The Torah Perspective on Cloning

The Torah Perspective on Cloning

With scientific advances new issues pertaining to both the letter and the spirit of Jewish law arise, with little or no halachic precedent. The topic of human cloning is one such burning issue; as with any prospective innovation, it would have to be categorized either as a mitzvah (whether obligatory or voluntary), an aveirah (and therefore forbidden), completely neutral, or as something to be discouraged.

The Me’iri (13th century Talmudic commentator) mentions the possibility of chachmei hateva (scientists) creating an entity shelo mizivug hamin (not a result of a normal relationship). The existence of such a being, he states, would not be halachically prohibited; as a product of science, it would not be considered kishuf (witchcraft)—which would be expressly forbidden by the Torah. In modern scientific terms, cloning a human being would entail producing a person using the DNA of another person, resulting in something akin to an identical twin. Aside from the question of ethics, what would the halachic implications be?

At this point in time this is all theory. If human cloning were to become a reality, there are many  halachic questions that would arise: To what extent is a human clone a person?  May he be counted in a minyan (quorum for prayer)? Were a clone to be murdered, would the killer be deemed to have slain a human being?

There is discussion among poskim whether a creature created through Sefer Yetzirah—such as a golem—is considered human. We can extrapolate that if a human/spiritual being of Sefer Yetzirah can be considered human, a human clone would certainly be considered to be so. A clone could therefore be counted in a minyan and considered human in the case of murder.

Another question that arises concerning a clone is their lineage: Does a clone have a mother and father or other familial relationships? If yes, who would be considered the parents? Parentage is crucial in many instances in halachah—kohanim, for example, have special laws in general, and specifically pertaining to marriage; one is not considered a kohein unless his father is (or was) a kohein. Additionally, there are laws regarding forbidden relationships (such as marrying siblings) to take into account for all Jews. One historical precedent in this situation might be the creation of Chava, Adam Harishon’s wife, who was made by Hashem from her husband’s rib. Adam was not considered Chava’s parent or twin, so the cell donor arguably would not be considered a halachic parent or twin to their clone.

All these halachic issues would be even more complicated if a human were to be cloned from a combination of many people’s cells or from a dead body. Poskim would have to address all these issues   were human cloning to become a reality.

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Practical Halacha: One minute a day. By Horav Yosef Yeshaya Braun, shlita, Mara D'asra and member of the Badatz of Crown Heights.