745. May a Kohen Fly over a Graveyard?
A kohen does not visit a cemetery, crypt, hospital morgue or any place where there are dead bodies, due to the lav (Torah prohibition) of becoming t’mei mes (impure by being in the presence of a dead body). Does an airplane, which is hermetically sealed, serve as a barrier for the kohen as it flies over the gravesite? Halachah states: ohel zaruk lav shmei ohel (a tent that is being thrown is not called a tent); an airplane does not serve as a barrier because it is in motion, as would stationary, self-contained structures.
If it is only a possibility that the plane will fly over a gravesite’s airspace, there is room for leniency. The rule of ohel zaruk, according to many poskim, is d’rabbanan (of Rabbinic origin) and therefore might be permitted in certain extenuating circumstances. Contemporary poskim take other mitigating factors into account as well: there is usually the space of at least a tefach (hand-breadth) of earth between the body and the surface, creating its own type of barrier with the air above it; the airplane body, if it contains enough material that is eino mekabel tum’ah (not a receptacle for impurity), may make the kohen impervious, along with many other arguments in favor of leniency.*
All these arguments may serve to allow a kohen to fly if he is unsure about the plane’s route. However, flights that are known to fly over cemeteries should be avoided—and if a kohen has no other option, he should consult a rav. In Eretz Yisroel, many rabbanim have issued a public psak (ruling) that alerts kohanim to the problematic routes, and states unequivocally that using these flights is forbidden to a kohen.
*See the marei mekomos (Hebrew sources) in the weekly publication (which will be sent via email next Thursday) for a thorough analysis of the various halachic sevaros (opinions).
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