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August 7, 2012
Austria Affirms That Doctors Can Legally Circumcise Infants
Questions raised after anti-circumcision ruling by appeals court in neighboring Germany.
Austria's Justice Ministry has cleared the nation's doctors to resume infant circumcisions without risk of criminal charges.
Amid concerns that such circumcisions might become illegal after an appeals court in neighboring Germany recently ruled that religious parents do not have the right to circumcise their sons, the governor of an Austrian province had advised doctors to stop the practice.
Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, and Muslim leaders came together to successfully defend the tradition, saying that limiting the practice was an attack on religion, according to Reuters. Austria is home to about 500,000 Muslims and 9,000 Jews.
Meanwhile, Norway's new ombudsman for children's rights has advocated for ending circumcision and replacing it with a "symbolic, nonsurgical ritual." According to The Jewish Daily Forward, the previous ombudsman suggested "setting 15 as the minimum age" for circumcision.
Prompted by a proposed ballot question in San Francisco last year, CT's David Neff has weighed in on criminalizing circumcision, arguing that America may have secularized the ancient Jewish rite but it is still inescapably religious.
Comments
Gee murdering the unborn by torture is legal but doing a medical procedure that keeps bacteria, etc. from getting caught in the folds of the skin and causing infection is a criminal act. Sounds to me as if it's really a sex thing as men claim that no circumcision gives them more sexual feeling but they obviously don't care about diseases and infections they can past on to their sexual partner or die themselves from. Well, being a woman I say don't circumcise the boy babies and the women will have less of diseased men to deal with when the boy babies start having sex. I'll bet that intelligent men as adults will circumcise themselves to protect their women and their children as well as themselves.
Posted By: Original Anna | August 10, 2012 8:56 PM
Abraham and all his family were circumcised; so receiving the token of the covenant, and distinguishing themselves from other families that had no part nor lot in the matter, Genesis 17. This is where asking the Lord for wisdom and revelation comes in today-and keeping the scriptures within context. This act was not to meant as a 'health' act. It was to seal the covenant between God and Abraham- of the promise God gave him. It even included all of Abraham's household males and slaves signifying that they were also to be a part of this 'covenant'. Covenant (or agreement) meant that they would worship the only true God alone. It was also (as has been interpreted as a sign) a dying or cutting away of the flesh. It is also part of the old covenant (the law) not the new. Keep in mind the disagreement the apostle Paul had with Peter about it. He was arguing about why keep the law of do's and dont's- then Christ died in vain. He was in essence telling Peter to stop them from being so rigid about the traditions of the flesh. Moreover, the scripture says there is no more Jew, Greek, or gentile as we are now All one in Christ.
In addition, Abraham was asked to do this by God at the age of ninety-nine. I don't think God was very concerned then about how many women Abraham would get 'sick'.
The condition of the heart is what God is after- not the body. If this was not the case God would still be requiring new male believers (who've never been circumcised) to do it after becoming believers. To believe and be baptized is the command- not be circumcised.
Most of the world male population are not filling doctors offices claiming disease or monogamous couples claiming sexual disease. Please I encourage you to do your own research and you will see that good old soap and water is enough to keep any man clean.
Posted By: Elle Maldonado | August 13, 2012 12:36 AM
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