Jews 8c Tattoos: A. Kosher Combo. Permanent body ink paints a mixed picture when it comes to Jewish law. GEOFF RIKLIN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS e shall not make any cut- tings in your flesh for the dead, nor print - ---- any marks upon you." y_ — Leviticus Despite the fact that Jewish law forbids the practice, a signif- icant number of Jews get tattoos. "It's just freedom of expres- sion," says Samantha Citrin, a 19-year-old college student at- tending the University of Mon- tana. "My tattoos have meaning to me and my way of life. My mom keeps telling me I'm going to regret having these tattoos when I'm older, but I just don't agree." The prohibition against tattoos originated in biblical times when Jews lived in close proximity to pagan tribes. Often, the pagans used tattoos to identify them- selves with their gods. To differentiate themselves as monotheists, Jews outlawed the practice among their own. The great Jewish thinker Mai- monides said tattooing was a "custom of the heathens" and a way to mark a slave for service to idols. To Rabbi Daniel Nevins of Adat Shalom Synagogue, the problem with tattooing is that it "identifies one with a certain cause. "As Jews we see ourselves as the property of God. The only per- missible alteration of the body is one that identifies us with God, such as the circumcision of males," he says. What is the difference between body piercing and tattooing? Ac- tually, Jewish tradition connects both forms of bod- ily mutilation, but pierc- ing is more acceptable. "In the Bible we have examples of women with earrings and nose rings," Rabbi Nevins acknowl- edges. "Jewish law doesn't discuss (piercing) as a health issue. But Torah specifically identifies tat- tooing as a custom foreign to Judaism." Rabbi Nevins also sug- gests a different, more sec- ular objection to tattoos. "There's an infinite number of ways to express your individuality. Our in- dividuality comes at birth," he says. "Speaking per- sonally, I find tattoos to be rather trite and silly." Rabbi Michael Moskowitz of Temple Shir Shalom says he "wouldn't condemn tattooing. I wouldn't say it's very bad. But, after the Holocaust (during which Jewish con- centration camp inmates were tattooed with num- bers replacing their names), it touches on a sensitive issue." Both Rabbis Nevins and Moskowitz state that the commonly held idea that Jews with tattoos are in- eligible for burial in Jew- ish cemeteries is inaccurate, at least in the case of most Conservative and Reform congregations. Rabbi Nevins doesn't Samantha Citrin with her dog, Timber. know of any Jewish corn- munity that prohibits burial of tattooed Jews. "It's between you and God," he says. Samantha Citrin, the 19-year- old student, says, "If I want to ex- press myself externally on my body I have every right to. I nev- er thought I was going to be of- fending anyone or my religion by getting a tattoo. It's just an art form. "You see a blank wall and you want to put art on it. The human body is an open invitation to ex- press yourself. I can't ever imag- ine myself wanting to get them removed. They tell stories. I want these stories to be with me for- ever." For instance, the Chinese let- tering on her ankle means: "On a dream and on a star, I am one in a million." Ms. Citrin's older sister, Alise, a 39-year-old mother of two small children, testifies to experiencing "a simple and free-spirit feeling' when she got a butterfly on her hip and a heart on her bottom. "The second week of college, I went to Lyle Tuttle's tattoo stu- dio. He's an old-time hippie and tattoo guy. Janis Joplin was one of my heroes in those days and she had one," she says. Fans of tattoos say it's an ad- dictive pursuit. Seemingly, con- noisseurs delight in the process E nearly as much as the final prod- uct. Rebecca Nosanchuk, a 24- ▪ year-old nursery school teacher, • sports four tattoos. "I have two flowers, a sun and • the sorority letters Sigma Delta Tau. I have a daisy on my toe and my letters on my ankle. I have