On One Foot
IS IT JEWISH TO OWN A GUN? Just like Hillel’s student, we all have complex questions that we want answered as simply as possible. Here, we consider a question of contemporary relevance and explore how sources both classical and modern address it. by AVI FINEGOLD
THE RECENT RISE in antisemitism has some Jews ask- ing themselves if purchasing a gun that could be used to defend themselves and their families would be a good idea. Yes, even in Canada: colleagues have shared with me that groups of congregants have been organizing gun owner- ship and training groups. The presence, or absence, of guns in any given environment is not necessarily an indicator of the relative level of safety: Israel is a country where guns are everywhere, and yet the training that almost every
Israeli gets when they go through the IDF, as well as the strict controls on guns outside of a military context, mean that the number of gun-related deaths per capita is still quite low. On the other hand, Americans have fairly easy access to guns, and how safe that makes them depends on who you ask. How does Judaism view gun ownership and use? Should synagogues and other public places have armed guards? Is it ethical to hunt with a rifle? How might the existing Jew- ish values around guns apply in a contemporary context?
BABYLONIAN TALMUD BERACHOT 58A If one comes to kill you, kill him first.
LEVITICUS 18:15, DEUTERONOMY 4:15, 30:19 · You shall keep My statutes and My laws, which a person shall do and live by them. · And you shall be very watchful of yourselves … · Life and death I set before you, the blessing and the curse, and you shall choose life so that you may live. … 1 THE VERSE IN LEVITICUS becomes the main source in the Talmud for the prin- ciple of pikuach nefesh, that saving a life is paramount and supersedes almost all other commandments. The other verses have been used by rabbis throughout history to demon- strate that maintaining life and health are Jewish values. It is these values that need to shape our thinking around guns. How do we balance our ability to save our lives, and the lives of those around us, with the potential public health issue that comes with guns be- ing a part of society?
2 THIS FAMOUS PASSAGE from the Talmud sets the baseline for justifying self-defence: if your life is in danger, you should not hesitate to kill an assailant in order to save your own life.
RABBI JOSEPH KARO, SHULCHAN ARUCH , CHOSHEN MISHPAT 409:3 It is forbidden to raise a vicious dog unless it is bound with iron chains and tied with them. And in a city adjacent to the border, it is permitted to raise it and tie it during the day and release it at night.
36 SPRING 2026
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