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Da’at Torah Post Argues Limited Permission to Destroy Fetus Conceived in Adultery

The author cites responsa with mystical sources to claim a narrow exception to the traditional prohibition.

Overview

  • Quoting a responsum that saw no difference between married and unmarried pregnancies, the post asserts a significant distinction for a case involving an adulterous married woman and advances a lenient view in that scenario.
  • The argument claims that an adulterous mother is judged as a bat ketala in heaven, which reduces protections for the in‑utero offspring conceived through the forbidden act.
  • Drawing on Talmud Arachin and the concept of a fetus as part of the mother’s body, the author contends the fetus shares her liability before birth.
  • The post acknowledges broader rabbinic and Kabbalistic sources, including the Zohar, that maintain a general prohibition on destroying a legitimate fetus, framing the leniency as narrowly confined.
  • Internal objections are noted that limit analogies and question permissibility where the fetus did not aid in the sin or where the mother is not subject to human‑court capital liability.