(27) And God created man in His image, in the image of God, God created him; male and female God created them.
In Midrash Leviticus Rabbah, we read that the soul is a guest in the body and that care of the body is deemed a commandment by the great sage Hillel the Elder, who cited the idea in the Creation story that God made the human in the divine image. In the medieval period, Rabbeinu Bahya points out that even bodily fluids (menstrual blood, semen, and fluid from certain skin eruptions) considered impure (tamei) are only deemed such after they have left the human body.
In the mind of the Sages, sin is not the product of an unruly body asserting itself over a pure soul; on the contrary, the body and soul are seen in a partnership of equal responsibility for actions, in this life as well as the next.
In your own words what does it mean to be made in "God's image"?
Does that impact the way you look at others, if you saw someone with tattoos on their face or neck how would you react?
(28) You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, nor incise any marks on yourselves: I am Adonai
[יא] "כְּתֹבֶת קַעֲקַע" (ויקרא יט,כח) הָאֲמוּרָה בַּתּוֹרָה, הוּא שֶׁיִּשְׂרֹט עַל בְּשָׂרוֹ וִימַלֵּא מְקוֹם הַשְּׂרִיטָה כֹּחַל אוֹ דְּיוֹ אוֹ שְׁאָר צִבְעוֹנִין הָרוֹשְׁמִין; וְזֶה הָיָה מִנְהַג הַגּוֹיִים שֶׁרוֹשְׁמִין עַצְמָן לַעֲבוֹדָה זָרָה שֶׁלָּהֶן, כְּלוֹמַר שְׁהוּא עֶבֶד מָכוּר לָהּ וּמֻרְשָׁם לַעֲבוֹדָתָהּ.
וּמֵעֵת שֶׁיִּרְשֹׁם בְּאֶחָד מִדְּבָרִים הָרוֹשְׁמִים אַחַר שֶׁיִּשְׂרֹט, בְּאֵי זֶה מָקוֹם מִן הַגּוּף, בֵּין אִישׁ בֵּין אִשָּׁה--לוֹקֶה.
כָּתַב וְלֹא רָשַׁם בִּצְבָע, אוֹ שֶׁרָשַׁם בִּצְבָע וְלֹא כָתַב בִּשְׂרִיטָה--פָּטוּר: עַד שֶׁיִּכְתֹּב וִיקַעְקַע, שֶׁנֶּאֱמָר "וּכְתֹבֶת קַעֲקַע" (ויקרא יט,כח).
Maimonides, Mishneh Torah: Laws of Idolatry 12:11
"Incising a mark." The prohibition of tattooing that is biblically derived is making an incision in one's flesh and filling the incision with eye paint, ink, or any dye that leaves an imprint. This was the practice of idolaters who [permanently] marked their bodies for the sake of their idol worship. Basically, [they understood this to be] that they are likened to servants sold to the idol and designated to serve it.
When one makes an imprint with one of the substances [listed above], the punishment of lashes is carried out, whether it is a man or a woman.
If one wrote but did not dye, or dyed but did not write [by incising in the flesh] -- this person is not liable, as it is written (Lev. 19:28), "or incise any marks."
What is the text trying to say about tattoos? Do you agree or disagree?
(ב) אם עושה כן על בשר חבירו אותו שנעשה לו פטור אא"כ סייע בדבר:
(2) If he does this on his friend's flesh, the one to whom it was done is exempt unless he aided in the matter.
Do you think it dishonors those who were forced to have tattoos and recognized as numbers instead of people in the Holocaust by getting a tattoo?
What about a tattoo that resembles those given during the Holocaust?
Does it matter where on your body the tattoo is?
Rabbi Alan Lucas, Jewish Committee on Laws and Standards (Rabbinical Assembly of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism)
In our day, the prohibition against all forms of tattooing regardless of their intent, should be maintained. In addition to the fact that Judaism has a long history of distaste for tattoos, tattooing becomes even more distasteful in a contemporary secular society that is constantly challenging the Jewish concept that we are created b’tzelem Elokim (in the image of G-d) and that our bodies are to be viewed as a precious gift on loan from G-d, to be entrusted into our care and [are] not our personal property to do with as we choose. Voluntary tattooing even if not done for idolatrous purposes expresses a negation of this fundamental Jewish perspective.
As tattoos become more popular in contemporary society, there is a need to reinforce the prohibition against tattooing in our communities and counterbalance it with education regarding the traditional concept that we are created b’tzelem Elokim. But, however distasteful we may find the practice there is no basis for restricting burial to Jews who violate this prohibition or even limiting their participation in synagogue ritual. The fact that someone may have violated the laws of kashrut at some point in his or her life or violated the laws of Shabbat would not merit such sanctions; the prohibition against tattooing is certainly no worse. It is only because of the permanent nature of the tattoo that the transgression is still visible.
If our bodies are on "loan" from God, at what point is it no longer my body my choice? Where do we draw the line?