Mordechai Halperin is an Israeli rabbi, physician and scientist. He is Chief Officer of Medical Ethics for the Israeli Ministry of Health and director of the Falk Schlesinger Institute

Schlesinger institute

The Schlesinger Institute for Medical-Halachic Research was founded in 1966 under the auspices of Shaare Zedek Medical Center, imbuing its professional pursuits with the spirit of Torah...

 for Medical-Halachic Research in Jerusalem, Israel. Halperin is also a member of the Bioethics Advisory Committee of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities

Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities

The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, based in Jerusalem, was set up in 1961 by the State of Israel to foster contact between scholars from the sciences and humanities in Israel, to advise the government on research projects of national importance, and to promote excellence. It comprises...

.

Biography

Mordechai Halperin was born in Jerusalem. He studied at the Ponevezh yeshiva

Ponevezh yeshiva

Ponevezh Yeshiva, often pronounced Ponevitch Yeshiva, is a world renowned yeshiva located in Bnei Brak, Israel. Donated by Henry Krausher, it was originally established in the town of Panevėžys, Lithuania...

 and served as Lieutenant Colonel in the Israeli army. He received his rabbinical ordination in 1966. He received a B.Sc. in Mathematics and Physics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...

 in 1974. In 1987, he received a degree in medicine from the Hebrew University and Hadassah Medical School

Hadassah Medical Center

Hadassah Medical Center is a medical organization that operates two University hospitals at Ein Kerem and Mount Scopus in Jerusalem, Israel, as well as schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, and pharmacology affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.The hospital was founded by Hadassah,...

. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife and six children.

Rabbinical and teaching career

Halperin has taught at several rabbinical academies including the Rabbinical College of the Golan Heights, where he served as Dean.

Medical career

In 1986-2000, Halperin worked at various medical centers throughout Israel and served as director of the Jerusalem Medical Center for Impotence & Infertility. Halperin is one of the founding members of the Israeli medical ethics society and a member of many other ethics committees. He is the chief editor of Assia, the Hebrew quarterly review of medical ethics

Medical ethics

Medical ethics is a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of medicine. As a scholarly discipline, medical ethics encompasses its practical application in clinical settings as well as work on its history, philosophy, theology, and sociology.-History:Historically,...

 and Jewish law, and editor of Jewish Medical Ethics (JME), an international journal published in English - journals published by the Shlesinger Institute

Schlesinger institute

The Schlesinger Institute for Medical-Halachic Research was founded in 1966 under the auspices of Shaare Zedek Medical Center, imbuing its professional pursuits with the spirit of Torah...

. He is a member of the Academic Coalition for Jewish Bioethics, and has authored more than 200 articles.