What is the Torah View on Jewish People Getting an Autopsy?

Dear Jew in the City,

What is the Torah view on Jewish people getting an autopsy?

Sincerely,

Mark

Dear Mark,

Hmm. Interesting question. And honestly, we’re all surprised that this hasn’t come up before!

The answer starts with condemned criminals. You see, the Torah commands that an executed felon has to be buried on the same day as his execution. Deuteronomy 21:23 actually contains two mitzvos: to bury him quickly and not to delay his burial.  The gemara in Sanhedrin (46a) clarifies that this law is not exclusive to executed offenders. The point is that everyone deserves a speedy burial, even a condemned criminal. It should be noted, however, that burial may be delayed when it’s being done for the deceased’s honor, such as to acquire shrouds or a casket.

The next piece of our puzzle is the prohibition against disgracing the deceased, which is discussed in Baba Basra 154a-b. This is a serious prohibition that is not taken lightly. The Talmud in Chulin (11b), however, informs us that this prohibition is overridden when done for saving a life. (This is the case for almost all prohibitions, excluding murder, idolatry and certain sexual offenses.)

There’s also a prohibition against deriving benefit from a corpse (Avodah Zara 29b), but we won’t be diving too deeply into that aspect. Just be aware that it’s also a factor.

These are issues that need to be addressed. Of course, the reason for an autopsy is also a factor. Is the autopsy being done for the medical information it could yield? To train medical students? To obtain evidence for a criminal investigation? This might make a big difference in the outcome.

I did some research and the halachic discussion regarding autopsies is based largely on a responsum of Rav Yechezkel Landau, an 18^th-century authority better known as the Noda B’Yehuda. He was asked about the permissibility of performing an autopsy in order to acquire information that might potentially help save others in the future.

Here’s the thing: we’re allowed to violate prohibitions to save a life – even for the possibility of saving a life. But Rav Landau said that this doesn’t include the potential future saving of lives, which may or may not ever happen. To use a Shabbos example, you can grind medicine on Shabbos to save a life, even if the danger is only a possibility, but you can’t grind it on Shabbos because maybe some sick person who could use it might turn up. Same here. Desecrating a corpse to save a life requires an actual patient who will benefit from the action. We can’t override the prohibition because of a hypothetical future person.

And here’s where things get wild. Other authorities, springboarding off of this responsum, are all over the map. They agree with the Noda B’Yehuda, they disagree with the Noda B’Yehuda, they clarify the Noda B’Yehuda….

Rav Moshe Sofer, the Chasam Sofer (18^th-19^th century) clarifies that if there’s an actual patient who might benefit from the information obtained, then an autopsy would most likely be justified.

Rav Chaim Sofer (no relation; 19^th century) disagrees. If life-saving medicines could only be prepared on Shabbos, he writes, doing so for future use would be permitted. Therefore, he opines, the same should apply to performing an autopsy “for future use.”

Rav Avraham Yeshayahu Karelitz – the Chazon Ish (19^th-20^th century) – splits the difference. He writes that if a medical condition is common, and therefore likely to come up again, that’s like having a patient in need present and an autopsy would be permitted. If it’s uncommon, then we can’t justify treating the deceased disrespectfully.

Rav Eliezer Waldenberg, the Tzitz Eliezer (d. 2006) permitted autopsies for studying even unusual medical conditions, but not using the deceased as medical school cadavers.

Rav Moshe Feinstein (d. 1986) rules similarly to the Noda B’Yehuda’s original responsum, but for entirely different reasons.

These aren’t even all the possibilities. There are authorities who prohibit autopsies for any reason whatsoever, and even those who permit them for routine medical study.

Let’s get back to something we said earlier: that burial may be delayed when done for the honor of the deceased. Is using information gained from one’s autopsy an honor? How about gaining information that might help catch the deceased’s murderer? These may also be points to consider.

As you can see, there are a lot of moving pieces and the authorities differ greatly, largely depending on the circumstances. We take the dignity of the deceased quite seriously and we certainly don’t perform autopsies as a matter of course. But, as with the misconception that we don’t allow organ donation, to say that we never permit autopsies would be a gross generalization.

In the (hopefully unlikely) event that an autopsy is ever advised and you’re the one to make the decision, be sure to contact your local Orthodox rabbi with all the details for proper guidance.

Sincerely yours,

Rabbi Jack Abramowitz, JITC Educational Correspondent

Educational Correspondent
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