“The Rabbi in the Vatican” to visit Australia for Bioethics Conference.
05 August 2019
World bioethics expert, Professor Rabbi Avraham Steinberg will visit Australia in September and will open Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital’s Bioethics Conference.
Prof Rabbi Steinberg is an Israel Prize Laureate, Paediatric Neurologist, ordained Rabbi and ethicist who in 2016 was appointed by Pope Francis to the Pontifical Academy of Life in the Vatican to advise on bioethical issues.
The theme of the RCH Bioethics Conference is Respecting Different Perspectives. Rabbi Prof Steinberg has a unique perspective of the diverse cultural, ethical and political issues at the heart of the ancient city of Jerusalem. At Shaare Zedek, medical personnel and patients of all races and religions work in harmony to promote health and save lives.
Born in a displaced persons camp in Germany in 1947, Prof Rabbi Steinberg immigrated to Israel, trained as a doctor and served as a medical officer in the Israeli Air Force.
He is the author of the Encyclopaedia of Jewish Medical Ethics and Director of the Centre of Medical Ethics at Shaare Zedek Medical Centre, Jerusalem.
Prof Rabbi Steinberg in his role at the Vatican often consults with the heads of other religions when compiling his work. The concerns he addresses are universal to all of humanity in our modern age.
The questions that are raised by rapid innovations in medical science are sensitive and far reaching and require expertise in both medical and ethical spheres. Prof Rabbi Steinberg addresses complex issues including stem cell research, pre-implantation genetic diagnoses (PGD), gender assignment, end-of-life issues, abortions and many others.
As technology continues to advance, the ethical challenges posed become increasingly complex.