Jews and Tattoos

In Ethiopia, girls customarily had images tattooed on their faces, on the forehead or neck. Some even chose the sign of the cross. To the outside observer, this phenomenon seems particularly contemptible, as it is forbidden in the Torah. The kesim also viewed this as a biblical prohibition, and warned against it. Still, the women continued to do it. Why? And why was the issue of tattoos so important in Ethiopian culture? I have found several explanations for this: Protection from the evil eye: people believed that the tattoo had the power to deflect evil spirits. Cross symbol: religious and cultural reasons...

Some say that the Ethiopian Jews did this out of awareness and intent, in order to make it difficult to distinguish them from the Christian population. Some, however, say it is a matter of interpretation, and that the biblical commandment “You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor imprint any marks upon yourselves” (Leviticus 19:28) was intended only for men. I do not intend to rule on this issue. But it is interesting to note that this custom was more prevalent in larger numbers among recent immigrants, and less among the first immigrants to Israel, apparently because the first immigrants were less exposed to the Christian world.

A tattoo is a design made using ink or another form of dye that is permanently inserted under the skin, for decoration or marking. From the fact that the Torah expressly forbids tattooing, we may assume that this was a common practice among the Canaanite peoples, and biblical commentators have remarked on this. The Rambam notes that the gentiles tattooed themselves to indicate loyalty to their gods. Rabbi Avraham Ibn Ezra writes that non-Jews tattooed themselves in memory of the dead, and this is why the prohibition against tattoos appears in the same verse with the prohibition against cutting oneself to honor the dead.

Jewish law forbids making a tattoo on the body. This prohibition is one of the 613 mitzvot. The Rambam writes:

The prohibition against tattoos applies to any part of the body, whether it is usually revealed or covered. One of the reasons given for this prohibition is that the Jews belong to an important people, and thus it is disrespectful for them to deface their bodies. The biblical commentator Hizkuni gives the explanation that it is inappropriate for a Jew to make any other mark on his body other than the brit milah. Another reason given in Sefer ha-Hinukh is the need to differentiate ourselves from the customs of idol worship.

In Israel, the Ethiopian women suffer from their tattoos, especially those who have the tattoo of a cross on their forehead, which is particularly difficult to hide. These women are subject to humiliation and shame. Indeed it is very strange for an Israeli to see a Jewish woman with a tattoo in the shape of a cross, and the negative reactions are completely understandable. Today there are volunteers, including physicians and people of means, who help the girls erase the tattoos with laser procedures. The question is, if they are not able to remove the tattoo of the cross on the forehead, whether it is halakhically acceptable to add additional lines so as to blur the shape of the cross? Here we confront a conflict between a biblical prohibition and respect for fellow human beings. I have heard that there are some rabbis who permit blurring the cross mark, based on respect for humans. But I do know that today, technology offers creative solutions in order to erase these marks, thus enabling Beta Israel girls to feel at home in Israel.