Community Magazine July 2012

1 WHY MUST ONE ACCORD SPECIAL HONOR TO KOHANIM? The Gemara (Gittin 59b) infers from a verse in Parashat Emor (Vayikra 21:8), “ VeKidashto ki et lehem Elokecha hu makriv – You shall sanctify him because he brings the sacrifices to your Gd,” that we must “sanctify” the Kohen by granting him honor. The reason for this missva, according to the Rambam ( Sefer Hamissvot , missva 32), is that since Hashem chose the Kohanim to perform the service in the Bet Hamikdash and offer the korbanot , they are, in essence, Gd’s emissaries, and thus when one honors a Kohen he is honoring Hashem. 2 WHAT IS ENTAILED IN HONORING A KOHEN? The Gemara explains that honor is accorded, by inviting the Kohen to be the first to give a speech or make a zimun (grace after meals), and offering him the best portion of a meal before others. It is a missva for a Yisrael to force a Kohen to maintain his status of holiness by avoiding contact with a human corpse, and by not marrying women who are forbidden to Kohanim, such as a divorcee. This is included in the command (Vayikra 21:6), “ Kedoshim yihiyu le’elokehem – They [Kohanim] shall be holy to their Gd.” 3 WHAT ARE SOME PRACTICAL WAYS IN WHICH ONE CAN FULFILL THIS MISSVA OF HONORING A KOHEN? At a gathering such as a sheva berachot , a Kohen should be invited to be the first speaker. He should also be offered to be the hazzan (cantor) and given the honor to ask any questions to a rabbi before non-Kohanim. At a meal, he should be offered the privilege of selecting his portion first. One who is scheduled to meet a Kohen should offer to meet at the Kohen’s location, rather than asking the Kohen to come to him. A Kohen who is in need of financial assistance takes precedence over a non-Kohen in the same situation when it comes to allotting charity funds. 4 ARE WOMEN INCLUDED IN THE OBLIGATION TO HONOR A KOHEN? Both men and women are obligated to honor Kohanim. A Kohen’s wife has the added opportunity to fulfill this missva by honoring her husband. The missva of honoring Kohanim does not apply to honoring daughters of Kohanim, since they do not participate in the service of the Bet Hamikdash . 5 IS A KOHEN UNDER AGE 13 ALSO DUE HONOR? The Magen Avraham ( Orah Hayim 282) rules that the missva of honoring Kohanim applies even to male Kohanim who are not yet bar missva . The Radbaz disagrees, but the Mishna Berura (ibid) and Hayei Adam rule that halacha follows the view of the Magen Avraham , that one must honor even a Kohen under the age of 13. 6 MAY A KOHEN WAIVE THE HONOR OWED TO HIM? There is a debate among the halachic authorities as to whether one may use the services of a Kohen who willingly agrees to forego on his honor and perform the service. Some authorities maintain that it is dishonorable for a Kohen to serve a Yisrael even if he performs the service willfully, and the Mishna Berura (175) rules that one should preferably follow this stringent view. The Rama (128:45), in contrast, allows using a Kohen’s service in this instance, and this is the view we follow. Preferably though, in such a case, the Kohen should verbally state that he waives the honor due to him. It should be noted that Rabbi David Ariab, in his book Lere’acha Kamocha (p. 452), writes that when it comes to acts that do not entail any exertion, such as passing salt at the table, one may ask a Kohen to perform this service according to all opinions. Furthermore, the Hatam Sofer maintained that although Kohanim were not allowed to forego their honor during the times of the Bet Hamikdash when the Kohanim performed the service in the Temple, nowadays, a Kohen may waive his honor. 7 WHICH IS GREATER, THE HONOR OF A TALMID HACHAM (RABBI) – OR HONORING A KOHEN? The honor of Torah is greater than the honor of a Kohen. As such, even if a Torah scholar is a mamzer (born from certain forbidden relationships), he takes precedence over an ignorant Kohen Gadol (High Priest). (This halacha was relevant during the times of the Second Temple, when the position of Kohen Gadol was not always given to the most scholarly candidate.) Thus, for example, the Gemara (Yoma 71b) relates an incident where the people were escorting the Kohen Gadol , but when they saw Shmaya and Avtalyon, the Torah leaders of the generation, they all left the Kohen Gadol and ran to greet these great rabbis. A talmid hacham should therefore be invited to speak before an unlearned Kohen. However, a very learned talmid hacham may waive this privilege in order to show honor to a Kohen who is a lower-level talmid hacham . In fact, a scholar who foregoes on his honor to give honor to a learned Kohen is rewarded with long life (Megilla 28a). RABBI DANIEL D. LEVY The Top 10 Questions & Answers on Customs and Laws oF D dicated oving emo y Hac a N i Ma a . Honoring Kohanim 74 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE