The Kohanim Who Bless

Parshat Naso

With the holiday of Shavuot almost upon us, we have the opportunity to explore a subject of importance to those who experience Birkat Kohanim only on holidays. What qualifications must a kohen have to participate in the blessing ritual? What might disqualify a kohen from duchening?

The Torah (6:23-27) provides a very unique mitzvah to the kohanim – the ability to be the instrument through which the people of Israel will be blessed.

It is such a unique kind of mitzvah that, with some exceptions of course, even a kohen who is a known sinner may still bless the people. It is his status as a kohen that carries the day, and pushes aside the choices he may make in his life that don’t model the best effort of maintaining a life of observance of mitzvot. This ruling is so clearly in the kohen's favor that the Shulchan Arukh suggests that a kohen who should be blessing the people who opts out (chooses to shirk his responsibility) at the moment the kohanim are called is considered in violation of three positive commandments (Orach Chaim 128:2).

Maimonides (Laws of Prayer Chapter 15) lists six qualities that would render a kohen ill-fit to bless the people. The following is a summary of the disqualifying qualities – with exceptions to these rules – as presented in Maimonides and the Shulchan Arukh.

Reading and Diction: If he cannot recite the words properly, if he confuses letters (such as alef and ayin, shin and sin), or if he has a 'heavy tongue' that prevents words from coming out.

A 'Baal Mum': If he has a blemish, either temporary or permanent. If he has a deformity in his face, hands or feet, or if spittle drips from his mouth when he talks. A person who is blind in one eye may not bless the people (though the Shulchan Arukh says even a person who is completely blind may bless the people if everyone is familiar with the person). A person afflicted with the blindness or spittle issues may bless the people in their own city, when everyone knows them and is comfortable with their nonstandard qualities. At the time he has a broken limb, he should not bless the people.

A Sinner: If he killed someone, worshiped idolatry, or became an apostate (even if he did teshuvah in the latter case). The Rama (128:35) allows a kohen who killed someone by accident (such as in a car-crash) to bless the people again after he has done teshuvah. The Mishnah Brurah even allows teshuvah to let a non-accidental murderer bless the people again. [I don't believe killing someone in war counts as a disqualifier.]

The Shulchan Arukh adds that if he has married a divorcee he may not bless the people, even if he divorces her or she dies, until he makes a vow not to associate in an intimate way with the women a kohen is forbidden to marry.

A kohen who is otherwise not careful about observance (such as one who violates the Sabbath) may bless the people. Mishnah Brurah 128:146 reminds us that just because he is a sinner does not mean we have the right to take away a mitzvah that is uniquely for him. Every person can use all the mitzvah "points" they can get, and a sinning kohen certainly can use every mitzvah given to him.

Years: Some say he needs to have facial hair, but the Shulchan Arukh says (128:34) if he is bar mitzvah, it is as if he has facial hair. A minor may participate to learn the ropes, as long as there are others present who are over the age of 13.

Wine: One who has consumed a "r'viis" (between 3 and 5 ounces) of wine in one straight shot, or more than a r'viis of wine in any number of shots, may only bless the people after the effect of the wine has passed. (Higher percentages of alcohol drinks would apply as well.) If the r'viis was consumed in two shots, or the wine was diluted, he may bless the people.

Tumah: If he did not wash his hands, he may not bless the people. Shulchan Arukh adds that if he became tameh to a person who is not one of his seven close relatives (mother, father, wife, sister, brother, son, daughter), he may not bless the people.

The law states (Sotah 38a) that the blessing has to be said in Hebrew. Rabbi Mordechai HaKohen asks why is this so. Couldn't the blessings be performed in whatever language the kohen understands?

He answers that the last words of the blessing are "And He shall place for you Shalom." The word 'Shalom' contains within it all kinds of important connotations, feelings, thoughts, and ideas. As it cannot be adequately translated from Hebrew, it must be stated in Hebrew.

Rashi explains that through blessing the people the Kohen also receives the same blessings from God. Indeed the Rambam explains that the Kohen is merely the instrument through which every Jew receives the blessing from God. This is why his personal righteousness is lest important than his pedigree.

May we always find a way to be accepting of the kohanim who come to bless us, who fit the qualifications as described here. May kohanim merit to live their lives in such a manner that the congregation will be pleased to be blessed by and through them. May they also work on the qualities they can control (tumah, pronunciation, wine, etc) such that they will always be ready to fulfill their mitzvah.

Hopefully, as a result, we can all be blessed with the most beneficial blessing: the blessing of Shalom.