Is smoking prohibited by Jewish law?
GOLINKIN, DAVID
RESPONSA DAVID GOLINKIN In light of dozens of scientific studies proving the dangers of smoking, is smoking prohibited by Jewish law? And if so, why is smoking so prevalent in the ultra-Orthodox...
...Thus, whoever smokes transgresses the commandment to "watch yourself scrupulously...
...The Talmud (Berachot 32b) derives from these verses that a person must scrupulously guard his physical health...
...We hope that the ultra-Orthodox poskim will soon realize what all other poskim realized years ago: Smoking is lethal and is therefore forbidden by Jewish law...
...In 1964 Rabbi Feinstein refused to prohibit smoking "in particular because a number of great Torah sages in past generations and in our own smoke...
...A number of ultra-Orthodox poskim (rabbinic authorities), while admitting that smoking is not a good idea or discouraging the practice, have consistently refused to prohibit smoking...
...49-60...
...Are cigarettes any different...
...Niddah 31a...
...4) According to the Mishnah (Bava Kamma 8:6), a person is not permitted to injure himself, a principle codified by the standard codes of Jewish law (Maimonides, Hovel Umazik 5:1...
...Rabbi David Golirdun is senior lecturer in Talmud and dean of academic affairs at the Seminary of Judaic Studies of the Masorti (Conservative) Movement in Jerusalem, where he chairs the Va'ad Halachah (law committee) of the Rabbinical Assembly of Israel...
...Maimonides and the Shulchan Aruch who codified these prohibitions emphasize that these are merely examples and not an exhaustive list (Rotzeach 12:6...
...they thought it was beneficial and healthful.5 Indeed, one rabbi who heard from doctors that smoking was dangerous for "weak people" ruled that they should stop smoking!6 Furthermore, Rabbi Feinstein believed that great Torah sages are influenced by ruach hakodesh, or "God's holy spirit," and are infallible.' This belief was invented in modern times and is entirely foreign to normative Judaism.8 Rabbi Feinstein seemed totally unaware of the scientific facts about the dangers of smoking...
...2, (1978, pp...
...Furthermore, in the five cases described in the Talmud, the activity itself is innocuous (e.g., eating) or a mitzvah (e.g., circumcision) and the rabbis were willing to ignore some external danger by invoking the principle of "God protects the simple...
...On the other hand, halachic authorities who studied the scientific evidence ruled that smoking is absolutely forbidden by Jewish law.9 The Talmud says that it is dangerous to circumcise a child or let blood on a cloudy day or on a day when the south wind blows, but since many have trodden on that path [and not been harmed] "God protects the simple" (Yevamot 72a).10 Rabbi Feinstein and others extend this principle to the case of smoking...
...It is an issue of pekuach nefesh, or the saving of a life, which takes precedence over almost all of the mitzvot (commandments) in the Torah (Sanhedrin 74a...
...But the Talmud has already ruled on numerous occasions that one may not consciously place oneself in a dangerous situation because "one does not rely on miracles...
...354-355...
...Shulchan Aruch, Hoshen Mishpat 420:31...
...Those sages did not know that smoking was dangerous...
...Rabbis David Bleich, Solomon Freehof, and Seymour Siegel in Elliot Dorff and Arthur Rosett, eds., A Living Tree, (1988, pp...
...6 R. Israel Meir Hakohen, the Chafetz Chaim (1838-1933), in LihuteiAmarim, (1967, no...
...In other words, in case of a doubtful transgression of ritual law, rabbis rule in the direction of leniency, but if there is a possibility of one of the physical dangers listed above a more stringent rule results...
...Fred Rosner, Modem Medicine and Jewish Ethics, (1986, pp...
...71-81...
...Since many have smoked and not died "God protects the simple...
...Yoreh Deah 116:5...
...Hoshen Mishpat 427:10...
...If smoking is so clearly prohibited by Jewish law, why is it prevalent in.ultra-Orthodox circles...
...5 This principle has also been codified in the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh Deah 116:5), thus a smoker may not rely-on miracles and is required to stop smoking...
...28 (1979), pp...
...Furthermore, it is essential to refute his approach because he has had a greater influence on the ultra-Orthodox community than any other halachic authority...
...This ruling was codified by Maimonides (Rotzeach 11:4) and the Shulchan Aruch (Hoshen Mishpal 427:8...
...15, no...
...1 According to the latest Surgeon General's Report: "Smoking related illnesses cause more than one of every six deaths in the United States...
...306-308 and Pe'er TahatEfer, Jerusalem, 1988, p. 19...
...Indeed, Rabbi Feinstein himself makes a similar statement about cigarettes in his 1981 responsum...
...This analogy, questionable at best, may apply when the public is simple and unaware of the dangers involved, but today every smoker has been warned innumerable times of the dangers of smoking and yet ignores the warnings...
...If marijuana is forbidden because it destroys the body, arouses a great craving and serves no purpose, then cigarettes should be forbidden for the same reasons...
...For English responsa see: Rabbi Moses Aberbach, Tradition 10/3 (Spring 1969), pp...
...Rabbi Feinstein's position on smoking was one of the most unfortunate halachic decisions of our generation...
...363-375...
...First of all, it damages and destroys the body...
...R. Eliezer Waldenberg, Tzitz Eliezer, Vol...
...Finally, this principle is irrelevant because as we have seen this is not a new restriction...
