Criminal Law
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Difference Between Murder and Killing
The death penalty does not fit under the commandment “You shall not murder.” I have understood that murder and killing are two different words in Hebrew, with the word “murder” being used in instances such as Cain and Abel, and…
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Rapist Must Marry the Victim
Is it true that if a man rapes a girl he is obliged by the Torah to marry her?! Answer: It’s true…but the rapist is ONLY obligated to marry his victim IF she wants him to – in other words,…
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Capital Punishment
I am aware of the Jewish law regarding the death penalty i.e. that a person must be judged by 23 judges and that the person must be warned by two witnesses of the prohibition and the punishment. I am wondering…
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Capital Punishment in Practice?
I heard a radio host say that the punishments mentioned in Leviticus (e.g. stoning someone to death for some horrible act, etc) were only mentioned to show how egregious God thought such acts were, but that the punishments were never…
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The Rabin Assasination and Jewish Law
I have read that there are those who believe that the killing of the former Israeli Prime Minister (Mr. Yitzchak Rabin) was justified because he was in the category of a “Rodef” (i.e. a “pursuer” – someone whom it is…
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No Death Sentence for Cain
Since God required from the beginning that life be taken for life why wasn’t Cain given the same sentence? He was merely exiled – a punishment totally inconsistent with the rest of the Torah. Why? Thank you very much for…
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Achan’s Family
Why were the children of Achan (Book of Joshua, Chapter 7) killed for his crime? According to our understanding Achan’s children were not executed. They were brought to the valley to witness their father’s execution as were everyone else. If…
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Basic Values and Morality, Criminal Law, Judaism and Non-Jews, Laws of Damages, Reward and Punishment, The Jewish Legal System
Death Penalty and Noahide Laws
I was studying something which quoted the Talmud as saying that all seven Noahide laws are capital crimes. What do I make of this? Does Judaism say that a non-Jew is supposed to be executed for any crime, including, for…
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Gambling
What is Judaism’s stance on gambling and playing cards ? Is it allowed just for the sake of fun? Thanks for your time. The problem with gambling is twofold. One is that the gambler is not occupied productively which goes…