The Beauty of the Talmud

Israel

Why Hunting is not Ethical

Jewish tradition has a poor regard for hunting as a pastime. 

Article appeared on Aish.com by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir, Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem

Q. Does Judaism permit hunting for sport?

A. Hunting has been a popular pastime since ancient times, and continues to be a popular sport today. Over ten million hunting licenses are taken out each year in the United States alone, showing that hunting is one of America's most popular sports. There is no reason to doubt that hunting is on the whole a harmless sport practiced by worthy individuals. However, it is necessary to acknowledge that Jewish tradition has a very poor regard for this pastime.

The first hunter we meet in the Torah is Nimrod. The Torah tells us:

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who was the first to amass power in the world. He was a mighty hunter before God. There is thus a saying, 'Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before God!' The beginning of his kingdom was Babylon, along with Erekh, Akkad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. (Genesis 10:8-10, paraphrase of Living Torah translation)

While the Torah merely states that he "amassed power," our sages describe Nimrod as a wicked tyrant who sought to usurp God.

The second is Esau, who is unfavorably compared with his brother Jacob in the following verse (Genesis 25:27, paraphrase of Living Torah translation): "The boys grew up. Esau became a skilled hunter, a man of the field. Jacob was a scholarly man who remained with the tents." As we know, Jacob became the patriarch of the Jewish people, while the progeny of Esau are often identified in the prophets with Israel's enemies.

The heroes of the Bible are generally herders, people who cultivate and nurture animals rather than merely pursue them. Abel found favor with God because of this pursuit; subsequently, all three of our patriarchs as well as King David were herders.

The Torah does not forbid hunting, and specifically refers to hunting wild animals for food (Leviticus 17:13, Living Torah translation): "If any man, whether of the family of Israel or a proselyte who joins them, traps an animal or bird that may be eaten and spills its blood, he must cover [the blood] with earth." But note that the verse is careful to specify that the prey is an animal that may be eaten; even in this case, the animal must not be killed by the hunt but rather must be ritually slaughtered like a domesticated animal. Furthermore, in this case the Torah imposes the special commandment of covering the blood. This is over and above the general prohibition on eating the blood described at length in the same passage; both have the object of ensuring that eating meet does not become a "blood-thirsty" pursuit, a danger which is greater in the case of hunting, even the permissible variety.

I believe that Judaism's approach to hunting was well summarized by the great 18^th century authority Rabbi Yechezkel Landau, who was asked by a congregant if it was permissible to hunt for sport. Rabbi Landau concluded that hunting would not be considered cruelty to animals insofar as the animal is generally killed quickly and not tortured. But he concludes: I am very surprised at the whole subject; we don't find any hunters [in our tradition] besides Nimrod and Esau, and this is not the way of the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. . . There is an unseemly element in it, namely cruelty, and also a measure of danger. . . Therefore, one who listens to me will dwell securely and placidly in his house and not waste his time with such things".(1)

The main considerations involved here are the kind of character traits hunting is likely to develop or express. Certainly there is a sportsmanlike challenge in the battle of wits and wiles against animals, and when hunting is carried out in accordance with regulations it may be harmless to wildlife. Even so, the ultimate goal is to kill the prey, and as a result the pursuit risks cultivating a person's tendency to cruelty or aggression.

Hunting can also be more dangerous than other sports, and as a result doesn't sit well with Judaism's extreme emphasis on the value of human life. Thus, even in instances where there is no specific prohibition Rabbi Landau expresses concern for cruelty and danger and urges finding a more productive pastime.

SOURCES: (1) Responsa Noda beYehuda II Yoreh Deah 10

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"Are you really a Jew?"

Shema by Primo Levi

This is the poem that introduces the Holocaust Memoir of Primo Levi:

If This is a Man/Se questo è un uomo:

Shema

Voi che vivete sicuri 

You who live safe

Nelle vostre tiepide case 

In your warm houses,

voi che trovate tornando a sera 

You who find warm food

Il cibo caldo e visi amici 

And friendly faces when you return home.

Considerate se questo è un uomo 

Consider if this is a man

Che lavora nel fango 

Who works in mud,

Che non conosce pace 

Who knows no peace,

Che lotta per mezzo pane 

Who fights for a crust of bread,

Che muore per un sì o per un no. 

Who dies by a yes or a no.

Considerate se questa è una donna 

Consider if this is a woman

Senza capelli e senza nome 

Without hair, without name,

Senza più forza di ricordare 

Without the strength to remember,

Vuoti gli occhi e freddo il grembo 

Empty are her eyes, cold her womb,

Come una rana d'inverno. 

Like a frog in winter.

Meditate che questo è stato 

Never forget that this has happened.

Vi comando queste parole. 

Remember these words.

Scolpitele nel vostro cuore 

Engrave them in your hearts,

Stando in casa andando per via 

When at home or in the street,

Coricandovi alzandovi 

When lying down, when getting up.

Ripetetele ai vostri figli. 

Repeat them to your children.

O vi si sfaccia la casa 

Or may your houses be destroyed,
La malattia vi impedisca
May illness strike you down,
I vostri nati torcano il viso da voi
May your offspring turn their faces from you.

Translated by Ruth Feldman And Brian Swann 

Italian-English

Yom HaShoah

Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance day, is a day that was instituted in 1951 in order to remember the Six Million Jews that were murdered by the Nazi criminals and their accomplices during the Holocaust. Two other days in which Jewish victims of persecutions are remembered are Tish B'Av and the Tenth of Tevet. On Yom HaShoah, one may say Kaddish for the victims of the Holocaust and light yahrtzeit candles.

These are just a few links related to the Holocaust.

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