What does it mean to be a Kohen?
All privileges come with a price, and the restrictions on Kohanim are manyThe Kohanim have the privilege of being called for the first aliyah to say the blessing over the Torah during religious services. There is also the privilege of saying the priestly blessing. In Israel, and in Sephardic synagogues in the Diaspora, this blessing is recited on a daily (or weekly) basis. In Ashkenazi communities in the Diaspora, it is recited on major Jewish holidays. However, all privileges come with a price, and the restrictions on Kohanim are many. Many of these restrictions were designed to maintain what is referred to as ritual purity, since the Kohanim formed a holy order in the Temple of Jerusalem. Following the destruction of the Second Temple in the year 70 C.E., many of the laws and practices are still maintained in traditional Judaism, except those which could only be followed in the actual presence of the Temple. Kohanim are forbidden to be in contact with dead bodies, take active part in
