Yevamot 60: Whom Can a Kohen Marry?

Who is a priest, a kohen, allowed to marry?  And what happens if he marries outside of these halachot?

The Gemara discusses cases including virgins, non-virgins, girls under the age of three years and one day, grown women, those who have been seduced or raped by an Israelite and those who were raped or seduced by the priest.  In these cases the rabbis consider whether or not each girl/woman is fit for the priesthood; fit for intercourse with the priest.  They compare some of the considerations faced only by the high priest versus those faced by all priests.

Incidentally we learn that Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov is at odds with some other rabbis.  A note (Steinsaltz) explains that it is said that Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov is mentioned in 102 places, which has the numerical value of the word kav.  All of his rulings were accepted unless specifically mentioned by the Gemara to the contrary.  The expression, "measures a kav, but is clean", kav v'naki, is used a number of times in the Talmud to honour Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya'akov's opinions.

The rabbis also look into circumstances when the High Priest's sister has died.  They analyze the wording of the Torah to determine whether or not he is permitted to become impure; to fully mourn her.  The rabbis wonder the state of this sister's hymen is an issue.  They wonder about her age, whether or not she is a virgin, and whether she was raped or seduced.  It is amazing that even when the Torah  provides us with what seems to be clear instruction, our rabbis interpret its meaning and sometimes take us on very creative, almost fantastical journeys.

There is another reference to bizarre understandings of women's anatomy in today's daf.  A large group of virgins is found.  How do we know that they are virgins?  We sit them on open barrels of wine. If their breath smells like wine, they have had intercourse.  If not, they are virgins.  We see this "test" in other places in the Talmud, so this is not a simple error.  This reflects a misinformed belief about women's anatomy.  Among other things.

The rabbis wonder about who fits into the forbidden categories of "bride" for the priest: divorcees, widows, chalalot, and zonaot.  They walk through what could happen if the priest marries someone who could fall into one of these categories.  In some cases he is forced to divorce her.  In other cases the marriage is allowed to stand.  The rabbis are mixed in their thoughts about converts (and even the age at which they converted).  Must kohanim have intercourse only with those who are of the seed of Israel?

Today's daf is quite technical.  It questions the chalala, for example.  If a woman forbidden to a priest has intercourse with him, she is a chalala.  Their child is also a chalala.  But if she was pregnant from another man when the two had intercourse, is that child a chalala?  Further, the rabbis wonder about the powers of the frontplate (from the front and from the back of the frontplate) to help rectify some of these issues.  We watch our rabbis struggle with numerous details throughout the daf.

In today's world, there is no high priest. However, Conservative and Orthodox streams of Judaism acknowledge separate halachot for the kohanim in our community.  When we have no Temple, and when the idea of a "pure line" of kohanim is certainly impossible to verify at this point in time, is there any value in maintaining that difference in status?  Some might say that there is no difference in status, just in role.  I would agree -- except that our ancient teachings clearly teach that being a kohen is not just a difference but a privilege.  If the Temple were to be rebuilt, would today's kohanim grow in status?