Circumcision?

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brendenseth

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I was looking at my wife’s baby center app, and the question of circumcision came up. To my suprise a lot of people are actually against it. I thought it had biblical backing, but could not find anyone referencing the bible. Could someone please tell me how to respond? I just don’t want to seem uneducated, and I really don’t want to give the wrong advice. Thanks in advance.
 
Circumcision ,for non Jews is pretty uncommon outside of America.
Circumcision as a sign in flesh is for the Jewish people. Gentiles are not bound to have their sons circumcised…many woman have their babies circumcised for “health” reason. There is a school of thought that it is healthier for males in the long run to have their foreskin removed. Less infections. But their is another school of thought that equates circumcision as a type of child abuse with absolutely no health benefits.
Bodily circumcision is not a sign for Christians. we are to have a circumcised hearts. For the Jewish people it is a powerful symbol of their covenant and the continuation of the their people.
 
juliamajor said:
Circumcision ,for non Jews is pretty uncommon outside of America.
Circumcision as a sign in flesh is for the Jewish people. Gentiles are not bound to have their sons circumcised…many woman have their babies circumcised for “health” reason. There is a school of thought that it is healthier for males in the long run to have their foreskin removed. Less infections. But their is another school of thought that equates circumcision as a type of child abuse with absolutely no health benefits.
Bodily circumcision is not a sign for Christians. we are to have a circumcised hearts. For the Jewish people it is a powerful symbol of their covenant and the continuation of the their people.
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I was reading the bible and God said all boys were to be circumcised?
 
brendenseth said:
I was reading the bible and God said all boys were to be circumcised?
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OT law. If you read the NT, you will find that it is not ordered, especially for Gentile converts. I’ll look up some verses for you.

OK - here are a few:

1 Corinthians 7:19
Romans 2:25-29 – especially v 29
Galatians 5:6
Galatians 6:13-15
Colossians 2:11
Titus 1:10

One argument I’ve read for circumcision is that circumcised homosexual men have fewer health problems than uncircumcised. But I don’t know if that is backed up by science.
 
Starting with Abraham, circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and his people. It makes sense when you understand that it was a blood covenant – a sharing in life (blood represents life). Why not just make a little cut on his hand or something? Because Abraham offered his blood from the source of his fatherhood, thus placing all his descendants under the same covenant (provided that they maintained the sign). It was also the source of the transmission of original sin. The shedding of blood is a requirement for propitiatory sacrifice, and in fact circumcision remitted original sin (women just offered up prayers). Christ himself was circumcised, making himself a son of Abraham and foreshadowing his passion on the cross.

Baptism is the sign of the New Covenant between God and his people. When we are baptized we are united supernaturally to Christ, making us also sons of Abraham and heirs to the promises made to him.
 
Circumcisim was part of the covenant God made with the Jews, but it is not required for Christians today - this was answered in the New Testament with questions about the circumcision for Gentile converts.

Circumcision was historically not practiced by non-Jewish Christians, and is still not generally practiced in Europe. In America, its rise was due more to medical quackery than for religious religions, and the health benefits are minimal and don’t outweigh the risks.

In short, there is no reason, spiritually or medically, to circumcize your son.
 
Bonnie said:
I’ll look up some verses for you.

OK - here are a few:

1 Corinthians 7:19
Romans 2:25-29 – especially v 29
Galatians 5:6
Galatians 6:13-15
Colossians 2:11
Titus 1:10
Click to expand...
To these verses might be added Acts 15:1-35, which describes the first church council, called to address this very question.
 
Ad_Orientem said:
Starting with Abraham, circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and his people. It makes sense when you understand that it was a blood covenant – a sharing in life (blood represents life). Why not just make a little cut on his hand or something? Because Abraham offered his blood from the source of his fatherhood, thus placing all his descendants under the same covenant (provided that they maintained the sign). It was also the source of the transmission of original sin. The shedding of blood is a requirement for propitiatory sacrifice, and in fact circumcision remitted original sin (women just offered up prayers). Christ himself was circumcised, making himself a son of Abraham and foreshadowing his passion on the cross.

Baptism is the sign of the New Covenant between God and his people. When we are baptized we are united supernaturally to Christ, making us also sons of Abraham and heirs to the promises made to him.
Click to expand...
I’m not sure about the part of your comment that refers to the source of original sin since Judaism does not believe in original sin. Or are you talking retroactively from a Christian perspective?
 
It is still being debated in the Medical community.

There is some evidence that male circumcision has health benefits, including:
easier to clean.
decreased risk of urinary tract infections.

Prevention of:
balanitis (inflammation of the glans)
balanoposthitis (inflammation of the glans and foreskin)
phimosis (the inability to retract the foreskin)
paraphimosis (the inability to return the foreskin to its original location)
Protection against cancer:penile cancer
reduced risk of cervical cancer in female sex partners.
reduced risk of some sexually transmitted diseases in men.

​
Circumcision is more widespread in the United States, Canada, and Mid-East than Asia, South America, Central America, and most of Europe.

 
firead said:
Circumcisim was part of the covenant God made with the Jews, but it is not required for Christians today - this was answered in the New Testament with questions about the circumcision for Gentile converts.

Circumcision was historically not practiced by non-Jewish Christians, and is still not generally practiced in Europe. In America, its rise was due more to medical quackery than for religious religions, and the health benefits are minimal and don’t outweigh the risks.

In short, there is no reason, spiritually or medically, to circumcize your son.
Click to expand...
Well, there may be a medical reason, but that does not equate to a reason to advocate for infant circumcision. A lot of the health issues in adults can be equally resolved without circumcision but by maintaining chastity (on the part of the young man in question), and the number of UTIs in baby boys regardless of circumcision status is much lower than the incidence in baby girls.

Personally, I’m a little skeeved by the idea of an open wound inside a diaper.

Spiritually, though, it is true that there is no reason for Christians to circumcise.
 
Melissa said:
Well, there may be a medical reason, but that does not equate to a reason to advocate for infant circumcision. A lot of the health issues in adults can be equally resolved without circumcision but by maintaining chastity (on the part of the young man in question), and the number of UTIs in baby boys regardless of circumcision status is much lower than the incidence in baby girls.

Personally, I’m a little skeeved by the idea of an open wound inside a diaper.

Spiritually, though, it is true that there is no reason for Christians to circumcise.
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Well, I have tried to understand what information my parents had at the time. I would prefer to have the foreskin that was removed. It would protect from friction.
 
meltzerboy said:
I’m not sure about the part of your comment that refers to the source of original sin since Judaism does not believe in original sin. Or are you talking retroactively from a Christian perspective?
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Christian perspective. We regard Christianity is the fulfillment of Old Testament Judaism, i.e. together they form one revealed religion.
 
This is what Paul says:

I, Paul, am telling you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you. 3 Once again I testify to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the entire law.
-Galatians 5:2-3

If you are circumcised because of the old laws you have to obey all the old laws. Which means you are bond by the old covenant, not the new covenant Christ established. Of course, if you are not circumcising for religious reasons it’s okay.

Also, there’s a lot of anti-circumcision hysteria out there right now. Most of the websites out there just regurgitate the same research. I don’t really care what you do, but I do believe both logical sides of the argument should be presented so here’s a good site on the benefits of circumcision: circinfo.net/
 
Todd977 said:
To these verses might be added Acts 15:1-35, which describes the first church council, called to address this very question.
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Thank you so much for these verses, I just looked them up. We have decided against circumcision, thank you again.
 
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