I grew up in the Williamsburg and Borough Park neighborhoods of Brooklyn. At my Orthodox Jewish day school, I studied the Torah and Jewish law. Our rabbis, many of whom had been trained in the great Talmudic academies of eastern Europe, always focused on the primary role of choosing life. In Hebrew this is called “Pikuach Nefesh.”
The biblical commandment is derived from Deuteronomy 3:19-20: “I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day: I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life so that you and your children may live…”
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