Customer Reviews

Birth Control in Jewish Law: Marital Relations, Contraception, and Abortion As Set Forth in the Classic Texts of Jewish Law

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This book was first published by Schocken in 1968, and remains one of the best resources in English for understanding what Jewish Law has to say about birth control and abortion. It's not just a simplistic summary or a laundry list, either! The author explains, in step-by-step detail, the various laws and how they were derived from specific religious texts. Unfortunately, the current hardcover reprint is a bit pricey, to say the least. I'd really like to see a paperback reprint to make it more accessible to more people. Still, if this is your area of interest and you can't find a used copy, then a new one is well worth the price.

Chapter One gives an excellent overview of the structure of Jewish Law, explaining the various types of canonical documents -- Talmud, Rashi & Tosafot, Shulchan Arukh, responsa of later authorities, etc. -- which is a great help to readers who are not familiar with these important post-biblical Jewish sources and/or how Jewish Law works. The rest of the book explores, in clear detail with sources given, such things as Jewish attitudes toward sex, Talmudic references to birth control and abortion, debates about when the soul joins the body, etc., ending with a summary chapter, "The Jewish view on birth control." Where appropriate, the author also compares and contrasts Jewish beliefs with those of various Christian groups. Considering that abortion is such a hot topic in the USA right now, this book should be in the library of every group or individual who wants to understand the Jewish view(s) on this important subject.

I would like to recommend to those interested in the subject of Birth Control the book Birth Control in Jewish Law: Marital Relations, Contraception and Abortion as Set Forth in the Classic Texts of Jewish Law by David M. Feldman.

I read the original edition a couple of years ago and I am now reading the 1998 edition.

The author does not assume a lot of Jewish cultural understanding. He defines the Jewish terms as he goes. Although this can be overwhelming, it is of great help to the non-Jewish reader. He also makes clear the source of any statement, provides rabbinic reasoning and the progression of thought as it developed through time and along liberal and conservative lines. The author also includes some limited information about 'christian' thought on the subject.

As the subtitle indicates, the book does not cover just birth control (the prevention of birth) but it includes all aspects of marital intimate relations and procreation. In the introduction the author states "Birth Control in Jewish Law, comprehending, as always, birth management more than prevention." I think the is a good clarification, birth control is not just about prevention, and is more correctly an issue of management. Choosing when to have children, not just when not to.

This book is a good example of scholarship - as opposed to much of the feeling based, superficial writing on this, and may other, subjects.