Martyrdom in Judaism

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Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Jews doing a kiddush Hashem, a Hebrew term which means "sanctification of the Name".^[1] An example of this is public self-sacrifice in accordance with Jewish practice and identity, with the possibility of being killed for no other reason than being Jewish. There are specific conditions in Jewish law that deal with the details of self-sacrifice, be it willing or unwilling.

The opposite or converse of kiddush Hashem is chillul Hashem ("desecration of God's Name" in Hebrew) and Jews are obligated to avoid it according to Halakha (Jewish religious law). There are instances, such as when they are faced with forced conversion to another religion, when Jews should choose martyrdom and sacrifice their lives rather than commit a chillul Hashem which desecrates the honor of God. Martyrdom in Judaism is thus driven by both the desire to Sanctify God's Name concurrently and the wish to avoid the Desecration of God's Name.^[2]

In Hebrew a martyr is known as a kaddosh ("holy one"), plural kedoshim. Thus the six million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust are known as the Kedoshim.^[3][4]

Jewish history is replete with many episodes in which Jews who lived in different times and places chose to become individual and mass martyrs.