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{{Short description|Hereditary priest in Judaism}}
{{About|2=the Hawaiian religious practitioner|3=Kahuna|4=other uses}}
{{Kehuna and Kohanim}}
{{Judaism}}
'''Kohen''' ({{lang-he|{{Script/Hebr|כֹּהֵן}}}}, ''kōhēn'', {{IPA-he|koˈ(h)en|}}, "priest", pl. {{Script/Hebrew|כֹּהֲנִים}}, ''kōhănīm'', {{IPA-he|koˈ(h)anim|}}, "priests") is the Hebrew word for "[[priest]]", used in reference to the Aaronic [[Priest#Judaism|priesthood]], also called '''Aaronites''' or '''Aaronides'''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Aaronides {{!}} Encyclopedia.com|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/aaronides|access-date=2020-06-21|website=www.encyclopedia.com}}</ref> They are traditionally believed, and [[halakha|halakhically]] required, to be of direct [[Patrilineality|patrilineal descent]] from the biblical [[Aaron]] (also ''Aharon''), brother of [[Moses]], and thus belong to the [[Tribe of Levi]].<ref name=Leuchter2021>{{cite web|last=Mark Leuchter|first=Mark Leuchter|title=How All Kohanim Became Sons of Aaron|work
During the existence of the [[Temple in Jerusalem]] (and previously the [[Tabernacle]]), ''kohanim'' performed the Temple [[korban|sacrificial offerings]], which were only permitted to be offered by them. Following [[Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE)|its destruction]], it seems that most of them joined the [[Synagogal Judaism|Synagogal Jewish movement]] before adopting gradually [[Rabbinic Judaism]] or [[Christianity]].<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |url=https://www.openbookpublishers.com/product/1209 |title=Diversity and Rabbinization: Jewish Texts and Societies between 400 and 1000 CE |date=2021 |publisher=Open Book Publishers |isbn=978-1-78374-993-5 |editor-last=McDowell |editor-first=Gavin |series=Semitic Languages and Cultures |volume=7 |language=en |doi=10.11647/obp.0219 |editor-last2=Naiweld |editor-first2=Ron |editor-last3=Stökl Ben Ezra |editor-first3=Daniel |doi-access=free }}</ref> Today, ''kohanim'' retain a lesser though distinct status within [[Rabbinic Judaism|Rabbinic]] and [[Karaite Judaism]], including certain honors and restrictions.
In the [[Samaritans|Samaritan]] community, the kohanim have remained the primary religious leaders. [[Beta Israel|Ethiopian Jewish]] religious leaders are sometimes called ''[[kahen]]'', a form of the same word, but the position is not hereditary and their duties are more like those of [[rabbi]]s than kohanim in most Jewish communities.
== Name ==
The word ''kohen'' originally derives from a [[Semitic root]] common at least to the [[Central Semitic languages]]
The [[noun]] ''kohen'' is used in the [[Hebrew Bible|Bible]] to refer to [[priest]]s, whether Jewish or pagan (such as the ''kohanim'' of [[Baal]] or [[Dagon]]),<ref>Verses that use the term to refer to non-Aaronides include: {{Bibleverse|Genesis|14:18|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Genesis|41:45,50|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Genesis|46:20|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Genesis|47:22,26|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Exodus|2:16|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Exodus|3:1|HE}},{{Bibleverse-nb|Exodus|18:1|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Judges|17:5,10,12,13|HE}}; {{Bibleverse-nb|Judges|18:4-30|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|1 Samuel|5:5|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|1 Samuel|6:2|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|1 Kings|12:31-32|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|1 Kings|13:2,33|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|2 Kings|10:11,19|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|2 Kings|17:32|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Jeremiah|48:7|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Jeremiah|49:3|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Amos|7:10|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|2 Chronicles|13:9|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|2 Chronicles|23:17|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|2 Chronicles|34:5|HE}}</ref> although Christian priests are referred to in modern Hebrew by the term ''komer'' ({{Script/Hebrew|כומר}}).<ref>[https://www.morfix.co.il/%D7%9B%D7%95%D7%9E%D7%A8 מילון מורפיקס: פירוש כומר בעברית]</ref> ''Kohanim'' can also refer to the Jewish nation as a whole, as in {{bibleverse|Exodus|19:6|HE}}, where the whole of Israel is addressed as a "priestly kingdom (or: kingdom of priests) and a holy nation".
