[Avodah] Water bottle in the desert

[Zev Sero]

Rich, Joel wrote:

>> A fetus could be a rodeif. Isn't that based on the notion that being
>> a rodeif doesn't imply culpability?

> But once the baby has crowned, why does it stop being a rodef if this
> was truly a case of rodef(I believe it was K'rodef but not a real
> rodef is the answer)?

No, the answer is "min hashamayim ka-radfu lah"; death in childbirth
was seen as natural, and therefore not attributable to the baby.
It seems to me that in a case where it is clearly the baby who is
endangering the mother, then he is a rodef even if he has crowned.


-- 
Zev Sero                      The trouble with socialism is that you
zev at sero.name                 eventually run out of other people’s money
                                                     - Margaret Thatcher