Our Gemara on Amud Beis discusses the status of a severed human limb, which when whole, transmits impurity similar to that of a corpse. There is a discussion in poskim about whether there is an obligation to bury such a limb, and these questions do have relevance in halacha, such as if somebody needed an amputation or suffered from an accident where a limb was severed. The conclusion of the majority of poskim is that there is no technical requirement for burial; however, since it still evokes a high level of impurity that would be forbidden for a kohen, it should be buried so as to keep it out of the way. Others add a more general requirement to show honor to the human body. So while it is not a strict requirement of burial in an absolute sense, it is the appropriate and respectful thing to do. (See Tzitz Eliezer 10:5:8, Noda BeYehuda YD II:209, and Igros Moshe YD III:141.)

It is profound and important to note what we hold sacred and what we revere. Ultimately, even a body part from a person who lives and is not a corpse is treated with dignity. We treat many living things with dignity. Aside from the basic Biblical injunctions against cutting down a fruit tree, there are even further developed customs that consider it to be gravely spiritually dangerous to cut a fruit tree, even under circumstances where it is technically permitted. We are forbidden to crossbreed species so as not to disrespect the natural order, and Ramban holds that the prohibition of slaughtering the mother and the child animal on the same day is a psychological placeholder and reminder not to consume meat with abandon to the point of causing extinction (Devarim 22:6). Even regarding food, there are detailed laws about being careful not to disrespect it (see Shulchan Aruch OC 171:4–5). What a culture chooses to revere says much about its own self-respect.

In the modern world there is much virtue signaling purporting to care about animals and the environment, and human rights. Yet when the tough moral decisions need to be made, oftentimes there is hypocrisy and moral laziness. Almost 1,000,000 abortions every year occur in this country, a small percentage of which are due to pressing medical needs. Even the original Roe v. Wade was a ruling based on the idea that the fetus was not viable. With our current medical technology, fetuses as young as five or six months can survive. There are few abortion-rights proponents that bother to make this distinction. No problem—let’s worry about the genocide in Gaza and ignore the genocide on viable fetuses. The halachic sensitivities and respect for so many aspects of living creatures and the environment is the real thing and not some fake hypocritical stance.

I’ll conclude with a funny anecdote. Years ago, while attending a family function, I overheard a dialogue between two relatives, one who chose a left-wing Modern Orthodox lifestyle and the other who chose a right-wing yeshiva lifestyle. As the modern relative noticed the sibling who was dumping all the garbage in big bags, the person snidely commented, “Oh, so in your neighborhood they don’t recycle?” The yeshiva relative replied, “Recycling is for people that have 1.5 children and a dog.” While this was a little nasty, there is truth to that reply. The modern relative indeed had only two children, and the other one had thirteen. The reality is that the secular world will see it as virtuous to have fewer children and not take up such a huge carbon footprint. But it’s nonsense. People are the most important resource, and that is not what one conserves in order to save the environment. There are plenty of meaningful and humble ways to use God’s world respectfully and not wastefully. True not everybody is cut out to have such a large family and do it well, and that certainly is a reasonable consideration. However, it has nothing to do with the virtue of conservation, and no one should act all holy about it.