Organ Donation & Pascal's Wager

I've always felt very conflicted about the idea of donating my organs when I die.

• On the one hand, it's entirely in accordance with my values. I strive to help anyone I can in any way I can, whenever possible — even in death.
• On the other hand, despite having lapsed in my Judaism — I think a lot about Pascal's Wager. ¹

Pascal contends that a rational person should adopt a lifestyle consistent with the existence of God and should strive to believe in God. The reasoning for this stance involves the potential outcomes: if God does not exist, the believer incurs only finite losses, potentially sacrificing certain pleasures and luxuries; if God does exist, the believer stands to gain immeasurably, as represented for example by an eternity in Heaven in Abrahamic tradition, while simultaneously avoiding boundless losses associated with an eternity in Hell.

— Wikipedia

While I don't really believe in an afterlife, the cost of being wrong is existentially concerning. Am I willing to give up an eternity with loved ones, or risk damnation, to do something I believe is right? Not exactly an exciting prospect.

I've struggled with this paradox for decades, and I finally decided to ask ChatGPT:

Based on the most common interpretations of the bible: are Jews able to donate their organs, or is that considered body mutilation along the lines of piercings and tattoos?

It turns out that what I learned as a child is no longer considered gospel. I did my own independent research (because you gotta fact check AI), which led me to learn that donating your organs isn't a sin — in fact it's considered a mitzvah.

While the Jewish faith has moved towards not only accepting but encouraging organ donation, the Jewish community is largely unaware of their faith leaders’ position.

It’s understandable, he says, since for a long time organ donation was frowned upon by Jewish leaders. The body has always been considered a sacred vessel for the soul, but contemporary leaders now see organ donation not as a desecration of that vessel but as a way to give life to another human being. And that, says Rabbi Arnowitz, is the most sacred Jewish tenet of all.

The Jewish perspective on organ donation has done a 180 and, as 3,000 year old traditions confront a modern world, it’s not just an allowable practice. It’s a mitzvah—a positive work that’s so necessary as to be mandatory.

— From Forbidden To Mitzvah: The Jewish Perspective On Organ Donation

So if you're a person who was raised with the same belief I was — that you can't donate your organs in accordance with Jewish law — this news is for you. Go ahead and do one final mitzvah ² with what time you have left.

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