Circumcision and non-religious people

[Marisa]

Baha'is do not require circumcision... so it's not so much a religious issue for us...

My own view though is that circumcision began to be practiced in warm climates.. and areas that had limited amounts of water...desert areas.

See:

Circumcision - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Smegma has a pungent odor and this led people to suppose it was unclean..

There's a fairly good article on circumcision that implies it reduces the risks of various infections. Read

Circumcision - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

But it doesn't reduce infection rates:
Neonatal circumcision does not reduce HIV/AIDS infection rates
Adult Male Circumcision Does Not Reduce the Risk of Incident Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, or Trichomonas vaginalis Infection: Results from a Randomized, Controlled Trial in Kenya
Circumcision Does Not Directly Reduce the Likelihood of Male-to-Female HIV Transmission
More Circumcision Myths You May Believe: Hygiene and STDs | Psychology Today
Circumcision Does Not Prevent HPV Infection, RCT Data 'Inflated,' Study Finds | IntactNews

 

[Marisa]

Is circumcision a perfectly ok choice for people? Or, rather, to practice? /obviously, most of the time it isn't a choice/. It seems to be something slightly more significant, than the mustard I get on my sandwich? that's why i'm bringing it up.

I actually don't have much of a horse in this race. I look at it from a completely different angle: to me, I wouldn't circumcise a male child for the same reason I didn't pierce my infant daughter's ears: there is no compelling purpose. My daughter ended up piercing her own ears which I wasn't against, but it's her choice. Any deity that demands this procedure to signify fellowship is a deity whose motives I would question, and thus refrain from following. But that's just me.

 

[Twilight Hue]

I'll never have any bases by which to compare. LOL

True dat. :0)

 

[Desert Snake]

Pardon, I got the impression from your OP that the intent of this discussion was something else entirely. I'll take my leave, then.

Actually, those two things are related. That's what I'm saying.

 

[Desert Snake]

I actually don't have much of a horse in this race. I look at it from a completely different angle: to me, I wouldn't circumcise a male child for the same reason I didn't pierce my infant daughter's ears: there is no compelling purpose. My daughter ended up piercing her own ears which I wasn't against, but it's her choice. Any deity that demands this procedure to signify fellowship is a deity whose motives I would question, and thus refrain from following. But that's just me.

Right, I don't have a horse in this race, either. I don't know what angle you think im looking at it from?
That's what im saying, there is no compelling purpose for it. It is a religious ritual //certain religions

 

[Marisa]

Right, I don't have a horse in this race, either. I don't know what angle you think im looking at it from?
That's what im saying, there is no compelling purpose for it. It is a religious ritual //certain religions

I wasn't describing you at all, only me. Sorry if my comment came off as some sort of indictment, I honestly didn't mean it that way.

 

[Desert Snake]

Yes but what that answer tells you is that this procedure has become so commonplace and ordinary that many don't know why it's done anymore, they just know if you birth a boy, you circumcise. I didn't have a boy, I have a girl, but if I had I'd love to say that I would not circumcise, but I probably would have because it's just "what you do". My husband is, and everyone I've ever been with has been as well. It's not something I'd have given any consideration to until having had my first encounter with an anti-circer who asked me questions. If I birthed a boy today, no way I'd circ. Because in my opinion, "god wants me to" is no more compelling of a reason than "it looks nicer".

Religiously, it's just a few religions that traditionally circumcise. Christians don't. It states in the Bible, that once someone is circumcised, then they have to do the entire law, ie all the laws. In the modern age, circumcision was used in England, by some, then fell out of favour. Somehow, it reached America/usa, and became popular

 

[Desert Snake]

I wasn't describing you at all, only me. Sorry if my comment came off as some sort of indictment, I honestly didn't mean it that way.

Lol I guess the point was, Xians actually wouldn't circumcise, unless they want to be under all the laws. So, religiously, xians are more like, ignoring their texts, when they circumcise; rather than being religious

 

[Smart_Guy]

I think non-religious parents circumcise their children following the advice of doctors.

I mean, do all parents really know better than doctors in health matters?