In [[Targum Yonatan]], interpretive translations of the word ''kohen'' include "friend",<ref>{{Alhatorah|2 Kings|10:11|Targum Yonatan}}</ref> "master",<ref>{{Alhatorah|Amos|7:10|Targum Yonatan}}</ref> and "servant".<ref>{{Alhatorah|Jeremiah|48:7|Targum Yonatan}}</ref> Other
== Individuals and history ==
[[File:Nuremberg chronicles f 29v 2.png|thumb|Illustration of Aaron's lineage from the 1493 [[Nuremberg Chronicle]]]]
{{See also|Priestly covenant}}
The early books of the Bible mention several [[pagan]] priests, such as [[Potipherah]],<ref>{{Bibleverse|Genesis|41:45,50|HE}}, 46:20</ref> the other priests of Egypt,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Genesis|47:22,26|HE}}</ref> and [[Jethro]].<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|2:16|HE}}, 3:1, 18:1</ref>
The non-Jewish priest [[Melchitzedek]], however, is described as worshipping the same God as [[Abraham]].<ref>{{Bibleverse|Genesis|14:18-20,22|HE}}</ref> Later Jewish sources even discuss the possibility that Melchitzedek's family could have served as priests for the future Jewish nation, though in the end this did not happen.<ref>[[Leviticus Rabbah]] 25:6; [[Babylonian Talmud]], [https://www.sefaria.org/Nedarim.32b.7 Nedarim 32b]</ref>
Jewish priests are first mentioned in {{Bibleverse|Exodus|19|HE}}. Here God offered the entire Jewish people the opportunity to become a symbolic "kingdom of priests and a holy nation".<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|19:6|HE}}</ref> More practically, though, in this chapter "the priests who approach the Lord" were warned to stay away from [[Mount Sinai]] during the revelation of the [[Ten Commandments]].<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|19:22,24|HE}}; see also {{Bibleverse|Exodus|24:5|HE}} where "the Israelite youths" offered sacrifices after this revelation.</ref> The identity of these priests is not specified. According to many later Jewish sources, the firstborn son in each family served as priests, starting in the period of the [[Biblical patriarchs|patriarchs]].<ref name=aht>[https://alhatorah.org/Selection_of_the_Priests_and_Levites/2 Selection of the Priests and Levites]</ref>
Since Aaron was a descendant of the [[Tribe of Levi]], priests are sometimes included in the term [[Levite]]s, by direct patrilineal descent. However, not all Levites are priests.▼
Nevertheless, shortly after the Sinai revelation, [[Aaron]] and his sons were chosen to be the priests.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|28:1|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Exodus|29:9|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Numbers|18:19|HE}}; etc.</ref> The exclusive possession of the priesthood by Aaron's descendants was known as the [[priestly covenant]]. Many commentators assert that the firstborns lost their status due to their participation in the [[golden calf]] sin.<ref name=aht/> A number of reasons have been suggested for why Aaron and his descendants were chosen instead:<ref>[https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/db205f97/files/uploaded/008%20%D7%A4%D7%A8%D7%A9%D7%AA%20%D7%AA%D7%A6%D7%95%D7%94%20%D7%94%D7%9B%D7%94%D7%95%D7%A0%D7%94%20%D7%9C%D7%90%D7%94%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F%20%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%90%20%D7%9C%D7%9E%D7%A9%D7%94.pdf הכהונה לאהרון ולא למשה–מדוע?]</ref>
* Due to Aaron's role in the Exodus, alongside Moses<ref>[[Nissim of Gerona|Derashot Haran]], 3. Text: הנה שזכה אהרן למדרגה גדולה קרובה למדרגת הנבואה ולא עוד אלא שזכה בה לו ולזרעו. וכל זה בשכר שנתעסק עם מרע"ה בענין יציאת מצרים ולא נתקנא במשה</ref>
* As reward for greeting Moses cheerfully ({{Bibleverse|Exodus|4:14|HE}}), willingly subordinating himself to Moses in the Exodus, even though he (Aaron) was the elder of the two brothers<ref>Shabbat 139a; Tanhuma</ref>
* Because Aaron possessed a higher level of prophecy than anyone at the time except Moses himself<ref>{{Alhatorah|Exodus|28:1|Abarbanel}}</ref>
* The [[Tribe of Levi]], and possibly even Aaron's own family within that tribe, maybe have been chosen for Divine service even before the Exodus.<ref name=aht />
* Because Moses himself was unsuitable to serve as priest, either for general reasons (e.g., the priestly duties would not have left Moses enough time for leadership and Torah instruction<ref name=ie>{{Alhatorah|Exodus|28:1|Ibn Ezra Second Commentary}}; [[Exodus Rabbah]] 37:4</ref>) or as punishment for trying to avoid his Divine mission in {{Bibleverse|Exodus|4:13|HE}}<ref>Zevachim 102a; [[Tanhuma]], Shemini 3</ref>
* Because Moses had a non-Israelite wife ([[Tzipporah]]), while Aaron's wife [[Elisheba]] was not only Israelite but noble (the sister of [[Nahshon]] prince of Judah), and thus more suitable to found the priestly family<ref name=ie/>
