Q&A: The Status of a Kohen and a Divorced Woman Nowadays
The Status of a Kohen and a Divorced Woman Nowadays
Question
Honorable Rabbi, greetings,
I have a friend who is a religious kohen and divorced, and he is looking for a relationship. The problem is that at his age, all the available women are also divorced. He is wondering whether there is room to permit him to be with a divorced woman for two reasons: a. he is over 50, and even if the Temple is rebuilt he will not be able to serve there; b. he has a physical defect (he was injured in the army). What is the Rabbi’s opinion from the standpoint of Jewish law? Is there any room to permit it?
Answer
A kohen with a physical defect is still forbidden to marry a divorced woman. Age also makes no difference. If he is a disqualified kohen, that is a different matter.
Discussion on Answer
Maybe genetic testing could help. Maybe someone in his paternal line was adopted at some point. If his paternal haplogroup is different from the paternal haplogroup of other branches of his father’s family, maybe he would not be considered a kohen.
Also, how can one know at all that someone who claims to be a kohen really is a kohen? At most, he has the presumptive status of a kohen.
Especially since it is known that there were people who adopted family names in order to get better pedigree.
I do not know of any kohen who can point to a direct and proven lineage to a kohen from the period of the Second Temple.
Although here, if there is doubt, one must be stringent.
Maybe genetic testing could help. It is possible that someone in his lineage was adopted at some point. If his paternal haplogroup is different, maybe he would not be considered a kohen.
Also, how can one know that someone who claims to be a kohen really is a kohen? At most, he has the presumptive status of a kohen.
I don’t know a single kohen who can point to a priestly lineage going back to the period of the Second Temple. Although here, if there is doubt, one should be stringent.