Religious liberty is often used as an argument for infant circumcision. Let me present an opposite view.
I believe my body is a very good thing. I believe that my sexual desires, including my desire for wholeness, and my desire for all the sensations that accompany a foreskin retracting over the glans, are a very good thing. I believe my body, including my foreskin, was literally made in the image of God, who has a perfected physical body. I believe that I intentionally chose to come to earth to receive a body because I knew that it would bring me closer to God. I believe that sometime after I die, I will be resurrected in a perfected, physical body—with a foreskin—and that I will be closer to God because of my whole body. I believe little children are born pure, worthy, and whole. And for me, personally, when a medical provider attached a plastabell device around my foreskin and pulled it tight, she or he separated me from one of the most divine parts of my creation. I am spiritually impacted by that. I believe God values consent, deeply, and that he is sad when parents violate the consent of a child on something so personal and long-lasting.
I believe God is deeply fair, values individual accountability, and will not damn a child because of the decisions of a parent, including the decision to protect the sacredness of a child’s body and leave it whole. I believe everyone should be allowed to practice whatever religion they want, according to their own beliefs. A belief system should not have authority to make permanent changes to a child's anatomy because that child may grow up and desire to change their religion and may not wish their body to reflect their prior belief system—I believe it is a violation of religious freedom to allow parents to permanently modify the anatomy of a child.
I believe the research that suggests there is a decrease in masturbatory pleasure*. I also believe foreskin play, like docking, is valuable to a lot of gay men. I do not believe religious freedom should include allowing parents to make masturbation less pleasurable or certain forms of gay sex physically impossible.
For other believing folks out there, are there ways in which you feel like your religious freedom was violated by your infant circumcision?
*see the attached source document.
I believe my body is a very good thing. I believe that my sexual desires, including my desire for wholeness, and my desire for all the sensations that accompany a foreskin retracting over the glans, are a very good thing. I believe my body, including my foreskin, was literally made in the image of God, who has a perfected physical body. I believe that I intentionally chose to come to earth to receive a body because I knew that it would bring me closer to God. I believe that sometime after I die, I will be resurrected in a perfected, physical body—with a foreskin—and that I will be closer to God because of my whole body. I believe little children are born pure, worthy, and whole. And for me, personally, when a medical provider attached a plastabell device around my foreskin and pulled it tight, she or he separated me from one of the most divine parts of my creation. I am spiritually impacted by that. I believe God values consent, deeply, and that he is sad when parents violate the consent of a child on something so personal and long-lasting.
I believe God is deeply fair, values individual accountability, and will not damn a child because of the decisions of a parent, including the decision to protect the sacredness of a child’s body and leave it whole. I believe everyone should be allowed to practice whatever religion they want, according to their own beliefs. A belief system should not have authority to make permanent changes to a child's anatomy because that child may grow up and desire to change their religion and may not wish their body to reflect their prior belief system—I believe it is a violation of religious freedom to allow parents to permanently modify the anatomy of a child.
I believe the research that suggests there is a decrease in masturbatory pleasure*. I also believe foreskin play, like docking, is valuable to a lot of gay men. I do not believe religious freedom should include allowing parents to make masturbation less pleasurable or certain forms of gay sex physically impossible.
For other believing folks out there, are there ways in which you feel like your religious freedom was violated by your infant circumcision?
*see the attached source document.
Attached Files
Very well thought out and articulate. You really have to ask yourself: Is it freedom of religion or freedom from religion? Because my circumcision 100% made me an atheist. Not to mention nowadays its no longer done for religious reasons for Christians at least. In the United States, its simply routine and seen as cleaner. The religious aspect has lost its touch anyway for that religion in particular. The same can't be said for jews and muslims though.
But yes, you are right. People are born without religion. Religion is a learned concept. Therefore, in the instances in which people are carving their beliefs into others, they are not respecting THE CHILD'S religious freedom.
It's truly all one big shit show.
But yes, you are right. People are born without religion. Religion is a learned concept. Therefore, in the instances in which people are carving their beliefs into others, they are not respecting THE CHILD'S religious freedom.
It's truly all one big shit show.