[[Moses]], too, performed sacrificial services before the completion of Aaron's consecration,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|24:6|HE}}, {{Bibleverse-nb|Exodus|40:31|HE}}; {{Bibleverse|Leviticus|8|HE}}</ref> and arguably is once called a "priest" in the Bible,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Psalms|99:6|HE}}</ref> but his descendants were not priests.<ref>{{Bibleverse|1 Chronicles|23:13-14|HE}}</ref>
▲Since Aaron was a descendant of the [[Tribe of Levi]], priests are sometimes included in the term [[Levite]]s, by direct patrilineal descent. However, not all Levites are priests.
During the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and until the [[Temple in Jerusalem|Holy Temple]] was built in [[Jerusalem]], the priests performed their priestly service in the portable [[Tabernacle (Judaism)|Tabernacle]].<ref>{{bibleverse|Numbers|1:47–54|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb|Numbers|3:5–13|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb|Numbers|3:44–51|HE}}, {{bibleverse-nb|Numbers|8:5–26|HE}}</ref>
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Priestly duties involved offering the Temple [[Korban|sacrifices]], and delivering the [[Priestly Blessing]]. When the Temple existed, most sacrifices and offerings could only be conducted by priests. Non-priest Levites (i.e. those who descended from [[Levi]] but not from Aaron) performed a variety of other Temple roles, including [[Shechita|ritual slaughter]] of sacrificial animals, song service by use of voice and musical instruments, and various tasks in assisting the priests in performing their service.
The kohanim were not granted any ancestral land to own.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Numbers|18:20|HE}}</ref> Instead, they were compensated for their service to the nation and in the Temple through the [[twenty-four kohanic gifts]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cohen-levi.org/temple_studies/order_of_the_temple_service.htm |title=
===Vestments===
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In addition to the above "golden garments", the [[High Priest of Israel|high priest]] also had a set of white "linen garments" (''bigdei ha-bad'') which he wore only for the [[Yom Kippur Temple service]].<ref>{{bibleverse|Leviticus|16:4|HE}}</ref> The linen garments were only four in number, corresponding to the garments worn by all priests (undergarments, tunic, sash and turban), but made only of white linen, with no embroidery. They could be worn only once, new sets being made each year.
=== Torah instruction ===
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According to {{bibleverse|1|Chronicles|24:3–5|HE}}, King [[David]] divided the priests into 24 [[priestly divisions]] (Heb. משמרות, ''mishmarot''). Each division would perform the Temple service for one week in a 24-week cycle, with all divisions eligible to serve on holidays. According to the [[Talmud]], this was an expansion of a previous division, by Moses, into 8 (or 16) divisions.<ref>Taanit 27a</ref>
Following the destruction of the [[Second Temple]], and the displacement to the [[Galilee]] of the bulk of the remaining Jewish population after the [[Bar Kokhba revolt]], Jewish tradition in the [[Talmud]] and poems from the period record that the descendants of each priestly watch established a separate residential seat in towns and villages of the Galilee, and maintained this residential pattern for at least several centuries in anticipation of the reconstruction of the Temple and reinstitution of the cycle of priestly courses. In subsequent years, there was a custom of publicly recalling every [[Shabbat]] in the synagogues the courses of the priests, a practice that reinforced the prestige of the priests' lineage.<ref>[[Robert Bonfil]], ''Jews in Byzantium: Dialectics of Minority and Majority Cultures'', Brill: Leiden 2012, p. 42 {{ISBN|9789004203556}}</ref> Following this destruction, it seems that most of them joined the [[Synagogal Judaism|Synagogal Jewish movement]] ; before being gradually converted towards [[Rabbinic Judaism]] and [[Christianity]].<ref name=":5" />
=== Qualifications and disqualifications ===
{{Main|Kohanic disqualifications}}
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=== Synagogue ''aliyah'' ===
{{Main|Aliyah (Torah)#Kohen and Levi aliyot}}
When the [[Torah reading]] is performed in synagogue, it is divided into a number of sections. Traditionally, a kohen (if one is present) is called for the first section (''aliyah''), a Levite for the second reading, and an "Israelite" (non-kohen, non-levite) for all succeeding portions. If no Levite is present, the kohen is called for the second aliyah as well. The [[Maftir]] portion may be given to someone from any of the three groups.
