Documents

Below are documents and articles about the halachic and medical issues surrounding organ donation. The HOD Society strongly recommends that readers review at least the first 5 articles, in order to best understand the major issues, especially the debate regarding the moment of death. Please note that not all articles listed below are written by halachic authorities.

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22 entries found.

1. Source Material (Biblical & Rabbinic)
   
   
2. Test doc(2009)
   test
   
   
3. Chief Rabbinate of Israel: Ruling on Organ Donation (1986)
   English and Hebrew
   
   
4. Living Will: Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) (1991)
   In this document one can see implicit acceptance of brain-stem death as death in that it supports heart donations.
   
   
5. RCA Resolution (1991)
   RCA resolution adopting its Living Will document that accepts brain-stem death as halachic death.
   
   
6. Religion Notes: Ari Goldman (1991)
   Ari Goldman reports on RCA convention where its members discuss brain-stem death and understand it to mean halachic death and support organ donation.
   
   
7. Living Will: Agudath Israel of America (Agudah)
   For latest version of Agudah's Living Will call 212-797-9000. To find a prior version for the purpose of research, you may find it in our "Articles" database.
   
   
8. Confirmation of Neurological Death
   This document outlines the Candadian Transplantation's medical requirements to determine brain-stem death.
   
   
9. Living Will and Power of Attorney In Hebrew for Israel
   Advanced medical directives in Hebrew.
   
   
10. Uniform Determination of Death Act (1980)
    Approved by the American Medical Association and the American Bar Association.
    
    
11. National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) (1984)
    Here it is amended in 2008.
    
    
12. Defining Death: Medical, Legal and Ethical Issues in the Determination of Death (1981)
    President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Ethical Issues in the Determination of Death, Goverment Printing Office, 1981
    
    
13. A Definition of Irreversible Coma (August 5, 1968)
    Report of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Harvard Medical Committe for the Harvard Medical School to Examine the Definition of Brain Death. Published in JAMA.
    
    
14. Sephardic Ruling on Brain-Death by Rabbi Amar (2008)
    Sephardic Rabbi Chief Amar writes that he and Rav Ovadiah Yosef accept brain-stem death as halachic death and support organ donation.
    
    
15. Israeli Definition of Death Act (English) (2008)
    
    
16. Organ Transplant Law Israel 2008(2008)
    
    
17. Future Market: the Sale of Human Body Parts(n/a)
    Author: Samuel Jellinek, JD. Published in: Greene Fund for Equity Studies Subject: Equitable Distribution of Human Organs for Transplantation.
    
    
18. RCA "End of Life" guidelines(2009)
    Numbers 9 and 10 relevant to organ donation
    
    
19. Halachic Health Care Proxy (revised August 2009)(2009)
    Rabbinical Council of America document
    
    
20. Israel Transplant Law 2008 Hebrew(2008)
    
    
21. Israeli Definition of Death Act (Hebrew)(2008)
    
    
22. Letter ADI to Health Ministry(2009)
    A letter (in Hebrew followed by English translation) from ADI requesting permission from the Israeli Health Ministry to recognize ADI as an official non-profit organization that allows it to offer up to 50,000 shekel to families of deceased organ donors. This download also includes the response from the Minister of Health agreeing to the request (in Hebrew followed by English translation).