover, the policeman himself is in danger. Thus he is certainly three reasons:
allowed to volunteer to endanger himself in order to save lives. As 1. It is not certain that her life will be in danger, and if she becomes
explained by the commentaries on the Torah and in the Alshich, this endangered, it is not certain that she will die.
was Mordechai’s intent when he said to Esther (Esther 4:14): “And
you and your father’s house will perish,” and “Who knows if for such 2. If the purpose is to bring another Jew into the world, it is per-
a time you reached the monarchy?” In other words, your life will be missible to endanger oneself.
endangered either way. By entering the chamber of Achashverosh 3. A baby is considered a “great need”, for which one is allowed to
without permission, you will not be placing yourself in new danger. place himself in a limited amount of danger.
The first explanation: One needs to ascertain how to reckon with
1 SuMMaRy and Conclusions the statistic that thirty percent of women were endangered by their
fourth birth. Do we consider this a thirty percent chance of death,
which is a risk one should not take even for a great need? Perhaps,
1. According to the Imrei Eish, it is permissible for a person to since many of the women who became endangered did not die, we
place himself in the degree of danger comparable to when one should not consider this a thirty percent chance of death, but rather
goes out to war. It is possible that the limit is sixteen percent research how many of the women actually died as a result of the dan-
(one sixth). ger caused by a ruptured uterus. If the percentage is small, then it is
2. According to the Noda Biyehudah, one is allowed to place him- permissible to place oneself in a limited amount of danger in order to
self in danger in order to earn a livelihood or for other needs, up give birth to an additional child, just as the Imrei Eish permits going
to the degree of danger faced by those who sail the high seas or to war, and the Noda Biyehudah allows a poor man to hunt wild ani-
hunt wild animals. mals for his livelihood.
The Avnei Nezer discusses (Yoreh De’ah, Vol. 2 #325) the case of
3. A policeman is allowed to place himself in real danger because a baby whose life was endangered by circumcision. With the kind-
when lives are in danger, it is permissible for a person to endan- ness of Hashem, he recovered. The same thing happened when his
ger oneself. This is especially so when the policeman himself next brother was circumcised. When a third child was born to the
is also in danger, along with the rest of the public. He is even family, the Avnei Nezer was asked whether or not it is permissible
allowed to endanger himself in order to save assets. to circumcise him. Perhaps, just as if two brothers died as a result
374 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein Undertaking danger in order to save a life 2 375
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