Priests (and in their absence, occasionally Levites) are also the first offered the opportunity to lead the communal grace after meals. Unlike the general rule for aliyot, this offer - which is only a requirement according to some Rabbinic opinions - may be declined. There are other rules regarding the honoring of kohanim, even in the absence of the Temple, but generally these are waived (if they are even offered) by the kohen.▼
[[File:Birkhat cohanim 1.JPG|250px|thumb|Large crowds congregate on [[Passover]] at the [[Western Wall]] to receive the priestly blessing]]
[[File:Grave Rabbi Meschullam Kohn.jpg|thumb|Blessing gesture depicted on the gravestone of Rabbi Meschullam Kohn (1739–1819), who was a kohen]]
=== Priestly blessing ===
{{Main|Priestly blessing}}
The kohanim participating in an Orthodox and some other styles of traditional Jewish prayer service also deliver the
=== Pidyon haben (redemption of the firstborn) ===
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=== Marital restrictions ===
{{Bibleverse|Leviticus|21:7|HE}} prohibits marriage between a kohen and certain classes of women. According to [[halakhah|rabbinic law]], these classes include divorcees, non-Jews, converts (who were previously non-Jews), and women who have previously engaged in certain forbidden sexual relationships (even if involuntary, i. e., rape).<ref>[[Sefer Hachinuch]], 266-268</ref> If a kohen did have relations with any of these women, the offspring are described as "profaned" (male: ''challal'', female: ''challalah''); their status is nearly identical to a normal Jew, while the ''challalah'' herself is one of the categories which a kohen may not marry.<ref>Yishma'el Tanuji Ha-Kohen, ''Sefer Ha-zikaron'', London 1974 (Hebrew)</ref>
Rape poses an especially poignant problem. The pain experienced by the families of kohanim who were required to divorce their wives as the result of the rapes accompanying the capture of Jerusalem is alluded to in this Mishnah:
<blockquote>If a woman were imprisoned by non-Jews concerning money affairs, she is permitted to her husband, but if for some capital offense, she is forbidden to her husband. If a town were overcome by besieging troops, all women of priestly stock found in it are ineligible [to be married to priests or to remain married to priests], but if they had witnesses, even a male or female slave, these may be believed. But no man may be believed for himself. Rabbi Zechariah ben Hakatsab said, "By this Temple, her hand did not stir from my hand from the time the non-Jews entered Jerusalem until they went out." They said to him: No man may give evidence of himself.<ref>[[Mishnah]] [[Ketubot]] 2:9</ref></blockquote>
[[Orthodox Judaism]] recognizes these rules as still binding, and Orthodox rabbis will not perform a marriage between a kohen and a divorced woman.<ref name=civil/> This is the attitude of the [[Israeli rabbinate]], with the result that a kohen cannot legally marry a divorced or converted woman in the [[State of Israel]]. (However, if such a marriage were performed outside Israel, it would be recognized as a valid marriage by the
[[Conservative Judaism]] has issued an emergency ''takanah'' (rabbinical edict) temporarily suspending the application of the rules in their entirety, on the grounds that the high intermarriage rate threatens the survival of Judaism, and, hence, that any marriage between Jews is welcomed.<ref name=ra/> The ''takanah'' declares that the offspring of such marriages are to be regarded as kohanim.<ref name=ra>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/19912000/goodman_marriageconvert.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101127130257/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/19912000/goodman_marriageconvert.pdf|url-status=dead|title=Arnold Goodman, "Solemnizing the Marriage between a Kohen and a Convert"|archive-date=November 27, 2010}}; {{Cite web|url=http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/19912000/goodman_marriagedivorcee.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101127130736/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/19912000/goodman_marriagedivorcee.pdf|url-status=dead|title=Goodman, "Solemnizing the Marriage between a Kohen and a Divorcee"|archive-date=November 27, 2010}}</ref>
===Other laws===
To this day, kohanim
The [[presumption of priestly descent]] is used to help identify kohanim.