 

[DoubtingNate]

The only time in my life I wished I was circumcised was after chopping chillies and going for a pee without washing my hands lol.

circumcised here and I don't think that would help me much.. lol

 

[Jumi]

I think non-religious parents circumcise their children following the advice of doctors.

I mean, do all parents really know better than doctors in health matters?

Most doctors recommendation is not to circumcise unless there is a rare condition that requires it.

 

[Smart_Guy]

The only time in my life I wished I was circumcised was after chopping chillies and going for a pee without washing my hands lol.

Did you by any chance mean "was not circumcised" ?

 

[Levite]

Circumcision, is a religious ceremony. Traditionally, only certain religions practiced this. In the modern age, non-religious people, in some instances, have started doing this tradition. Is it intellectually honest to say that circumcision, is 'not' a religious ceremony anymore? It is obviously, to me. In fact it is a culturally and geographic specific ceremony, at that.


The claim that circumcision is non-religious, to me, might be some sort of rationalization, for some people being...adhered/?/ to a blatantly religious tradition?

It's religious if it's done for religious reasons. There are plenty of people who do it for non-religious reasons. Whether it is a religious act depends entirely on the circumstances.

 

[Satyamavejayanti]

No male/female in my family is circumcised, i and others in my immediate family or extended family have never had any problems because of it, we were taught proper cleanliness from a early age, specially for our "private parts", i don't know if this is a "religious", thing among Hindus, but i have heard some who later got circumcised, but only after conversion to Christianity. As for sex, my satisfaction is when she is satisfied, and i just make sure she is as often as possible.

 

[psychoslice]

Only if kids are not taught to wash themselves.

Well its better to get it done and not worry about washing yourself, plus it looks better.

 

[psychoslice]

circumcised here and I don't think that would help me much.. lol

Sorry I should have said, "the only time in my life I wish I wasn't circumcised".

 

[psychoslice]

Did you by any chance mean "was not circumcised" ?

Yea, I just realized it, thanks.

 

[Desert Snake]

It's religious if it's done for religious reasons. There are plenty of people who do it for non-religious reasons. Whether it is a religious act depends entirely on the circumstances.

I think it is fairly obvious that the origin, of the practice, is religious. That is why it only became popular in the u.s.a. as a secular thing, /apparently/. So, whether people believe the practice has non-religious benefits, is pretty much beside the point, as far as I'm concerned. It's certainly not something that people would be doing without the religious import/origin, though; I think that that is obvious. The issue of Christians practicing it, though, is different from non-religious people adhering to the practice, because, in the NT, it states that circumcision does have meaning, but once some one practices it, they are then under the entire Torah laws, as opposed to some one /A Christian/, who doesn't practice it. So, religiously, Christians, if they practice it, cannot separate that, from their Scripture. Well, they can...but then, they are picking and choosing Scripture.

 

[Desert Snake]

The 'secular', or purely secular reasoning for circumcision has to be weighed against the individual rights of the person on who it is performed. So, if one chooses to be circumcised, that is different from someone not having a say in the matter.

 

[Levite]

I think it is fairly obvious that the origin, of the practice, is religious. That is why it only became popular in the u.s.a. as a secular thing, /apparently/. So, whether people believe the practice has non-religious benefits, is pretty much beside the point, as far as I'm concerned. It's certainly not something that people would be doing without the religious import/origin, though; I think that that is obvious. The issue of Christians practicing it, though, is different from non-religious people adhering to the practice, because, in the NT, it states that circumcision does have meaning, but once some one practices it, they are then under the entire Torah laws, as opposed to some one /A Christian/, who doesn't practice it. So, religiously, Christians, if they practice it, cannot separate that, from their Scripture. Well, they can...but then, they are picking and choosing Scripture.

Whether it began originally as a purely religious practice or not is irrelevant. The fact is that there are many people today who circumcise because of health benefits, cleanliness issues, or simple aesthetic preferences. Whether one agrees with their decisions or not, the fact remains that they are circumcising for reasons that have nothing to do with religion.