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Priority in saving lives based on age

שו”תCategory: HalachaPriority in saving lives based on age
asked 3 years ago

Hello Rabbi,
Is there a place to take age into consideration when prioritizing life-saving? For example, if there is an old man and a young man in front of you, is it better to wire the younger man first?
Best regards,


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0 Answers
מיכי Staff answered 3 years ago
I think if all other conditions are equal there is a place for it.

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אורן replied 3 years ago

According to this, would a small child also be preferable to a young man, say 25 years old, because he has more years left to live? Or would we say that the young man is preferable because he is at the peak of his strength and therefore more vital to society than a baby who is currently a burden on it.

In addition, are considerations such as reproductive potential – for example, if there are two people, one infertile and the other not, and all other parameters are the same, should the one who is not infertile be preferred?

בים בם בום זוטא replied 3 years ago

Right now there is a person who is suffering and dangerous and needs to be saved
But more years of potential life while the world is debating and getting entangled in the question of population explosion
What is the virtue of the person with potential?

מיכי Staff replied 3 years ago

I don't know. If childhood is seen as preparation for life, then there is actually an advantage for someone who is already alive. He has already gone through the preparatory phase and arrived.
Childbearing potential can be a consideration.

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