Circumcision is a sin for Catholics?

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ByzCath said:
Hmmm, one thing comes to mind.

In this day and age when would it be appropriate for a son to actually see, and in this case actually examine, his father’s genitals?
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I don’t think it is out of the question.

Camping trips, hunting trips, showers at the beach, etc. There are still places where urinals are more of a community resource rather than segregated into individual stalls - there is still one in Penn Station, New York City, last time I was there.

We had to wear athletic supporters in high school gym class and were required to shower.

It doesn’t take a detailed examination to see circumcision.

In a close family, I don’t think it is out of the question.

-Tim-
 
OraLabora said:
Unless medically necessary, for example phimosis, for Christians it is mutilation, pure and simple.
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Unfortunately it is not “pure and simple”. It is a matter of opinion. The Church has not spoken on the issue. Catholics are free to follow the medical advice of actual physicians.

It is against forum policy to provide medical advice.
 
ByzCath,

You said the Church has not spoken on the issue, yet I opened this thread with a quote from an Ecumenical Council… Why does it seem like the Councils no longer matter? I was taught that Ecumenical Councils are infallible. I am very confused.
 
Anna2012 said:
ByzCath,

You said the Church has not spoken on the issue, yet I opened this thread with a quote from an Ecumenical Council… Why does it seem like the Councils no longer matter? I was taught that Ecumenical Councils are infallible. I am very confused.
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That is an interesting quote. I had not read it before, but it is provocative.

The quote also says that we are not to observe the sabbath. I’m not sure we are understanding it correctly.

I’m not challenging, just pointing it out and sincerely interested in understanding it.

-Tim-
 
Because the Church has not pronounced on it doesn’t make it right. You can’t assume: ‘Because it is not expressly forbidden (or I haven’t read it anywhere to date), I can do it’. This attitude has led to some very unusual masses, for example.
 
bcra said:
if it were were a sin then I and 40000 other catholic are living in sin. sorry:gopray2::amen::takethat: i do not believe it
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You don’t seriously believe that something done to you without your knowledge or will would be a sin, anyway, do you? Even if the church said that circumcision WAS a sin, it would only apply to the parents.

If you ARE serious, you don’t understand sin. It is something done deliberately by someone, and any guilt only applies to that person, not to their victim.

Why am I making a point with this? Because it reminds me of the view that if a girl is raped, she is no longer a virgin.
 
The problem is that those circumcised as an infant will never have a choice about keeping that comical but extremely useful piece of flesh.

I recall a friend, as a adult, being upset that it had been done to him. Not something we chaps would normally discuss so I don’t know how many men it bothers, especially as the ol’ organ would coarsen over time, to compensate. Ya won’t miss what ya never had.

However, understand …

There is a weird fetish in humanity for medicalising for no reason. This includes unncecessary ‘procedures’, ‘therapy’ and ‘medication’.
 
I think that we must make it clear that the way circumcision is performed here in the USA is not the same way it was required by God and the way it is described in the Bible.

We should also be honest and accept the fact that today circumcision in countries like the USA is just an elective surgery and has no real medical justification. Circumcision can be more of a fad like the removal of wisdom teeth today, not everybody that undergoes it really needs it. In other countries can be a different story. However, I would not see any strong reason to criticize a person for some minor elective surgery. I call it minor because I am not sure of the impact on the infant, I know that surgery in the genital areas for a toddler can have a significant impact.

In regard to the Church disciplines of the past we must realize that some made a lot of sense and would have been considered necessary at the time; however, they do not make a lot of sense today. The pastoral needs have changed and so disciplines can change including the possible prohibition of circumcision.
 
RogerDeCourcy said:
My mother had her tonsils out as a child because, she said, it was fashionable. I think that’s all it is.
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That is an interesting comparison.

I wish someone had taken my tonsils out when I was a kid. Because they didn’t, I suffered from acute strep throat for about two years, until I finally had them out as an adult. We spent a fortune on antibiotics and I suffered a lot more pain and inconvenience than I would have, had I had them out as a child.

Just because something (whether circumcision or removal of healthy tonsils) may not be a good idea, that doesn’t mean that it is necessarily pointless or stupid or mutilation. The reason may not be sufficient, but that doesn’t mean there’s no reason.

–Jen
 
We always have to remember context. I have seen people - including traditionalists - ignorantly cite old documents incorrectly (no offense meant by saying “ignorantly” - I mean it in the simplest sense).

The Council was talking about people who practice circumcision thinking that it is still required by the moral law, or who are trying to “cover all their bases” with God by practicing the old Jewish rituals - the sin is of mistrust in the Church’s teaching. The point is that the Church has said the old Mosaic Law is no longer in force. It has to do with intention here. Circumcision for some other reason is not intrinsically sinful.
 
Leon_Bloy said:
The Council was talking about people who practice circumcision thinking that it is still required by the moral law, or who are trying to “cover all their bases” with God by practicing the old Jewish rituals - the sin is of mistrust in the Church’s teaching. The point is that the Church has said the old Mosaic Law is no longer in force. It has to do with intention here. Circumcision for some other reason is not intrinsically sinful.
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There you go! 👍
 
Giving medical opinions an advice is contrary to forum rules.

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