▲
== Bat kohen ==
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''Kohen'' is a status that traditionally refers to men, passed from father to son. However, a ''bat kohen'' (the daughter of a priest) holds a special status in the [[Hebrew Bible]] and [[rabbinical literature|rabbinical texts]]. She is entitled to a number of rights and is encouraged to abide by specified requirements, for example, entitlement to consume some of the [[Twenty-four priestly gifts|priestly gifts]], and an increased value for her [[ketubah]].
▲Today, Orthodox and many Conservative rabbis maintain the position that only a man can act as a kohen, and that a daughter of a kohen is recognized as a ''bat kohen'' only in those very limited ways that have been identified in the past. Accordingly, in Orthodox Judaism only men can perform the [[Priestly Blessing]] and receive the first ''aliyah'' during the public Torah reading, and women are generally not permitted to officiate in a ''Pidyon HaBen'' ceremony.
However, some Conservative rabbis give the kohen's daughter equal priestly status to a (male) kohen. As a result, some Conservative synagogues permit a kohen's daughter to perform the Priestly Blessing and the Pidyon HaBen ceremony, and to receive the first ''aliyah'' during the Torah reading.
Because most [[Reform Judaism|Reform]] and [[Reconstructionist Judaism|Reconstructionist]] temples have abolished traditional tribal distinctions, roles, and identities on grounds of egalitarianism, a special status for a ''bat kohen'' has very little significance in these movements.
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Since the [[Y chromosome]] is inherited only from one's father (biological females have no Y chromosome), all direct male lineages share a common [[haplotype]]. Thus, if ''kohanim'' share a direct male lineage to Aaron, one would expect to see a high level of commonality among their [[Y chromosome]]s.
Since 1997, a number of genetic studies have been done on this topic, using testing data from across sectors of the Jewish and non-Jewish populations. The results of these studies have been interpreted by various parties as either confirming or disproving the traditions of uniform descent.{{cn|date=November 2023}}
== Surnames ==
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Names often associated with kohanim include:
* [[Cohen (surname)|Cohen]], also spelled [[Kahn]]
* [[Katz (surname)|Katz]] ([[Hebrew abbreviations|Hebrew abbreviation]] of Kohen Tzedeq, "priest of justice"/"authentic priest")
* [[:he:מזא"ה|Maze]], Mazo, Mazer (acronym of the Hebrew phrase ''mi zera Aharon hakohen,'' meaning "from the seed of Aaron the priest")
* [[Azoulay]] (acronym of the Hebrew phrase ''ishah zonah ve'challelah lo yikachu,'' meaning "a foreign [non-Israelite woman] or divorced [Israelite woman] shall not he take": a prohibition binding on kohanim, {{Bibleverse|Leviticus|21:7|HE}})
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== Outside Judaism ==
According to [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]], either "literal descendants of Aaron", or worthy [[Priesthood of Melchizedek|Melchizedek priesthood]] holders have the legal right to constitute the [[Presiding Bishop (LDS Church)|Presiding Bishopric]] under the authority of the [[First Presidency (LDS Church)|First Presidency]] ({{sourcetext|source=The Doctrine and Covenants|book=Section 68|verse=16|range=
== In popular culture ==
The positioning of the kohen's hands during the [[Priestly Blessing]] was [[Leonard Nimoy]]'s inspiration for [[Spock|Mr. Spock's]] [[Vulcan salute]] in the [[Star Trek: The Original Series|original Star Trek television series]]. Nimoy, raised an Orthodox Jew (but not a kohen), used the salute when saying, "Live long and prosper."
The Priestly Blessing was used by [[Leonard Cohen]] in his farewell blessing during "Whither Thou Goest", the closing song on his concerts. Leonard Cohen himself was from a kohen family. He also used the drawing of the Priestly Blessing as one of his logos.
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*[https://kohamineu.wordpress.com/ Kohanim center and network Europe]
{{Jewish priesthood}}
{{Authority control}}
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