Why do Christians circumcise babies?

Answer 1

A bit less then 20% of the words men are circumcised, the rest have intact genitalia and would no more think of cutting of their foreskin then they would cutting of a finger or any other part of the body. Historically the main reason for circumcision is religious and or cultural. However during the Victorian era (The mid 1800,s) the British medical fraternity got it into their heads that masturbation was responsible for a huge number of diseases ranging from syphilis to insanity. They set about introducing a way to reduce the incidence of boys wanting to masturbate. A natural way for boys to become acquainted with the concept of masturbation is for them to manipulate the foreskin which is always a pleasant pastime, as the foreskin is enervated with more then 20.000 nerves designed to give sexual pleasure. This activity also helps loosen the foreskin which then over time becomes retractable and ready for sexual intercourse and masturbation. In addition to the pleasurable aspect in handling the foreskin (prepuce) itself the removal of it also took away the protection required by the glans to keep its sensitivity making the whole organ less attractive to play with. These doctors never mentioned an overriding urge in boys to masturbate anyway. In any case their idea caught on in the English speaking world and became a fad for some time. As the 1800th century progressed the folly in this procedure started to become more obvious and the practice of health inspired circumcision became less popular throughout these English influenced areas and would have eventually died out except in the USA where a lucrative industry had developed around it. US medics had managed to convince the army during WW1 that they should protect their conscripts from disease by circumcising them and that was the start of a battle that is still raging today with vested interest constantly introducing false reasons for the maintenance of this harmful practice. Circumcision is rare in the well educated parts of the world today and is decried by all medical authorities as harmful and traumatising to children. In the US the main medical authorities word this message more carefully so as not to step on the toes of their circumcision industry (after all the US is a capitalist country and the dollar has overriding power) but there also it is admitted that there is no medical necessity to remove the prepuce from the penis.

Answer 2

Circumcision was practiced in Biblical times, it is mentioned several times in the Old Testament. Jewish males of that time were all circumcised.

Most religions such as Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism do not practice circumcision.

While the majority of the world's men are uncircumcised, circumcision became a cultural practice in a few countries, for example the United States. Circumcision became popular in the late 19th century as a method to keep young boys from masturbating. Gradually, the practice of routine infant circumcision became widespread in the United States. However, circumcision rates have been declining in the United States for a number of reasons. Among them are that circumcision can decrease the sensitivity of the penis and pleasure during sexual activity.

In the 1980s up to 80% of newborn males were circumcised. By 2007, less than 40% of newborn males were circumcised.

Answer

Some hold the view that circumcision was originally invented to curb masturbation, which is a normal, healthy practice. It was performed on males, who then felt compelled to repeat the process on their sons. It is a tribal mentality: "He should look like us -- he should be as we are."

In the case with female genital mutilation, it is done to guarantee sexual purity and to guarantee the genetic line. it is a cultural practice as opposed to a religious one.

Answer for Jews:

The origin of Jewish circumcision is in the Torah, which is the foundation of Judaism. God told Abraham "every male among you shall be circumcised" as part of the covenant between God and the Jewish people (Genesis ch.17). Since that time, virtually all Jews have observed the command of circumcision for close to four millennia, even in times of religious persecution under the Greeks, Romans, Spaniards, and Soviets. Circumcision is the indelible sign of God's covenant and is just as important as Yom Kippur in terms of the stringency which the Torah places upon it. And similar to Yom Kippur, it is one of the observances which are common to Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews alike.

