# Can a rabbi be stripped of his title? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 7, 2009, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648 "2009-08-07T15:51:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2009, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/21 "2009-08-18T07:44:42Z")
Yes, a rabbi can be stripped of his title, and there is an official ceremony. First the rabbi’s spurs are hacked off; then his armour is dismantled and thrown onto the ground. Finally, his coat of arms is torn off, and tossed into a fire. In extremely serious cases, they may even be replaced by a reversed version of the same arms. If he holds a title of nobility, his children will be unable to inherit it and any lands associated with it. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2009, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/22 "2009-08-18T08:18:57Z")
The notion of being “ordained” a rabbi is I think a fairly modern one. The rabbinate is not, of course, a priesthood, and “ordination” as a rabbi does not have the sacramental connotations that it has for many branches of Christianity. Ordination as a rabbi comes following the completion of a programme of study at a seminary. I imagine that the principle significance of ordination is that it established that you are qualified by education and training to undertake the role of clergyman to a congregation, and I assume that few, if any, congregations will appoint a clergyman who does not have this qualification. I wouldn’t be surprised to find that it is a formal rule for a congregation to join a synagogue organisation that it will only appoint a clergyman who has been ordained – and, possibly, ordained following study at an approved seminary. If a rabbi disgraces himself sufficiently seriously and sufficiently publicly, it is likely that he will lose any congregational appointment he has, and that no other congregational appointment will be offered to him. In that situation it hardly matters whether he is a rabbi or not any longer; the positions which would normally be open to him as a rabbi are no longer open. For that reason there probably has never been a great need to develop any kind of “de-ordination” procedure for an erring rabbi. Before it acquired its modern “clergyman” meaning, the term was applied to a skilled teacher of Jewish law. There was no ordination procedure; the terms was applied as a mark of recognition by students. ---
**Author:** ![James\_in\_Toronto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee7513/32.png) [@James\_in\_Toronto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James_in_Toronto)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2009, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/23 "2009-08-18T19:32:53Z")
Not really. There’s no central authority in Judaism to do so. There’s a guy who has a site called [DefrockedRabbi.com](http://DefrockedRabbi.com), which [says](http://www.defrockedrabbi.com/?page_id=5) > [@](#): > > Are You Really Defrocked? > > There is no official means by which a rabbi can be “defrocked” or stripped of his or her title. Occasionally, a rabbi does something quite horrendous and gets caught; as a result, no one will hire him or her. In addition, all of the major movements in Judaism have a rabbinical organization; one can be “kicked out” for not paying dues, as well as getting caught doing something nasty. > > No, I’m not really defrocked. I pay my rabbinic organization dues, and I’ve never been caught with my proverbial pants down. But for a variety of reasons, maybe for no reason, I’m no longer employed as a rabbi. Then there’s the old joke about the guy who used to be a rabbi, and then went on to some other job. A friend asked him “Were you defrocked?” and he said “No, just unsuited.” ---
**Author:** ![Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shinna_Minna_Ma)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2009, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/24 "2009-08-18T21:50:28Z")
I would imagine that the yeshiva that granted the ordination would be able to revoke it. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/25 "2009-08-19T03:09:20Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > BTW, in the Catholic church excommunication doesn’t mean your no longer a Catholic, it means you cannot participate in the sacraments until the “problem” has been solved. Only some sacraments. Not Confession (‘Penance’) obviously; that’s one of the first steps in solving the ‘problem’. And I think it’s likely that their participation would not affect the validity of sacraments performed on someone at risk of dying – Baptism or Anointing ot the Sick (‘Extreme Unction’), for example. These sacraments can be performed by anyone, they don’t have to be a priest. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2009, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/26 "2009-08-20T14:30:33Z")
> [@](#): > > Wrestling Rabbi fails drug test, is stripped of title 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2009, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/27 "2009-08-20T15:15:03Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Not Confession (‘Penance’) obviously; that’s one of the first steps in solving the ‘problem’. Well, absolution might be withheld pending further correction, whatever that might be under the circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2009, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/28 "2009-08-20T23:25:15Z")
