Not on the level of prophecy, but I wanted to know what you think as a scientist and a knowledgeable person—do you estimate they’ll succeed? Do you think that, in general, aging is something there is no fundamental problem in overcoming, that it’s not some law of nature?

Could you raise a few points about the implications of such a thing? Briefly—even just a few headings. Would it generally be negative or positive, etc.?

“When man began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw the daughters of man that they were fair; and they took wives for themselves from whomever they chose. And the Lord said: My spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he too is flesh; therefore his days shall be a hundred and twenty years.” Isn’t that a source for it?

No. He decided to reduce human lifespan at that time. There’s no necessity to say that this was set for all of history going forward as well. The laws of tereifot also point to conditions that medicine today knows how to treat, and that doesn’t contradict anything.

With Heaven’s help, 9 Tevet 5781

And this is for Yehuda—

Already in the story of the Garden of Eden it is explained that the limitation on the length of human life is a decree imposed because of eating from the Tree of Knowledge against God’s will, and yet the early generations still merited to live hundreds of years.

Following the sins of the generation of the Flood, it was decreed concerning man: “therefore his days shall be a hundred and twenty years,” and later life expectancy went down to “The days of our years are seventy years, or if by strength, eighty years” (Psalms 90).

But sin has repentance and rectification, and about this the prophet Isaiah prophesies. A situation will come in which humanity will stream to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, in order to learn from His ways, and as a result peace and unity will return to the world (chapter 2). Later, “He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from every face, and the reproach of His people He will remove from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken” (25:8). And even those who died will rise in the resurrection of the dead, as it is written: “Your dead shall live, my corpses shall arise; awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust…” (26:19).

Two people merited not to die at all: Elijah the Prophet, who “went up by a whirlwind to heaven,” and about whom Malachi prophesies that he will come at the end of days “to turn the heart of fathers to children, and the heart of children to their fathers.” And the neighbor of Rabbi Eliezer Dessler in the city of Lod 🙂 Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, who devoted himself to teaching Torah and entered Paradise alive. It seems that love of Torah, truth, and peace are the recipe for eternal life.

With blessings, Ami’uz Yaron Schnitzler

And see on Wikipedia the entry “Telomerase,” about the enzyme by that name that prevents the aging of cells and allows them to be regenerated. An enzyme found in animals that do not age, such as lobsters, some turtles, and the Atlantic puffin. There is also an “immortal” jellyfish that over time returns to its “initial” state and starts its life anew.

In humans too, there is today a steadily increasing extension of life expectancy due to the continuous development of medicine. There are also genetic or acquired traits that extend life expectancy. For example, women live longer than men, and shorter people live longer than taller people. Low weight, healthy nutrition, and physical activity also extend life expectancy. See the article “Shorter People Live Longer: 10 Facts About Longevity” on the ynet website.

With blessings, Simcha Fish”l Plankton