As gene-editing technologies continue to improve, the field of cross-species organ transplants, or xenotransplantation, continues to grow. Shlomo Brody examines the approach of Jewish law toward the use of such technologies, particularly regarding the permissibility of implanting pig organs in humans.

Last month, doctors in Maryland completed the world’s first heart transplant using a heart that came from a genetically modified pig. This was a breakthrough because the donor pig had undergone gene editing to remove a specific type of sugar from its cells thought to be responsible for previous organ rejections in patients.

Pigs have been utilized [in such experiments] for a number of reasons: they are easy to breed and maintain (albeit with some environmental costs); they are available in wide numbers; they can be bred under pathogen-free conditions; and, most importantly, they are similar in anatomy and physiology to humans.

In the Bible, the pig is singled out because it has split hooves but does not chew its cud, thereby disqualifying it from being kosher food. “And the swine—although it has true hoofs, with the hoofs cleft through, it does not chew the cud: it is impure for you. You shall not eat of their flesh or touch their carcasses; they are impure for you” (Leviticus 11:7-8). Beyond the prohibition of eating pork, the sages also decreed that it is prohibited to raise pigs in Israel or around the world. Yet despite the prohibition of consuming pork as well as the general taboo around pigs, there was never a ritual prohibition against gaining benefit from pigs.

Yesterday, the Iranian foreign minister flew to Geneva to meet with European diplomats. President Trump, meanwhile, indicated that cease-fire negotiations might soon begin with Iran, which would presumably involve Tehran agreeing to make concessions regarding its nuclear program, while Washington pressures Israel to halt its military activities. According to Israeli media, Iran already began putting out feelers to the U.S. earlier this week. Aviram Bellaishe considers the purpose of these overtures:

The regime’s request to return to negotiations stems from the principle of deception and delay that has guided it for decades. Iran wants to extricate itself from a situation of total destruction of its nuclear facilities. It understands that to save the nuclear program, it must stop at a point that would allow it to return to it in the shortest possible time. So long as the negotiation process leads to halting strikes on its military capabilities and preventing the destruction of the nuclear program, and enables the transfer of enriched uranium to a safe location, it can simultaneously create the two tracks in which it specializes—a false facade of negotiations alongside a hidden nuclear race.