It may be noted that while we do not keep God's commands because of physical benefits, it is still interesting that circumcision has been known to offer virtually complete protection from penile cancer. According to a recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine, none of the more than 1,600 persons studied with this cancer had been circumcised in infancy. In the words of researchers Cochen and McCurdy, the incidence of penile cancer in the U.S. is "essentially zero" among circumcised men. Also, research at Johns Hopkins University Medical School in Baltimore have shown that circumcised men are six to eight times less likely to become infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Researchers believe that protection is due to the removal of the foreskin, which contains cells that have HIV receptors which scientists suspect are the primary entry point for the HIV virus (Reuters, March 25, 2004).
Several studies reported that circumcised boys were between 10 to 39 times less likely to develop urinary tract infections during infancy than uncircumcised boys. In addition, circumcision protects against bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections and a variety of other conditions related to hygiene.
The extremely low rate of Cervical cancer in Jewish women (9 to 22 times less than among non-Jewish women) is thought to be related to their husbands' being circumcised. As a result of studies like these, a number of prestigious medical organizations such as the California Medical Association have recognized the benefits of circumcision.
As an operation, circumcision has an extremely small complication rate. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine (1990) reported a complication rate of 0.19 percent when circumcision is performed by a physician. When performed by a trained mohel, the rate falls to 0.13 percent or about 1 in 800. When a complication occurs, it is usually due to the bleeding, which is easily correctable. No other surgical procedure can boast such figures for complication-free operations.
One reason why there are so few complications involving bleeding may be that the major clotting agents, prothrombin and vitamin K, do not reach peak levels in the blood until the eighth day after a baby is born. Prothrombin levels are normal at birth, drop to a lower level in the next few days, and return to normal at the end of the first week. One study showed that by the eighth day, prothrombin levels reach 110 percent of normal. In the words of Dr. Armand J. Quick, author of several works on the control of bleeding, "It hardly seems accidental that the rite of circumcision was postponed until the eighth day by the Mosaic law."

Answer 3

Christian country's don't circumcise their children for religious reasons because ther is no religious requirement to do so. there is no Christian circumcision tradition.

English speaking cultures such as the country's of the British Commonwealth and the United States of America took up the practice in the Victorian era (mid 1800s) as a way to reduce the inclination boys had to masturbate. the reasoning at the time of the British medical fraternity was that masturbation was responsible for more then 100 different diseases By removing the foreskin the pleasurable feeling associated with handling the foreskin and the resulting loss of sensitivity of the glans would reduce the incidence of masturation. the practice is rapidly coming to an end in the developed country of the commonwealth and more slowly in the US. the reasoning for circumcision changes as time moves along and now depends on a constant stream of misinformation linking it with disease. the fact is though that the country with the best sexual health and the least sexual dysfunction are those where it is not practiced.

Tradition. I would hate to think that they enjoy hurting a baby that much; so it must be a very strong tradition.

Another answer:Not all Christians do; it's not a "religious requirement" under the New Covenant.

Galatians 5:6 - For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.

Among those who do, some parents may have it done out of a sense of tradition, but most have it done simply for hygienic reasons. The pain of it is a moot point; it won't be remembered.

Answer 4

The only god that requires circumcision is the god of the Jews which is a relatively minor religion. And even there the instruction that requires circumcision comes from the torah, A book that many Jews say does not represent the will of God. Given that though No reason is given for the requirement that people who are Jewish should genitally mutilate their children through circumcision.

Answer:

God commanded circumcision to the entire House of Israel via Moses (all 12 tribes and not just Judah) as a sign between them and God. They were to keep His Law fully for all to see:

Genesis 17:10-12New King James Version (NKJV)

10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; 11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not your descendant.

After Christ's sacrifice and the Jerusalem Council, the Apostle Paul to the Gentiles was inspired to record this:

Colossians 2:11New King James Version (NKJV) Not Legalism but Christ11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins[a]of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,Footnotes:

1. Colossians 2:11 NU-Text omits of the sins.

Answer 5

The origin of Jewish circumcision is in the Torah. God told Abraham "every male among you shall be circumcised" (Genesis ch.17) as part of the covenant between God and the Jewish people.

Since that time, virtually all Jews have observed the command of circumcision for close to four millennia, even in times of religious persecution under the Greeks, Romans, Spaniards, Soviets and others. Circumcision is the indelible sign of God's covenant with Abraham and is just as important as Yom Kippur in terms of the stringency which the Torah places upon it. And similar to Yom Kippur, it is one of the observances which are common to Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews alike.

Answer 6

People don't need to have a circumcision.