...Marijuana is forbidden because it destroys the body, a fact that remains to be proven, while smoking, which is clearly deadly, is permitted according to the principle that "God protects the simple...
...If he had forbidden smoking in 1964, thousands of Jews who looked to him for halachic guidance would have kicked this deadly habit...
...10 The concept also appears in Shabbat 129b...
...146-147...
...He continues: "Furthermore, marijuana causes a great craving which is greater than the craving for food and the like which are essential to sustain human life...
...Smoking is already forbidden by the existing halachah and there is no need for any new restriction...
...R. Nathan Drazin in Leo Landman, ed...
...In addition, Rabbi Feinstein's approach to cigarette smoking is clearly contradicted by his approach to marijuana smoking...
...5 See, for example, the responsa cited by R. Freehof, note 2 above, pp...
...Smoking is an activity "which destroys the body" and is therefore forbidden by Maimonides...
...But smoking itself is lethal and the principle is therefore not relevant...
...Thus smoking is included in the list of things prohibited by our sages because they endanger human life...
...Judaism and Drugs, 2nd edition, (1973, pp...
...All quotes below are from these responsa...
...Noam, Vol...
...35 (1973...
...8 See, for example, R. Haim David Halevi, Aseh LekhaRav, Vol...
...49 (from 1964...
...8:3...
...In other words, we cannot prohibit smoking because many smokers will not be able to abide by our decision...
...2) In Deuteronomy (4:9,15) God tells the Jewish people: "Take utmost care and watch yourself scrupulously...
...Since the surgeon general's report first established the dangers of cigarette smoking in 1964,' more than 40 responsa have been written on this subject.2 The majority, whether Orthodox, Conservative or Reform, have ruled that cigarette smoking is prohibited by Jewish law, giving at least 13 reasons for this conclusion...
...Many people assume that Rabbi Feinstein and others refused to forbid smoking because of the Talmudic principle, "one should not impose a restriction on the community unless the majority can abide by it" (Bava Kamma 79b...
...However, none of the responsa on smoking invoke this principle...
...The most prominent one was Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (1895-1985), who wrote five responsa on the subject.4 Ordinarily, the Talmud discourages one from disagreeing with a prominent rabbi after his death since he cannot defend himself (Gittin 83b), but smoking is no ordinary issue...
...And if so, why is smoking so prevalent in the ultra-Orthodox community, which is so scrupulous about observing halachah...
...The introduction states: Seeing that keeping the body healthy and whole is the way of God for it is impossible to understand or know anything about the Creator if one is sick, therefore a person must distance himself from things which destroy the body and accustom himself to things which heal the body...
...The inconsistency is glaring...
...345-359...
...Therefore the smoker is consciously placing himself or herself in danger, which is clearly forbidden...
...155-159...
...3) In addition to the general principle cited above, many specific activities were forbidden by the rabbis because they endanger human life, among them drinking water from an uncovered barrel lest a snake had poisoned the barrel with its venom (Mishnah Terumot 8:4-5) and putting coins in one's mouth lest they transmit dangerous bacteria (Yerushalmi ibid...
...Smoking is a form of self-inflicted injury and is thereby prohibited by Jewish law...
...Lastly in his responsum on marijuana, he states: "It is certainly forbidden to bring oneself to a craving greater than that for food and for a thing which a person has no need for...
...This is, of course, irrelevant...
...6) Lasdy, some smokers claim they have faith that God will protect them from the dangers of smoking...
...But it is not too late...
...In a little-known responsum from 1973 concerning marijuana he stated: "It is obviously forbidden by a number of basic laws in the Torah...
...Hoshen Mishpat, Part 2, no...
...4 Igrot Moshe, YorehDeah, Part 2, no...
...9 See, for example, R. Haim David Halevi, Aseh Lekha Rav, in nine different responsa...
...Avodah Zarah 30b and Yevamot 12b...
...76 (1981...
...Six of the most cogent reasons are: 1) Maimonides' Mishneh Torah contains a list of activities to be avoided for reasons of health (De'ot, chapter 4...
...5) The Talmud rules: Hamira sakanta mei-issura or "Regulations concerning danger to life are more stringent than ritual prohibitions" (Hullin 10a...
...7 See, for example, Alan Yuter...
...YorehDeah, Part 3, no...
...Judaism, Vol...
...And cigarettes do not...
...24 (1982), pp...
...Therefore, even if one claims that cigarette smoking is not necessarily dangerous since not all smokers die of cancer, it would still be forbidden on the grounds of doubtful danger...
...Even in his 1981 responsum he compares smoking to "many types of food which people enjoy very much like fatty meat and very strong foods...
...Second, most people are non-smokers, so the majority can easily abide by this decision...
...Who knows how many lives might have been saved...
...4 (5750-5751), Jerusalem, 1991...
...Washington Post, September 26, 1990, p. A4) 2 Most of the responsa are in Hebrew...
...5 Megilah 7b, Pesachim 50b, Kiddushin 39b, Shabbat 32a, Ta'anit 20b and see Zohar to Bereishit 111b...
...The complete Hebrew responsum upon which this column is based will appear shortly in the Responsa of the Va'ad Halakhah of the Rabbinical Assembly of Israel...
...LasUy, a number of rabbis stress that the Talmud only invokes this principle when the danger involved has not been proven, but it cannot be utilized when we can clearly see that smoking is dangerous and that God does not wish to protect the smoker...
Vol. 16 • October 1991 • No. 5