> [@Saintly\_Loser](#): > > Well, absolution might be withheld pending further correction, whatever that might be under the circumstances. And the absolution can be conditional, too. Most are – if you don’t perform the penance that the priest has assigned to you, the absolution you were given wouldn’t cover that. Priests can also decline to give you absolution, if you aren’t willing to take action to make amends for your sins. For example, if you confess that you have embezzled money from someone without being discovered, the priest may say that unless you come forward & admit to this, you are not ‘truly sorry’ for your sin, and thus he can’t give you absolution. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2009, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/29 "2009-08-20T23:36:01Z")
I’ll take this question a step further since I was hanging on The Temple Institute’s site a week ago- if/when the Priesthood & Levitical service is reinstituted for Temple work, is there a way for a Priest or Levite to be defrocked/decommissioned? Torah speaks of certain offenses having the penalty of being “cut off” from the people. In some cases, it seems to mean execution, but not always, so I figured it could also include something from shunning-to-exile. ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/30 "2009-08-21T13:35:57Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > I’ll take this question a step further since I was hanging on The Temple Institute’s site a week ago- if/when the Priesthood & Levitical service is reinstituted for Temple work, is there a way for a Priest or Levite to be defrocked/decommissioned? Torah speaks of certain offenses having the penalty of being “cut off” from the people. In some cases, it seems to mean execution, but not always, so I figured it could also include something from shunning-to-exile. The “cut off” penalty is imposed by God directly, and has nothing to do with shunning, exile, or excommunication. A good starting point for more info is the Wikipedia article on [Kareth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kareth). But your question does still have a “yes” answer, though only for Priests, and not for Levites. There are certain acts which the Torah forbids to a Priest, and even nowadays, if he commits these acts deliberately, he loses the priestly status. For example, he may not marry a divorcee; if he does so, he loses the privilege of being called to the Torah for the first [aliyah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torah_reading#Aliyot), and he may no longer offer the [priestly blessing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priestly_Blessing) in the synagogue. Sources available [here](http://www.cohen-levi.org/the_cohens_heritage/marriage_qualifications.htm) and [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kohanim#Ritual_defilement). ---
**Author:** ![please921](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ad7895/32.png) [@please921](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/please921)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/31 "2009-08-21T15:43:10Z")
To add to **Keeve** ’s point, although he loses his priestly status and can no longer perform Temple sacrifices, the outcome is not absolute or necessarily permanent. See [this article](http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/468267/jewish/Kohen-Marriages.htm) by Rabbi Maurice Lamm for more information. > [@](#): > > The kohen himself cannot have his priesthood removed. If he terminates the prohibited marriage, by death or divorce, he may resume his kohen privileges. There is no such thing as the “defrocking” of a kohen. As a bit of trivia, Kohanim/Priests are not allowed to come in contact with dead bodies or attend a funeral unless it is for someone in their immediate family. If they do so, they will become ritually impure and forbidden from performing Temple services (this is different than being defroked). In the times of the Temple, the Kohanim were able to go through a ritual purification process in order to resume services, but nowadays the process is not done. Kohanim nowadays are strongly encouraged to keep to these restrictions, although many rabbis freely admit that it’s practically impossible for Kohanim to have remained ritually pure in modern times. For more information see [here](http://books.google.com/books?id=oohY_3hMFS8C&pg=PA64&lpg=PA64&dq=kohen+dead+body&source=bl&ots=KYI9WhPG_b&sig=Nby5gZTY9MuC_S1C7Unn7TyeEQw&hl=en&ei=M7aOSojOLsuwlAeFrtG4DA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4#v=onepage&q=kohen%20dead%20body&f=false). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2009, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648/32 "2009-08-21T15:52:11Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > But your question does still have a “yes” answer, though only for Priests, and not for Levites. There are certain acts which the Torah forbids to a Priest, and even nowadays, if he commits these acts deliberately, he loses the priestly status. For example, he may not marry a divorcee; if he does so, he loses the privilege of being called to the Torah for the first [aliyah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torah_reading#Aliyot), and he may no longer offer the [priestly blessing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priestly_Blessing) in the synagogue. Sources available [here](http://www.cohen-levi.org/the_cohens_heritage/marriage_qualifications.htm) and [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kohanim#Ritual_defilement). Alternatively, castrate, blind, or cripple him, which is permanent and keep him from carrying out temple rituals. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-rabbi-be-stripped-of-his-title/505648.md?page=1)