Should Catholics circumcize their children?

[CatholicAviator]

**Should Catholics circumcise their children?
**

Since Pope Eugene IV condemned it on religious grounds and since the American Medical Association now defines neonatal circumcision as a “non-therapeutic” surgical procedure, would subjecting our children to circumcision be immoral in light of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 2297, which says that non-therapeutic “amputations, mutilations, and sterilizations performed on innocent persons are against the moral law”?

See:

“The Roman Catholic Church and Non-therapeutic Circumcision”
www.cirp.org/library/cultural/catholic/

and

“Respect for Bodily Integrity: A Catholic Perspective on Circumcision in Catholic Hospitals”
American Journal Of Bioethics, Volume 3, Number 2: Pages 1f-3f. Spring 2003
cirp.org/library/cultural/fadel2/

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Although required in conscience for those non-Christians who believe God requires that they circumcise their sons, for Christians, circumcision is entirely unnecessary for religious reasons (cf. Gal. 5:6, 6:15). Indeed, as the apostles insisted that baptism is the Christian’s supernatural “circumcision” (Col. 2:11-12), it would be wrong for a Christian to naturally circumcise his sons for religious reasons.

The Church, however, is neutral on the question of whether a Christian can circumcise sons for medical reasons. If a Christian, after due consideration, feels that circumcision is in the best health interests of his son, he is acting within his parental rights.