Who Are the Karaites?
The Karaites are a sect that denies the Oral Torah and Chazal’s interpretations of the Torah. They believe exclusively in the Written Torah and interpret it according to their own understanding. Today, the Karaite community numbers approximately forty thousand people worldwide, most of whom are concentrated in Eretz Yisrael, primarily in Ramla, Jerusalem, and Ashdod.
The founder of the Karaite sect was Anan ben David. He was born in Babylonia (around 800 CE), opposed Chazal’s interpretations of the Torah, and wrote a book which he called Sefer HaMitzvot, in which he set forth his interpretation of the Torah’s mitzvot according to his understanding of the plain meaning of the verses.
Are Karaites Considered Jews?
The halachic status of Karaites differs from that of the Samaritans, and they are unquestionably considered Jews. However, since they deny the Oral Torah, they do not arrange gittin in accordance with halachah; consequently, there is a concern of mamzerut among them.
As the Rema writes in his gloss to the Shulchan Aruch, Even HaEzer 4:37, it is forbidden to marry Karaites, because they are all doubtful mamzerim, and they are not accepted if they wish to repent.
However, the view of the gaon Rabbi Chaim of Brisk, zt”l, is well known: he wrote that their Jewish status should be regarded as doubtful, since they do not perform conversions in accordance with the law of Moshe and Yisrael. He therefore feared that non-Jews who had not converted according to halachah had become intermingled among them and are thus non-Jews.
Indeed, the words of the aforementioned Rema prove that we do not entertain this concern, for he did not write that marriage with Karaites is forbidden because of a concern regarding their Jewish status, but rather because of the concern of mamzerut.
See Responsa Yabia Omer, vol. 7, Yoreh De’ah 24, which rules halachically that Karaites are Jews and that their sons may even be circumcised on Shabbat. This is his wording:
Regarding the children of Karaites, whether it is permitted to circumcise them on Shabbat: in my opinion, even nowadays, if they treat the true sages of Israel with honor and respect, their sons should be circumcised on Shabbat, in accordance with the words of Rabbeinu Hai Gaon in a responsum cited in Responsa HaRa’em (no. 58). The Rambam likewise ruled in a responsum (Freimann edition, no. 371), which is cited by the Beit Yosef (in Bedek HaBayit at the end of no. 266), in Responsa HaRadbaz, vol. 2 (no. 796), and likewise in Responsa Ohalei Yaakov by the Maharikas (no. 33), Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi (no. 3), and Responsa Kol Gadol by the Maharam ben Chaviv (no. 27). See there.
There is no concern for what Rabbi Chaim of Brisk wrote, that non-Jews became intermingled among the Karaites because they converted among them improperly. Responsa She’elat Ya’avetz likewise writes this. Their words are contradicted by the aforementioned poskim, who permitted their circumcision on Shabbat. This was likewise ruled by the gaon, the Rishon LeTzion Rabbi Mordechai Yosef Meyuchas, in his work Berachot HaMayim, Yoreh De’ah (no. 266), where he rejected the words of the author of Ginat Veradim on this matter. His father-in-law, the gaon and Rishon LeTzion Maharit Algazi, agreed with him there, and he in fact circumcised such a child on Shabbat. See there. Responsa Beit Yitzchak of Danzig (Yoreh De’ah, no. 8) likewise rules this way. See also Sdei Chemed (Divrei Chachamim, no. 135). Further elaboration is beyond the scope of this discussion.
I also saw in the work Chashukei Chemed by the gaon Rabbi Yitzchak Zilberstein, shlit”a, on Avodah Zarah 59, who wrote in the name of his father-in-law, Maran Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, zt”l, as follows:
An incident occurred involving a kollel scholar who was assisting a family and studying regularly with the head of the household. After some time, it became known that they were Karaites. The Rema states in Even HaEzer 4:37: “It is forbidden to marry Karaites, and they are all doubtful mamzerim.” The kollel scholar asked what he should do: Should he continue studying with them? And what is their general status?
Answer: I asked this question to my father-in-law, Maran Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, shlit”a, and he told me: “They are certainly Jews, and one must study with them and distinguish them from non-Jews.” He further told me: Although Rabbi Saadia Gaon issued a decree against the Karaites, the Rema writes that Karaites may not intermarry, and the Radbaz in Egypt determined that they are complete Jews in every respect, except that they were penalized and distanced from the congregation of the community of Hashem. They were distanced only as long as they follow the practices of their ancestors. But the Karaites of our day are tinokot shenishbu. Therefore, one must study halachah with them—Hilchot Chanukah, netilat yadayim, and eruvin—for once he learns the halachot, he is no longer a Karaite.
Does Tum’at Ohel Apply to a Non-Jew or an Apostate Jew?
Regarding tum’at ohel from a non-Jewish corpse, there is a well-known dispute among the Rishonim as to whether the halachah follows Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who maintains that a corpse does not impart tum’ah in an ohel, as explained in the Gemara, Bava Metzia 114.
The Rambam, in Hilchot Tum’at Met, chapter 1, as well as the Ramban, Rashba, and others, maintain that the halachah follows Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai: a non-Jew does not impart tum’ah in an ohel.
Tosafot in Yevamot 61a maintain that the halachah follows Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel in the Mishnah, Ohalot 18:9, that a non-Jew imparts tum’ah through contact, carrying, and an ohel.
Regarding practical halachah, the Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah, Hilchot Aveilut 372, rules as follows:
With respect to the graves of idol worshippers, it is proper for a kohen to take care not to walk over them; this follows the view of Tosafot. The Rema writes: It is proper to be stringent. However, the grave of an apostate imparts tum’ah like that of a Jew.
The words of the Shulchan Aruch show that it is appropriate to be stringent in accordance with Tosafot, but that fundamentally the halachah follows the Rambam. The Rema used more obligatory wording: “It is proper to be stringent.”
However, the Rema also agrees that this applies only to the graves of non-Jews. The grave of an apostate, however, imparts tum’ah like that of a Jew.
Therefore, as a practical halachic ruling in the case before us, although Karaites deny the Oral Torah, since their status is no worse than that of an apostate, they also impart tum’ah in an ohel. A kohen must take care not to be in an ohel containing such a corpse.
This response was translated automatically from Hebrew and has not yet been reviewed by a person. Therefore, it may contain inaccuracies and should not be considered a definitive reference.
